PHOTO COURTESY PARAMOUNT PICTURES

We have a true rarity with the “Mission: Impossible” series. Unlike nearly every other franchise I can name, this one is determined to conclude.

That’s right: They actually seem to mean it when they say “Final” in this film’s subtitle, “The Final Reckoning.” Tom Cruise, after all, is 62; he can only dangle off of things for so long.

Cruise is the franchise; long since disentangled from its small-screen origins, “Mission: Impossible” is less about a brand or an overarching narrative as it is the Tom Cruise Stunt Spectacular. Yet the script for this eighth installment (penned by the film’s director, Christopher McQuarrie, with Erik Jendresen) weaves plot threads and thematic elements from throughout the series’ 30-year history, hoping not just to end but to provide an actual ending.

Does it work? Mostly. But Tom Cruise dangles off a lot of stuff, so when it doesn’t, you won’t notice.

In 2023’s “Dead Reckoning,” an unstoppable, artificially intelligent computer … thing, dubbed The Entity, sprang forth from a Soviet submarine and took over the world’s information. Ethan Hunt (Cruise) and his suave crew of super-spies — Haley Atwell, Ving Rhames, Simon Pegg and whoever they picked up along the way — risked life and limb to acquire a key that could unlock the digital beast’s source code.

Now, the world is on the brink, as The Entity has hacked into global weapons systems. Hunt, with the backing of the U.S. President (Angela Bassett), can stop it — provided that he can complete dozens of deadly tasks at locations around the world, including the bottom of the Arctic Sea.

It’s almost as if the mission is … extremely difficult.

“The Final Reckoning” is overstuffed, with more additional hurdles than it needs. The onscreen callbacks to incidents from prior films, while admirable in intent, are excessive; even a tidal wave of slickly edited flashbacks can’t keep up. There’s a certain unwieldiness — particularly when the film is also desperate to find moments of emotional resonance.

Structural criticisms are almost beyond the scope, however. It’s a three-hour celebration of blockbuster ambition, a practically shot festival of cinematic action. It might not make you care, but it will assuredly make you cheer.

My Rating: 8/10

“Mission: Impossible — The Final Reckoning” is now playing in theaters.