Unbelievable! Behind-the-Scenes Footage Exposes Mind-Blowing Train Stunt in Mission Impossible 7 – No CGI!

Summary

A new behind-the-scenes video breaks down the climactic train stunt in Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One.

Director Christopher McQuarrie discusses the significant level of risk associated with the sequence due to the uncertainty of the train's landing spot and the possibility of the cameras attached to it being damaged. The video showcases the sequence in its original form prior to the addition of visual effects, highlighting the franchise's successful combination of practical and digital effects in creating impressive stunt sequences.

Get a glimpse of the climactic train stunt from Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One in a new behind-the-scenes featurette. Directed by Christopher McQuarrie, this latest installment of the Mission: Impossible series brings back Tom Cruise as Ethan Hunt, who must confront a deadly AI threat. Packed with adrenaline-pumping action, the film showcases the franchise's most daring stunts to date, including a motorcycle jump off a cliff and a train plunging off a bridge into a canyon. Ahead of the film's digital release, Collider presents a breakdown of the epic train stunt in a special featurette. Check it out below.

The video offers a detailed breakdown of the extensive planning and preparation involved in successfully executing the stunt. It also provides a glimpse of the original appearance before incorporating visual effects, which added more train cars and elements of the surroundings.

How Much Does Dead Reckoning Part One Rely On VFX?

The primary focus of marketing a Mission: Impossible movie nowadays revolves around generating excitement for the movie's exhilarating action sequences. Tom Cruise, known for his daring feats, often puts his life on the line to entertain audiences. In Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One, the most formidable and daring stunt involved Cruise riding a motorcycle off a cliff and then base jumping. While the intention is to capture the film's action primarily through practical on-set filming, VFX plays a pivotal role in shaping the final visuals that appear on screen.

Safety concerns necessitated Cruise to ride his motorcycle off a large man-made ramp for the jump. But in the final film, Ethan is shown riding his bike off a sizeable protrusion of grassy rock, with a majority of the surroundings digitally replaced in post-production. This use of VFX in the motorcycle stunt represents the franchise's overall approach to action, where digital effects are employed to enhance and amplify what is captured in-camera.

The interplay between practical and digital effects is evident in various aspects of the train sequence as well. In the scene where Ethan and Hayley Atwell's character Grace climb up the train cars as they hurtle off a cliff, the actors physically climbed through vertically positioned train cars. However, the views seen through the windows and exterior shots of the falling cars are achieved through the use of VFX. While the practical action remains a major highlight of Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One, it is crucial to acknowledge the pivotal role played by VFX artists.

Source: Collider