By STEVE PERSALL, Times Film Critic

© St. Petersburg Times, published May 24, 2000

Mission: Impossible 2 takes longer than five seconds to self-destruct. It slowly erodes anticipation, more concerned with moody spies than mayhem.

That is surprising, since this Mission was accepted by John Woo, the chief architect of modern movie violence. This is his least spirited film, better than most directors could envision but disappointing compared to earlier works.

Tom Cruise’s Ethan Hunt is softer around the edges this time around.

Tom Cruise returns as secret agent Ethan Hunt, minus the flinty demeanor he had in Brian DePalma's 1996 original. Ethan is softer around the daredevil edges, more Zen than zing until the final reel. Woo likes his heroes conflicted by morality and romance. This time, Woo's heart fails him.

In the sequel, Ethan is called away from a death-defying, mountain-climbing vacation to track down a deadly virus. The bug winds up in the hands of rogue agent Sean Ambrose (Dougray Scott), who threatens to unleash it and sell the antidote for millions. The only distinction of this villain is his Scottish accent.

Thandie Newton plays jewel thief Nyah Nordoff-Hall, the love interest of both the villain and Ethan Hunt.

Ethan's team includes jewel thief Nyah Nordoff-Hall (Thandie Newton), whom Sean still loves. But Ethan also falls for her. Nyah seduces Sean for information, Ethan gets jealous. You wouldn't catch James Bond acting this way. Spies are supposed to be above all this, bound by duty, even cold-blooded. An entire caper hinging on crushes is dumb.

Robert Towne's screenplay demands much exposition, despite its clear outline. Many thought DePalma's movie was too complicated. This time the story is simple but Towne makes it appear complicated. Each misdirection requires a short cut later to get back on track.

Woo should be igniting more fireworks than this. An hour passes before the first satisfying action, tardy by his standards. The final 20 minutes, a motorcycle-and-martial arts showdown between Ethan and Sean, locates that misplaced momentum, almost too late to matter.

Woo reprises some franchise tricks, including the false-face routine made famous by the 1960s TV series. Improved computer technology makes ripping away latex masks look better than ever. Towne dreams up several uses for the effect, perhaps a couple more than necessary.

Luther Stickell (Ving Rhames) joins Tom Cruise’s Ethan Hunt as the only returning Impossible Mission Force members from the first film.

Besides Ethan, Luther Stickell (Ving Rhames) is the only returning Impossible Mission Force member from the first film. This time, he is the obligatory "guy in the truck," monitoring data and warning the hero. This agency featured equal partners before, even in the first Cruise showcase. Now, Ethan seems to be the only full-service spy on the payroll.

The most memorable sequence in 1996 occurred when Ethan was slowly lowered by cable through a hyper-sensitive security system. Woo uses the same kind of dangling danger, but speeds through the stunt. He doesn't allow tension to build as DePalma did, when a bead of sweat on Ethan's brow could make a viewer cringe.

There aren't any nail-biting scenes in Mission: Impossible 2. Fingers are more likely to impatiently drum the arm rest, waiting for the balletic mayhem of Woo's Hard-Boiled or The Killer.

We know his genius lurks somewhere in this movie; slow-motion camera swirls, fluttering birds and double-fisted guns are his trademarks, widely imitated. Woo directs Mission: Impossible 2 cautiously, as if still introducing himself to U.S. audiences despite Face-Off and Broken Arrow. Or maybe he has nothing left to say about the poetry of violence after such visual eloquence in his Chinese classics.

Only one sequence in Mission: Impossible 2 evokes Woo's best, reckless romanticism, when a car chase takes a nasty swerve. Ethan uses his vehicle to shield Nyah's from a cliff. Two cars spin like those flamenco dancers they observed earlier. Their eyes flirt for what seems like eternity, despite the immediate danger.

Frantic, a bit silly, and finally so touching that you buy into it. That is Woo's style, and what this mission curiously lacks.

Mission: Impossible 2

• Grade: C+
• Director: John Woo
• Cast: Tom Cruise, Thandie Newton, Dougray Scott, Ving Rhames, Anthony Hopkins
• Screenplay: Robert Towne
• Rating: PG-13; violence, profanity, sexual situations
• Running time: 125 min.