In the months since Ethan evaded capture in Austria at the end of the last movie, the Entity has expanded its power, building a fanatical cult, sparking global violence and inching toward the annihilation of humankind. The film boasts an impressive 85% Rotten Tomatoes score, meaning it's well worth a spot on our best Netflix movies round-up, even if the decision to stream it has been met with criticism. The Podkova needs to be activated at a precise split second to stop the Entity from launching the nuclear warheads of eight nations and claiming billions of lives. Activation also requires an additional component stolen by Gabriel from Ethan’s trusty hacker sidekick Luther, played by Ving Rhames, the only actor besides Cruise who has been with the series since the start.
A lot of how I feel about this movie, though, comes down to that subtitle. The Final Reckoning can’t be officially final with the way it ends, and I don’t think there are any of us who believe Tom Cruise is done risking his life for our entertainment. Maybe they completely missed the mark on the “Final” part of the equation, and it’s not a representative title at all.
It’s good to see Ron Saxon back as William Donloe, the CIA analyst baffled by Ethan’s entry into the supposedly impenetrable black vault in the first movie. Likewise Bassett (her second time playing a U.S. president this year, after Netflix’s Zero Day) and Henry Czerny as Kittridge, the ex-IMF chief now heading the CIA. But all the tense meetings at Virginia Emergency Command are staffed by over-qualified actors given too little to do — Janet McTeer, Nick Offerman, Holt McCallany. Ethan’s bantering rapport with his close collaborators Luther and Benji (Simon Pegg) is always pleasurable, though it’s limited here by how much time Ethan spends globe-hopping solo. Atwell is a welcome presence again, even if her character has lost some of the mischievous charm she had as a thief, becoming more serious and less fun since joining Ethan’s IMF crew and having to learn new skills on the job, like defusing bombs. Then there’s the unfortunate matter of “The Entity.” Introduced in Dead Reckoning, that sentient AI menace is capable of infiltrating the financial institutions, law enforcement and nuclear facilities of the world’s most powerful nations, unleashing chaos.
Here’s our take on a wide variety of theatrically released movies, from big budget potential blockbusters to independent films and hidden gems. Each review includes running times, release dates, and MPAA ratings. I know I keep swerving away from The Final Reckoning and back into the rest of the franchise but, for better and worse, this is a part eight that’s very aware that it’s a part eight. You can’t call a movie The Final Reckoning without delivering some degree of, well, finality, and oh boy does this one try.
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The existential threat of Artificial Intelligence, starting with its incursions into privacy and security, is all too real, as is the notion of a cyber force manipulating the truth. But renegade AI programs make incredibly boring supervillains, and the scariest part is that we’re bound to see a bunch more movies about them. It’s a relief when uber-cool assassin Paris (Pom Klementieff) — now on Ethan’s team and eager to ice Gabriel, her former employer — grabs a machine gun and starts mowing down Russians in the Arctic Circle. Reviews of the latest movies so you’ll know whether you should spend your money seeing a film in a theater or wait until it hits cable.
Gaining control of the Entity is a multipart undertaking, the first step achieved in Dead Reckoning when Ethan took possession of the bejeweled “cruciform” key. The crucial next step is retrieving the source codes from a gadget called the Podkova, which was lost when the Sevastopol, a Russian submarine, vanished on its maiden voyage at the start of Dead Reckoning, thanks to some Entity treachery. Only Ethan knows how to locate it, which is why Gabriel wants him kept alive and President Sloane puts her faith in him, against the advice of her defense and intelligence chiefs. The script works hard to mythologize Ethan as a tragic hero, who can save the world but must go forever unacknowledged, always acting “for the greater good,” but more than once at the cost of someone he loves. Cruise plays all this with corrosive interiority alongside his characteristic physical stamina. But as compelling as his performance is, the movie feels dour and heavy for long stretches at a time.
Emilia Perez took home plenty of awards, despite its controversial handling of its subject matter. Perhaps a straight-to-streaming option was not the top 10 movies best move for this, as there's a risk Netflix will simply fail to market it properly, and it's not going to get a long theatrical run. I'm worried Nouvelle Vague will end up buried among a seemingly endless library, while the streaming giant promotes other titles instead. But I wish someone had explained what exactly these killer cultists expect to get out of serving the Entity. Every time someone says something idiotic like, “The Entity, it wants you to hate me! ” or “Madam President, we’re in the Entity’s reality now,” Final Reckoning lurches further into self-seriousness, which doesn’t sit well on a plot as maddeningly convoluted and, well, silly as this one.
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When she’s not scaring herself half to death with the various shows and movies she watches, she likes to unwind by playing video games on Easy Mode and has no shame in admitting she’s terrible at them. She also quotes The Simpsons religiously and has a Blinky the Fish tattoo, solidifying her position as a complete nerd. Replying to the news, one X user noted that "a film that celebrates the essence of cinema will not be screened in cinemas," an argument that seems to be shared among many movie lovers. The fight choreography is also elevated from previous entries, as other countries send their most special forces after the same prize Ethan is after. The fights are a little more brutal and legitimately feel like the IMF could lose. At this point in the franchise, that’s a difficult tightrope to walk, and McQuarrie and Cruise deserve a lot of credit for that.
The tongue-in-cheek wit of the franchise at its best is largely absent. Which films at the 78th Cannes Film Festival impressed critics, and which titles disappointed? We recap the just-included festival with a list of award winners plus review summaries for dozens of films making their world premieres in Cannes. Based on the movie's success, there's a chance it could be in the next Oscar race, and it's not unheard of for a Netflix movie to win big.
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Maybe its not-entirely-successful attempt at tying a neat and all-encompassing bow is the Final Reckoning for the franchise and the path it laid out across 8 movies. From a real world perspective, maybe a messy and self-serious capstone to an otherwise iconic franchise is exactly what they deserve and it’s a perfect subtitle. Lucy is a long-time movie and television lover who is an approved critic on Rotten Tomatoes.
She has written several reviews in her time, starting with a small self-ran blog called Lucy Goes to Hollywood before moving onto bigger websites such as What's on TV and What to Watch, with TechRadar being her most recent venture. Her interests primarily lie within horror and thriller, loving nothing more than a chilling story that keeps her thinking moments after the credits have rolled. Many of these creepy tales can be found on the streaming services she covers regularly.
(Updated April 2025) We rank every Marvel Comics film--including films from outside the MCU--from worst to best by Metascore. I would definitely like to see Nouvelle Vague get some time in theaters, but I'm worried it won't be there as long as it deserves to be. Sign up for breaking news, reviews, opinion, top tech deals, and more.