Written by: Susan Granger
www.susangranger.com

The season of popcorn pictures ignites early with the third installment of this action-packed franchise, starring Tom Cruise as Secret Agent Ethan Hunt and Philip Seymour Hoffman, fresh from his Best Actor Oscar, as the ruthless and diabolical villain. They're directed by first-time feature-film helmer J. J. Abrams, creator of TV's "Alias," "Felicity" and "Lost."

Having retired from field work to training future agents under the guise of "a traffic operations specialist", Ethan Hunt is celebrating his engagement to unsuspecting Julie (Michelle Monaghan) when he's suddenly summoned back to duty by his unit manager (Billy Crudup). It seems Hunt's star protégé (Keri Russell) has been captured by Owen Davian (Philip Seymour Hoffman), an elusive weapons dealer. A stunning helicopter chase through a wind farm is just the beginning of spectacular stunts that include explosive runs through Berlin and the Vatican City, a jump across a gap on the Chesapeake Bay Bridge, topped by aerial acrobatics across the rooftops of exotic Shanghai, tracking a mysterious "rabbit's foot."

Working from a convoluted script, involving flashbacks, by Alex Kurtzman, Roberto Orci & J.J. Abrams, which evokes memories of the thriller TV series, including an identity-switching mask, Cruise's charismatic energy relies on the strongly textured teamwork behind him: trusty Ving Rhames, versatile Jonathan Rhys-Meyers and slinky Hong Kong action star Maggie Q. with Laurence Fishburne as their cranky IMF boss.

J.J. Abrams cranks the kinetic, testosterone-fueled suspense and dramatic intensity, punctuated with moments of unexpected humor and high-tech images without clear context. The signature "MI" music is updated and toughened by Kanye West.

On the Granger Movie Gauge of 1 to 10, "Mission Impossible III" is a gritty, adrenaline-pumping 8, delivering an exuberant, if nerve-wracking thrill ride.