There’s a difference between having a movie that contains big action set-pieces and big action set-pieces that have a film built around them. The former is how you get something like “The Dark Knight” or “Avatar” and the latter is how you get “Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation.”

These types of reviews for good films that are not great films are sometimes hard. There’s a great many things to like about “Rogue Nation,” but my opinion is not as favorable as the general consensus which makes this review sound more negative than it really is.

“Rogue Nation” is a fine action movie with some absolutely incredible set-pieces, but it’s not an absolutely incredible movie. It has a very passable story that motivates its characters well, and has some intense action moments, but the resulting mixture is expendable fuel, not the self-generating kind that makes masterpieces. For example, oil is a good and profitable fuel, but wouldn’t we all prefer the self-sustaining Arc Reactor that powers Iron Man’s suit? I know I would.

“Rogue Nation” relies on its stunts, to a fault. Even the pre-movie advertisements for “Rogue Nation” were not standard trailers. Some of the advertisements were behind-the-scenes looks at the movie’s signature stunt – Tom Cruise dangling outside an airplane as it takes off. As an action-movie aficionado, I love that stunt and love that Tom Cruise really did it. As a critic, it leads credence to my stance that this movie was about its stunts and action and not about making a movie with stunts and action.

The latest “Mission Impossible” movie is a strong entry in a strong franchise and is miles better than the lunacy of “Furious 7,” but, to this reviewer, it cannot touch “Mission Impossible 3”, the best of the series, or other Tom Cruise action flicks such as the still-delightful “Edge of Tomorrow.” “Rogue Nation” didn’t go rogue on its franchise, it supports its own weight with no added elevation.

4 of 6 stars