Front page	From the Event Guide archive! This article refers to an event which took place on, or until, 25 May 2006 Film Interview – J.J. Abrams / ‘Mission: Impossible III’ Little Boy Lost He has taken over TV with ‘Lost’, and he’s about to take over our multiplexes with ‘Mission: Impossible III’. Paul Byrne meets the hot and mildly bothered J.J. Abrams. Jeffrey Jacob Abrams is what’s known in film circles as a cocky son of a bitch. Picture this; you’re forging a healthy career in TV. You created a short-lived but Golden Globe-winning sitcom, ‘Felicity’, followed swiftly by the rather fine chick-with-kicks actioner ‘Alias’, the latter now perhaps past its prime. So, you’re working on your next idea when you get a call. From Tom Cruise. He recently picked up ‘Alias’ on DVD, and watched the lot over two days. He’s a big fan, and is hoping you’ll join him and Steven Spielberg by writing the script for their remake of ‘War Of The Worlds’. The two Hollywood giants sit down with you to plead their case. You say no. You want to finish writing your pilot about a bunch of airplane crash survivors washed up on a mysterious island. Cocky son of a bitch. “It did cross my mind that my career was over,” offers the 39-year old Abrams. “I just said no to Steven Spielberg and Tom Cruise. The weirdest thing was having that first meeting, because it’s very unnerving to be in a meeting with your idol – Steven – and this icon of Tom. And every time you look at the other one, it gets freakier. Literally, at one point in that first meeting, I had to stop it and say, ‘This is really weird. I just want to say that’. And then, of course, I ended up not being available, which ended up being great, you know, because then I got to do this movie. I would have not directed this movie if I had done ‘War Of The Worlds’.” This movie being the surprisingly good ‘Mission: Impossible III’. Far superior to its two, hugely flawed predecessors (the great John Woo failing to leave his mark on the second), ‘M:I3’ does all the things a super-agent action blockbuster should do, rattling along with the help of some sleek hi-tech hardware, some drop dead gorgeous and deadly babes, a villain (played wonderfully by Philip Seymour Hoffman) who will have you inadvertently hissing at the screen, and, yep, a hero who can knock out the baddies and the quips with equal aplomb and panache. Of course, whilst Tom and Stevo were off making ‘War of The Worlds’, that little pilot of J.J.’s did pretty darn well too, ‘Lost’ becoming one of TV’s biggest phenomena of last year. When Cruise found himself in desperate need of a writer and director to get his much-troubled ‘Mission: Impossible III’ finally up and rolling, he turned once again to his old friend Abrams. A $150million Tom Cruise action blockbuster is probably not the easiest vehicles with which to make your feature film directorial debut though – was J.J. perhaps a tad nervous stepping into this world? This is, after all, the most expensive movie ever for a first-time director. “Eh, I’m typically a nervous man, so stepping into this world felt very comfortable, being under crazy pressure. I didn’t know at the time that it was the most expensive movie ever for a first-time director. I don’t know if that’s true, but I’m glad no one said that to me during the shoot. I heard it afterwards, and I just gulped.” With both David Fincher (‘Se7en’, ‘Fight Club’) and Joe Carnahan (‘Narc’) dropping out of earlier incarnations, Abrams says he was more than happy to “take sloppy thirds”. Deciding to focus on the human side of Ethan Hunt, what life for this superhero agent must be like, Abrams set about writing his script. In came blushing, oblivious young bride-to-be Julia (played by Michelle Monaghan, so effective in ‘Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang’), giving Hawke a weak spot. A weak spot Hoffman’s nasty black market dealer Owen Davian is happy to exploit. When it comes to action blockbuster, there are certain plot points and action set pieces that audiences expect, and Abrams wasn’t out to reinvent the wheel. Just reinvigorate the genre. It must be tough, I mention, to avoid the clichés, and the corny dialogue. Ving Rhames gets to bark at Cruise at one point, “That look in your eye gives me a pain in the ass”. Which, I’m pretty sure, is a line taken straight out of Brokeback Mountain. “I’ve got to remember that one,” laughs Abrams. “The simple truth is, I love mainstream movies. I know that sounds unartistic and cheap – and I’m just a loser; let’s be honest about it – but I love those big movies. Whatever the genre. Whether it’s ‘Die Hard’, or ‘Jaws’, or ‘Tootsie’, or ‘Star Wars’, or ‘Back To The Future’, or ‘Aliens’. I love big rousing movies, comedies, thrillers, horror, whatever. And the trick is not to think about it from the audience’s point of view, but to think of it from your point of view. What would you enjoy, what would you want to see? As soon as you start to think ‘they’ll like this’ the audience will laugh when they hear it. You are screwed.” Our times nearly up, so a few short, sharp shocks. The Los Angeles Times referred to you last December as “the hottest young producer on television”. Agree? “Absolutely. I’m just disappointed they didn’t include dynamic and sexy. And tall.” It’s rumoured you’re going to resuscitate the Star Trek franchise next. True? “True. I’ll be producing and most probably directing the 11th feature film outing, which won’t be out until about 2008 though.” Your dad, Gerald, is a TV veteran who’s still producing at the ripe old age of 77. Your inspiration? “Yeah, and he’s still inspiring me. The guy just won’t stop. Unbelievable.” The Oirish question. Your lovely wife, Katie McGrath, has family from the ould sod. Been over? “We stopped over in Shannon for about five minutes, but we can’t wait to come back and visit as real people.” Aaaaah. “I know.” ‘Mission: Impossible III’ opens nationwide on Thursday 4th May, certified 12A. www.missionimpossible.com