DVD Guide: Mission: Impossible III

Most action flicks look better on the big screen, but Tom Cruise's latest turn in the M:I franchise works unexpectedly well on the small one. At this reduced scale, pyrotechnics don't overwhelm the rest of the story. This is the most intimate of the three films, detouring into the hearts and minds of the M:I force members, with compelling results. No surprise there. J.J. Abrams, one of the hottest television directors in Hollywood (he created the moody, complex "Lost"), directed it. The extras also are good home-theater viewing, providing above-average insights into what makes a good action sequence. Answer: moments that reveal character rather than just blow things up. Grade: B+