Davian's countdown to ten with Julia at gunpoint
The film opens mid-crisis: Ethan, strapped to a chair, pleads and bargains while Davian counts down over a bound Julia.
Ethan Hunt
Every Mission: Impossible III moment featuring Ethan Hunt, in story order. Played by Tom Cruise.
25 moments · 1h 24m
Ethan's engagement party and the traffic-patterns cover story
Ethan plays the mild DOT traffic analyst for Julia's family, while her friends retell how the couple met.
Musgrave's Slurpee-run plea and the disposable-camera mission
Over a convenience-store meeting Musgrave asks Ethan back for a rescue; the briefing then hides in a camera that self-destructs.
The Berlin factory raid to rescue Lindsey Farris
Ethan's team breaches a guarded factory, wakes the drugged Lindsey and fights their way out to the evac truck.
Helicopter chase through the wind farm with a charge in Lindsey's head
Pursued by a missile-firing gunship, Ethan races to short out the explosive in Lindsey's skull with a defibrillator.
Brassel tears into Ethan over the Berlin op
Director Brassel dismantles the operation, swats down Musgrave, and paints Davian as an invisible provider of terror.
Benji's Anti-God theory of the Rabbit's Foot
Benji rambles through fried hard drives and an Oxford professor's doomsday theory before admitting he has no idea what it is.
Ethan asks Julia to trust him
At the hospital Ethan says he must leave again; Julia asks what he is hiding and whether they are real.
The secret hospital-chapel wedding
Ethan leads Julia to the hospital chapel, where they exchange vows on the spot.
Breaching the Vatican wall
Ethan lays out the plan, the team stages a Roman traffic row as cover, and Ethan climbs the wall and slips into the gala.
Luther's 23-month rule and Ethan's wedding news
Waiting in the van, Luther warns that a field agent's relationship never lasts; Ethan drops his news.
The mask switch: Ethan becomes Davian in the Vatican
Zhen spills wine, Ethan forces Davian to read a voice sample, then walks out wearing his face and drives him away.
Davian's threats on the plane
Interrogated in flight, Davian ignores every question and vows to find and hurt the woman Ethan loves; Ethan nearly drops him.
The Chesapeake Bay Bridge ambush
Drones and gunships strike the IMF convoy on the bridge, blasting it apart until Davian is lifted away.
Julia taken: Davian's 48-hour ultimatum
Ethan races through the hospital looking for Julia, then Davian calls with his terms, and IMF agents seize Ethan.
Brassel and Musgrave lay into Ethan in custody
Brassel lists Ethan's violations with a patriotic flourish, then Musgrave voices his disappointment and sends him to a cell.
Planning the Shanghai swing
The team maps a near-impossible tower; Ethan proposes swinging from the taller building and base-jumping out.
The Shanghai skyscraper swing
Declan distracts the rooftop guards, Ethan swings across to the lab tower and goes in while the clock runs down.
Sliding down the tower and the five-second call
Trapped below the roof, Ethan slides down the glass, escapes in a chase and phones Davian with seconds to spare.
Musgrave's reveal and his case for a war
The traitor shows his face, explains his deal with Davian and his plan for a military strike, then lets Ethan hear Julia.
Benji guides Ethan's sprint across Shanghai
Wanted and on the run, Ethan calls a panicked Benji to trace the call and steer him through the city on foot.
Ethan versus Davian
Davian sets off the charge in Ethan's head and gloats about Julia; the two men fight it out.
A gun lesson and a request to be killed
Ethan teaches Julia to use a pistol, then asks her to stop his heart to save him.
Julia fights and brings Ethan back
Alone with Ethan's body, Julia holds off the gunmen and works to restart his heart.
Ethan finally tells Julia what IMF stands for
Ethan finally tells Julia what he does, and later turns down Brassel's question about staying.