Hayley Atwell And Chris McQuarrie Reveal Why The Mission: Impossible Fiat Car Chase Was A Technical Nightmare, But The Scene They Are Most Proud Of
Makes so much sense.
The Mission: Impossible films are best known for their death-defying stunts, often performed practically by the virtually ageless Tom Cruise. We covered, extensively, the amount of prep that Cruise put in to filming the motorcycle jump into a freefall base-jump cliff stunt for the new movie Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning, Part One. But if you ask director Christopher McQuarrie, he’ll tell you that the Fiat car chase around Rome is the scene that he’s most proud of, and for good reason.
You have seen the scene teased in the trailers. Tom Cruise and Hayley Atwell are running for their lives, escaping some heavy hitters (including Pom Klementieff, acting like a lunatic). They escape in a series of vehicles. Motorcycles. Cars. And they end up in a tricked out yellow Fiat… handcuffed together.
That should be challenging enough, right? Well, no. While speaking with Christopher McQuarrie regarding the planning and execution of that chase scene, he talked alot about how Rome, and the conditions of the location, dictated what they could do… and not do. As McQuarrie told CinemaBlend:
But there’s a technical element to the Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning, Part One Fiat car chase around Rome that might go unrecognized unless you know to look out for it. Because as Hayley Atwell went on to explain that throughout the chase sequence, she and Tom Cruise are framed by McQuarrie in a two shot. Meaning, the take of the scene that the director could use had to be good for both actors, and not something that could be covered up by quick edits. Atwell went on to say:
That’s saying a lot. But that’s what happens when you team with Tom Cruise and Christopher McQuarrie on a Mission: Impossible movie. They are technical exercises that warrant being seen on the biggest screen possible. And make sure that you watch the Mission: Impossible movies in order, to truly track Ethan Hunt’s progress. You also have to keep up to date with this most recent MIssion: Impossible so that you are ready when the second half of Dead Reckoning plays out … even though that might not be the end of the franchise, if you believe what Tom Cruise is now saying. Stay tuned for more, and go see Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning, Part One while it’s still in theaters!
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Sean O’Connell is a journalist and CinemaBlend’s Managing Editor. Having been with the site since 2011, Sean interviewed myriad directors, actors and producers, and created ReelBlend, which he proudly cohosts with Jake Hamilton and Kevin McCarthy. And he's the author of RELEASE THE SNYDER CUT, the Spider-Man history book WITH GREAT POWER, and an upcoming book about Bruce Willis.