...this snappy installment is a marked improvement over John Woo's surprisingly dull sequel, though the set pieces lack the elegance and visual coherence of the Brian de Palma original. full review

The summer's first action epic does exactly what it's supposed to do, more clearly than M:i:I, and more likeably than M:i:II. full review

As idiot movies go, this one is as sub-mental as you might expect. full review

My final reaction to Mission: Impossible III is one of bemused tolerance and even mild absorption in all the silliness. full review

There are no flourishes to savor. Instead, there are big-deal stunts. full review

The grand finale? A fistfight, after which somebody gets run over. Listen, if I want to see that kind of action, I don't go to Shanghai. I don't even go to the movies. I go to the South Bronx and stand outside a bar.

The best of the three. full review

Abrams knows how to frame a shot and how to propulsively push both action and love stories, but logic continues to elude him as much as it did De Palma and Woo. full review

If Mission: Impossible 3 is the first pitch of the popcorn-movie season, just two words come to mind -- butter up. full review

What summer movies aspire to -- a slick demonstration of hot buttered entertainment that will probably slide you right out of the theatre before you even stop to ask a logical question or two. full review

For all the attempts at adding depth, it's likely that audiences will come away remembering the fireworks.

All the popcorn season really wants is a good reason to see super-fit bodies flying around on a big screen, and M:I:III gits 'er done. full review

Mission: Impossible III will make you jump up and down with exuberance, just like its star. full review

Director Abrams seems to have attended the Tony Scott Extreme Closeup Academy. full review

Whatever your feelings about Cruise, Mission: Impossible III is nirvana for thrill seekers.

Director J.J. Abrams, creator of such TV hits as Alias and Lost, makes a reasonably impressive feature debut with the best installment of the series. full review

Mission: Impossible III provides lots of action, but too little excitement. full review

Although he slams into stationary objects with his customary zeal, Tom Cruise is off his game here, sabotaged by a misguided attempt to shade his character with gray.

It's an expertly engineered popcorn movie -- hold the butter substitute -- but it also tries (and fails) to be a love story for the ages. full review

A smart, tightly directed thriller that could serve as the template for film schools teaching Summertime Escapism 101. full review