The Mission: Impossible films are best known for their death-defying stunts, often performed practically by the virtually ageless Tom Cruise. We covered, extensively, the amount of prep that Cruise put in to filming the motorcycle jump into a freefall base-jump cliff stunt for the new movie Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning, Part One. But if you ask director Christopher McQuarrie, he’ll tell you that the Fiat car chase around Rome is the scene that he’s most proud of, and for good reason.
You have seen the scene teased in the trailers. Tom Cruise and Hayley Atwell are running for their lives, escaping some heavy hitters (including Pom Klementieff, acting like a lunatic). They escape in a series of vehicles. Motorcycles. Cars. And they end up in a tricked out yellow Fiat… handcuffed together.
That should be challenging enough, right? Well, no. While speaking with Christopher McQuarrie regarding the planning and execution of that chase scene, he talked alot about how Rome, and the conditions of the location, dictated what they could do… and not do. As McQuarrie told CinemaBlend:
There was a lot of experimentation between Tom and Haley. What their relationship was, and how that relationship was supposed to evolve over the course of that sequence. On top of that, when you got to Rome with that car, and all the work we had done to increase its power – which made it very unpredictable – and you are very fortunate in that you have someone like Tom Cruise behind the wheel, admittedly with one hand cuffed to somebody else. Tom has so much experience shooting car chases that he was able to safely navigate all of that.
But there’s a technical element to the Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning, Part One Fiat car chase around Rome that might go unrecognized unless you know to look out for it. Because as Hayley Atwell went on to explain that throughout the chase sequence, she and Tom Cruise are framed by McQuarrie in a two shot. Meaning, the take of the scene that the director could use had to be good for both actors, and not something that could be covered up by quick edits. Atwell went on to say:
And that’s because of the work that we did together as a team going, ‘How do we stay present in the moment with each other, where we know each other’s character inside out and we trust each other as actors to remain present. So that none of us drop balls. So that I can react to anything that he’s offering me, and vice versa.’ It’s such a small thing, seemingly. Most people would never pick up on this. But to be able to achieve that in a two-shot within the context of a car chase sequence is a HUGE, huge achievement technologically, as well as creatively. It’s something I’m really proud of.
That’s saying a lot. But that’s what happens when you team with Tom Cruise and Christopher McQuarrie on a Mission: Impossible movie. They are technical exercises that warrant being seen on the biggest screen possible. And make sure that you watch the Mission: Impossible movies in order, to truly track Ethan Hunt’s progress. You also have to keep up to date with this most recent MIssion: Impossible so that you are ready when the second half of Dead Reckoning plays out … even though that might not be the end of the franchise, if you believe what Tom Cruise is now saying. Stay tuned for more, and go see Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning, Part One while it’s still in theaters!
