Thursday, June 11, 2009

Mission: Impossible Vs. Cancer

Wow! What an amazing find.

This ten-minute short film, made using the MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE cast and soundstages, was spearheaded by the American Cancer Society to remind people to get regular checkups to avoid colon and rectal cancer. I don't know who directed it, but it's filmed in the M:I style and uses stars Peter Graves, Greg Morris (with a mustache!), and Peter Lupus. You get an interesting look at Paramount Studios too.

It's structured oddly, blending clips from the show with the new footage, and guest stars Joseph Ruskin (who does nothing) and Stafford Repp (who references BATMAN) appear briefly. Repp never acted in a M:I episode, so it's not like he was just hanging around the set (as Ruskin, who appeared about once per season, may have been), so his bit here is enigmatic.

Barney Phillips does a good job as Graves' doctor, and the film nicely uses M:I's signature themes. It's funny to see Graves hectoring former bodybuilder Lupus about his health.

1 comment:

Marc Edward Heuck said...

It's also mordantly amusing that Graves and Lupus are the names of debilitating diseases. I would like to think these came about before these actors were cast in the same program.