Life seems to have come full circle for the cast and crew of ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One’ as they touched down on Abu Dhabi’s yet-to-be-opened Midfield Terminal last month.
Several key scenes of iconic director Christopher McQuarrie’s latest action spectacle, out in UAE cinemas on July 9, were shot at this airport, and a few hours after this sit-down interview, they would all get dolled up to attend the premiere screening at the Emirates Palace.
Read the full story here: https://gulfnews.com/entertainment/hollywood/is-tom-cruise-a-generous-co-star-mission-impossible-team-answers-that-loaded-question-in-abu-dhabi-1.1688647462470
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#UAEnews #tomcruise #missionimpossible
Several key scenes of iconic director Christopher McQuarrie’s latest action spectacle, out in UAE cinemas on July 9, were shot at this airport, and a few hours after this sit-down interview, they would all get dolled up to attend the premiere screening at the Emirates Palace.
Read the full story here: https://gulfnews.com/entertainment/hollywood/is-tom-cruise-a-generous-co-star-mission-impossible-team-answers-that-loaded-question-in-abu-dhabi-1.1688647462470
Subscribe to Gulf News on YouTube and watch more of our videos: https://www.youtube.com/user/GulfNewsTV
See more videos at https://gulfnews.com/videos
Read more Gulf News stories here: https://bit.ly/2HLJ2km
#UAEnews #tomcruise #missionimpossible
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NewsTranscript
00:00When you're working in a Tom Cruise movie, or let's say any other movie with an A-lister who's a bona fide movie star,
00:05are you guys worried that it'll be all about him?
00:08There's never any danger of Tom making it about Tom.
00:19This is like speed dating, I'm very nervous.
00:23Yeah, it's gone in six minutes, yeah?
00:25Go.
00:26How was it filming in Abu Dhabi and with Tom Cruise?
00:29Well, we're back. We shot in Abu Dhabi before and there's a very good reason why we came back.
00:34We just love the location and love the people.
00:36And does it bring back memories of filming in an airport? Is it as fun as it seems?
00:42Yeah, it was fun. I mean, I was like goofing around in the airport because it was empty,
00:47you know, it was so amazing. You never get to an empty airport, you know,
00:50it's such a beautiful playground.
00:52What are your thoughts on like when I heard that it was being filmed in the UAE,
00:55one of my friends who are locals are like, I hope there's no sandstorm and camels.
00:59But good on you, you guys had horseback instead.
01:02So was that, were you very aware that, you know, culturally, how am I going to represent the region?
01:07We've been here before. We've been into the UAE before because we filmed in Dubai for Ghost Protocol.
01:13And Abu Dhabi for Fallout.
01:15And Abu Dhabi for Fallout.
01:17So, you know, as McHugh said, you know, we came back because we love it.
01:22Um, there are grand sort of like images here, like the desert is,
01:28the thing is, the sandstorm is very dramatic.
01:30The desert is incredibly dramatic. And those scenes are just so spectacular in the desert.
01:36And then here, just having an airport, an airport to film in, you know,
01:40and one of the most beautiful sort of extraordinary structures.
01:44It was like being on the most incredible, well, it was the most incredible film set
01:48we've ever had to ourselves, you know.
01:49Right.
01:50So to run around this was great.
01:52Excellent. And what I thought about this movie is that it had strong women parts and diverse as well.
01:56So was that one of the reasons why you were attracted,
01:59all of you were attracted to the film?
02:00Not you, not you, but yeah.
02:02What do you think?
02:05She likes the strong women in it.
02:06Yeah, of course.
02:07Well, I think, you know, the first experience for me coming into this franchise was meeting
02:12Tom and Chris together in the screen test.
02:14I mean, I'd met with them before previously, potential other projects.
02:18And Chris had come to see me on stage.
02:21And it was very apparent.
02:23They were very honest and upfront with us in the screen test saying,
02:26we don't we don't have a character that we're looking for someone to fit into.
02:30We find the actors that we want to work with first,
02:33who also want to work and enjoy the idea of what this particular unique process will be.
02:38And from that, the characters created over time.
02:41So I knew that there was it was going to be up to me to to offer things creatively
02:48as well as being, you know, sharing or carrying out their vision.
