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WSR Detailed DVD Review
Mission: Impossible II


Genre: Action Adventure

Reviewed In Issue 45 (Jan/Feb 2001) Of Widescreen Review®

Stars:
Tom Cruise, Dougray Scott, Thandie Newton, Richard Roxburgh, John Polson, Brendan Gleeson, Rad

WSR Review Scores
WSR Picture Rating: 4.5
DD Sound Rating: 5
DTS Sound Rating: NA
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Reference Systems
Critics' Composite Score: 3.5
Internet Links
http://www.missionimpossible.com
http://www.paramount.com/homevideo
Special Features
Extensive special features include Director John Woo


 DVD General Information

(Studio/Distributor): Paramount Home Entertainment
(Catalog Number): 33487
(MPAA Rating): PG13
(Rating Reason):

Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of violent action and some sensuality.
(Retail Price): $29.99
(DVD Type): Single Side, Dual Layer (DVD9)
(Widescreen Edition): Yes
(Full Screen Edition): No
(Anamorphic Widescreen): Yes
(Running Time In Minutes): 123
(Color Type): Color
(Chaptered/Scene Access): Yes
(Closed Captioned): No
(Regional Coding): 1
(Theatrical Year): 2000
(Theatrical Release): Yes
(Direct-To-Video Release): No
(DVD Release Date): 11/07/00
(THX® Digitally Mastered): No

 Credits Information

(Director): John Woo
(Screenplay/Written By): Subscribe Now!
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(Supervising Sound Editors): Subscribe Now!
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  DVD Picture Information

(Principal Photography): Subscribe Now!
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  DVD Sound Information

(DVD Soundtrack): Subscribe Now!
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  WSR Narrative Review
Story Synopsis:
Based on the perennial favorite TV series created by Bruce Geller and following the successful first film in 1996, Mission: Impossible II stars, once again, Tom Cruise as agent Ethan Hunt as he chooses to accept his next mission, code name: Chimera. He is told, through those really cool talking sunglasses, that he must choose as one of his team members, civilian Nyah Nordoff-Hall (Newton), a highly capable high-tech thief. (Of course, this sets up the PG-13-level steamy love story that adds a bit of emotional sizzle to the adventure.) Sean Ambrose (Scott), a fellow IM agent has double-crossed the force and made off with a secret formula that could kill off all of humanity. He hopes to sell it to the highest bidder. And what of Nyah? Turns out, she wasn

DVD Picture:
The anamorphically enhanced 2.40:1 DVD exhibits a picture that is sharp and finely detailed into backgrounds. Colors are fully saturated, with nicely balanced fleshtones and generally deep blacks. Contrast and shadow delineation are superb, with excellent visual information in the darker scenes. Sometimes the picture seems a little pasty and wanting in definition. Edge enhancement is limited, and when apparent is very minor. Occasional pixelization is evident, but generally does not distract. Overall, the picture looks excellent, and should surely please.

Soundtrack:
The Dolby

This Disc Contains The Following WSR-Rated Superb Qualities:
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  WSR DVD-ROM Review
DVD-ROM Enhancements Rating:
Awesome

DVD-ROM Review:
The same easy installation is used for this title that is used on all the other PCFriendly compatible titles. When you run the software, you are brought to the simple DVD-ROM main menu, where you are given the options to see the I.M.F. Mission Briefing, M:I-2 DVD Online, and Launch DVD. The I.M.F. Mission Briefing section contains one of the best DVD-ROM features I have seen. It is extremely well presented, with a great theme that ties in wonderfully with the movie. In this section, you can find Agent Dossiers, which gives background information on the three main agents in the film (the characters not the actors who play them). There is also a section called Mission Locations, which tells about seven of the main locations in the film, giving a little history about the area, as well as what was used in each area while filming the movie. Also, there is a section called Chimera Date where you can find everything from pictures to information to the message Nekhorvich sent to Ethan Hunt about the virus. Finally, there is a section called Tech Tools, where you can watch video clips from the movie on twelve of the high-tech tools used by the I.M.F. agents during the film. In the M:I-2 DVD Online section, you are linked to a M:I-2 Web site, where you can find information on what happened behind the scenes in the Briefing section, photos from the film, games that train you to be an I.M.F. agent, and even wallpapers for your desktop. The Launch DVD link plays the movie using the PCFriendly software. You are instantly brought to the DVD-Video main menu, which works well using a mouse. This title really is awesome. The presentation throughout is excellent, keeping with the same theme in each section. The I.M.F. Mission Briefing is outstanding, and totally eliminates the need for a game or script. (Danny Richelieu)