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Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One
Movie

Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One

2023 • Action, Adventure, Thriller

Woke Score
1
out of 10

Plot

Ethan Hunt and his IMF team must track down a terrifying new weapon that threatens all of humanity.

Overall Series Review

Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One is a high-octane spy thriller focused almost entirely on breathtaking action and a high-stakes plot concerning a powerful, rogue Artificial Intelligence known as 'The Entity.' The narrative frames a classic battle between objective good (Ethan Hunt's self-sacrificial choice to protect life and truth) and an amoral, nihilistic evil that seeks absolute control. The casting includes a diverse group of competent male and female agents and criminals whose racial backgrounds are incidental to their skills and roles in the plot. The story makes no attempt to lecture on identity, social justice, or cultural grievances. It is a straight, universal action movie that prioritizes character merit and thrilling spectacle.

Categorical Breakdown

Identity Politics2/10

Characters are judged entirely on competence, loyalty, and their role in the plot, adhering to the principle of universal meritocracy. The cast is racially diverse, yet the script does not stop to highlight or lecture on any of the characters' immutable characteristics. The primary hero is a white male who is unquestionably the most capable agent, and the diversity of the supporting cast is genuinely colorblind.

Oikophobia1/10

The central conflict is a universal threat to all of humanity posed by a godless, all-powerful Artificial Intelligence, and the world governments who wish to control it for nationalistic gain. The hero's moral mission is to save the world and preserve the concept of truth itself, which is a fundamentally protective view of civilization and universal moral good. There is no narrative hostility toward Western or any other civilization.

Feminism2/10

The movie features highly capable female characters who are agents, assassins, and thieves (Ilsa Faust, Grace, Paris, White Widow). These women are strong and competent, but they are consistently depicted as having genuine vulnerabilities and being challenged in their fights and decisions. Ethan Hunt remains the dominant, hyper-competent lead, and the male characters are not emasculated or portrayed as bumbling idiots. The action is balanced, with men and women fighting with equal skill.

LGBTQ+1/10

The movie contains no explicit LGBTQ+ representation, plot points, or discussions. The sexuality is private, and the limited romantic tension is strictly heterosexual, focusing on traditional male-female pairing. There is no focus on sexual identity, deconstruction of the nuclear family, or lecturing on gender theory.

Anti-Theism1/10

The film leans heavily into transcendent morality, framing the conflict as a battle of good versus evil. The key to controlling or destroying the villainous AI is repeatedly referred to as a 'cruciform' (cross-shaped) key. The human villain is named Gabriel and referred to as a 'dark Messiah,' while the AI is called 'godless,' directly invoking theological imagery to reinforce a battle against nihilism and absolute power.