02:53And that's that immediately gives the artist agency and a bit of autonomy.
02:57And I was it was important to me that I elevated her from ever being one thing,
03:02that she wasn't going to be just the femme fatale or the ice queen or the ingenue or the
03:08damsel in distress that I wanted to give her nuance.
03:11So I wanted to that she would have moments of self-doubt as well as courage and self-confidence
03:17that she was sort of morally ambiguous at times and yet emotionally very vulnerable.
03:22And that felt to me just human and not just existing in an action franchise with it in
03:29one particular way.
03:30That's true.
03:31And that was very supported by all the filmmakers.
03:34Brilliant.
03:34You know, when I was watching the movie,
03:35I thought it was a dazzling Bollywood musical without the songs.
03:39Well done, y'all.
03:40It is so much fun.
03:41The length as well, two and a half hours.
03:42I was like, yes, that is a Bollywood movie.
03:45Is that what you're aiming for?
03:46Is that how it goes?
03:47Exactly what you were aiming for.
03:48What are the songs?
03:49I missed the dance.
03:51You know, you're asking a very good question.
03:53It's very interesting you say that because everything we did
03:56with the characters was about dance and movement.
03:59It all has a very specific rhythm.
04:02It all has more to do with movement than it does with dialogue.
04:06And especially Tom and Hayley, all of their action together, there is a dance rhythm to it.
04:14When you're working in a Tom Cruise movie,
04:16or let's say any other movie with an A-lister who's a bona fide movie star,
04:19are you guys worried that it'll be all about him, et cetera?
04:23I mean, we are human and I guess our actors are narcissistic.
04:28So at any point did you feel it would be overshadowed by the rest of the cast?
04:31We're not narcissistic.
04:32No, that's funny.
04:33So humane.
04:35Directors are not narcissistic.
04:38You deal with egos.
04:39We're all little monsters, yes.
04:41Tom wouldn't let that happen.
04:43There's never any danger of Tom making it about Tom, really.
04:47I think I'd speak to everybody's experience.
04:51He understands that it's all about the protagonist.
04:56It's all about the protagonist's journey and the audience following that character.
05:01And that the stronger the supporting cast is,
05:04and the more emotionally attached we are to that journey.
05:08And everybody here has had at least one experience, if not several,
05:16where we spent all the time figuring out who those characters were and what that scene was.
05:22And then in the last 30 minutes, turned the cameras around on Tom.
05:26Yeah, totally.
05:26And he's always on set.
05:28He's always watching.
05:30He's always asking if we need anything.
05:32He's the most generous person and scene partner.
05:36And he wants everyone to shine.
05:38So you see each character shines in their own way in the movie.
05:42And it's also thanks to you.
05:44Like you, but you know.
05:46Even with the scene of the Fiat 500, there was a moment where
05:51Ethan Hunt is undermined by this little yellow car.
05:53And he's so brilliant in that with his kind of comedic timing
05:57of the embarrassment of turning the windscreen wipers on instead of the engine.
06:00Or turning on the car and then immediately crashing into the wall
06:04next to a woman who doesn't really know him.
06:05So he doesn't know his track record of being this incredibly accomplished stuntman.
06:11And he played into that in a way that doesn't make Ethan Hunt look cool,
06:16but it makes him so endearing to the audience
06:19because they're seeing a different side of his character.
06:21And that takes someone very comfortable, not only in themselves,
06:23but also in knowing what they're doing for the scene and for the audience.
06:27It's going to delight the audience even more.
06:30I try to make it about me as much as possible.
06:32I like it.
06:32See, there you go.
06:34Oh, and you did well.
06:34Finally, a bit of honesty.
06:38Last question.
06:38If the movie were an emotion connected to Abu Dhabi,
06:42how would you...
06:43What's the one word to describe this film?
06:45Epic.
06:46Magnificent.
06:48Boom!
06:48Get in there, Paul.
06:50Stress.
06:50If it was an emotion.
06:52I like him.
06:53I like him.
06:54He's the only one who's spoken the truth today, clearly.
06:56I think we all do.
07:05This is far and away the most dangerous thing we've ever attempted.
07:12The only thing that scares me more is what we have planned for Mission 8.