Bird's speedy direction gives this action-packed 'Ghost' flight

"Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol" left me spent. Drained. Exhausted. Weak.

In a good way, you know?

I won't pretend that I knew exactly what was going on for about 20 percent of the movie, but that didn't matter.

"Ghost Protocol," the third sequel to Brian DePalma's 1996 big-screen adaptation of the classic 1960s CBS TV series, is a killer thrill-a-thon that whisks us from one spectacular action set-piece to the next with barely enough time to catch our collective breath in between.

You don't need to see the three previous "Mission: Impossible" movies to appreciate and enjoy this one, but you might want to watch director Brad Bird's 2004 four-star animated superhero family adventure "The Incredibles."

Then you'll understand where Bird got the mach-1 pacing and sharply drawn (no pun intended) characters that he expertly employs in this eye-ripping, stunt-stuffed live-action espionage tale of rogue IMF agents risking their lives to save the planet from nuclear Armageddon.

For the newbies, IMF stands for "Impossible Missions Force," the secret team of agents recruited for jobs that the U.S. government - mainly "The Secretary" - will disavow if any team member gets captured or killed.

Despite hitting 49, Tom Cruise, the star of all four "M:I" movies, proves himself more than capable of channeling Jackie Chan when it comes to performing his own insanely dangerous stunts (although his stunt double has been skillfully, unobtrusively employed at key moments).

He punches! He kicks! He jumps! He falls! He runs!

Man does he run. Cruise's Ethan Hunt makes "The Marathon Man" look wimpy.

"Ghost Protocol" opens with a botched secret mission in Budapest. Hunt and his two operatives Jane Carter (Paula Patton) and Benji Dunn (Simon Pegg) are suddenly cut off from their organization when a car attack kills the Secretary (Tom Wilkinson) in Moscow (or was that Dubai?).

Jane is an incarnation of the original series' resident Mata Hari, seductive Cinnamon Carter (played by Barbara Bain). Benji seems to be channeling Pegg's "Star Trek" character Mr. Scott, transplanted to the 21st century where he works split-second miracles with technical gadgets.

The trio inherits the Secretary's attache, agent William Brandt ("Hurt Locker" star Jeremy Renner), who isn't exactly who he appears to be. (Who is in a spy thriller?)

They form their own rogue team to stop madman Kurt Hendricks (Michael Nyqvist) from using secret codes to launch a nuclear missile from a Russian sub, thereby triggering the start of World War III.

Whatever.

The plot of "Ghost Protocol" almost gets in the way of some phenomenal action sequences blending Cruise's potent stunts, undetectable digital effects and nonstop stunning locations.

The movie opens with an impressive, well-constructed prison break carried out with minimal dialogue and Cruise bouncing a ball against a cell wall (a tribute to Steve McQueen in "The Great Escape," no doubt).

Cruise raises the thrill bar when he climbs up the windows of the tallest building in the world, Burj Khalifa, in Dubai, in what becomes the film's signature high-flying white-knuckle action sequence.

But that just prepares us for the confrontation between Hunt and Hendricks grappling over a steel attache case while inside a massive high-rise parking garage where an auto elevator and moving platforms create a dangerous, ever-changing environment, like being trapped in a deadly M.C. Escher print.

Paramount Pictures showed film critics "Ghost Protocol" at Navy Pier's IMAX screen Tuesday night. The movie uses just under 30 minutes of original IMAX footage blended with a regular widescreen format.

This produced some awe-inspiring scenes - Hunt chasing a villain in Dubai as a huge sand storm overtakes the city - as well as some unintentional visuals when Patton's coy cleavage suddenly stretches to 20 feet.

Cruise has also stretched as an action actor since first playing Hunt. More mature, laid-back and confident, Cruise re-creates his character as an older agent much more comfortable in his very thick, black-and-blue skin.

With "Incredibles" composer Michael Giacchinno supplying amusing riffs from Lalo Schifrin's classic "Mission: Impossible" theme, "Ghost Protocol" captures the essence of the TV series.

But it's Bird's ramped-up direction that makes the movie soar.

“Mission: Impossible — Ghost Protocol”

★ ★ ★ ½

Starring: Tom Cruise, Jeremy Renner, Simon Pegg, Paula Patton

Directed by: Brad Bird

Other: A Paramount Pictures release. Rated PG-13 for violence. 133 minutes