'Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning' film review: Relentlessly paced three-hour mission (maybe?) wraps up the incredible action series

After nearly three decades of overcoming outrageously ludicrous obstacles, Tom Cruise embarks on a mission that feels like the culmination of all his adventures thus far in 'Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning' (in theaters nationwide May 23).

In short: Impossible Mission Force point man Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) embarks on his final battle against The Entity, an AI being intent on initiating a nuclear apocalypse. Hayley Atwell, Ving Rhames, Simon Pegg, Henry Czerny and Angela Bassett also star.

As usual, this spoiler-free review will not reveal any of the surprises or cameos in store for audiences in this eighth mission for Ethan Hunt in what feels like a conclusion - but one that leaves the door open for the franchise to go on.

Weighing in at just under three-hours, 'Final Reckoning' is the longest entry in the 'Mission Impossible' series so far - yet this super-sized film never wears out its welcome. This is an incredibly intense, fast-paced three-hour action flick that rarely takes a beat to slow down or give the audience a chance to breath. To the films credit, a lot of this has to do with the fact that 'Final Reckoning' is essentially one impossible mission after impossible mission after impossible mission. Each chunk of the film seemingly has a 0.0 percent chance of success or survivability - yet that's exactly the 'Mission Impossible' formula isn't it?

Any casual movie goer can absolutely go into 'Final Reckoning' and just enjoy one heart-stopping action sequence after another - but long-time fans of the series will be rewarded for their loyalty to the franchise. Elements from just about every single preceding 'Mission Impossible' movie find their way into 'Final Reckoning,' making this one adventure feel like a true culmination of Ethan Hunt's adventures. So a rewatch the the entire series is well-advised heading into 'Final Reckoning' ... well ... no one needs to re-watch 'Mission: Impossible 2.' This film acts as if that movie didn't happen - so audiences can act accordingly.

'Mission: Impossible III' and 'Mission: Impossible – Fallout' are commonly considered standouts of the series - and they remain superior to 'Final Reckoning' (and 'Dead Reckoning' for that matter) because they have one element missing from either 'Reckoning' flick: a great villain. The Entity, as a concept, is a truly terrifying idea for an antagonist for this digital age: an AI intent on ending mankind. But the Entity is basically just a threat in the background in 'Final Reckoning.' Even the Entity's chosen proxy Gabriel (Esai Morales) is only really part of the plot in the first and third acts, as he issues a threat to Ethan's team and shows up at the end to enforce said threat. This denies Ethan a great villain to play off of or interact with - he's basically reduced to pulling off improbable missions with his greatest enemy: time.

Final verdict: If this is indeed the end of the 'Mission Impossible' series, then 'Final Reckoning' is a fun, action-packed relentless ride that wraps up much of Ethan Hunt's personal story arcs. And if the series continues, then 'Final Reckoning' has left the series with some fun pieces to play with in future adventures.

Score: 4/5

'Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning' opens in theaters nationwide May 23. The action adventure has a runtime of 170 minutes and is rated PG-13 for sequences of strong violence and action, bloody images, and brief language.