In a summer with comic book super heroes, Indiana Jones and another saga in “The Fast and the Furious” franchise leave it to the old pro Tom Cruise to show them how it’s done.

One year after Cruise reignited the summer blockbuster with “Top Gun: Maverick” the 61-year old megastar is at it again with “Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part One.” The seventh film in the popular franchise may be the best one yet, an intense summer blockbuster that never lets up in its nearly three hour run time – going from one wonderful set action sequence to the next.

“Reckoning” finds Impossible Mission Force agent Ethan Hunt (Cruise) asked to retrieve half of a key from former ally Ilsa Faust (Rebecca Ferguson). Hunt soon learns that the key has global implications – the only way to find an AI known as the Entity that has taken a life of its own and started to infiltrate computers throughout the world which makes it capable of controlling military and defense systems.

The story allows Cruise and the cast to travel the globe and create some rather impressive action sequences that feel like old school James Bond. Whether its Dubai, a chase through the streets of Rome or an absolutely breathtaking finale that involves a motorcycle jump and a runaway train, director Christopher McQuarrie (behind the camera for his third “Mission Impossible”) has a keen sense of creating some breathtaking action sequences that are the epitome of summer escapism.

Each action sequence manages to top the previous – wonderfully crafted set pieces that deserve to be seen on the biggest screen possible.

Cruise has been doing this so long that you almost take for granted how good he really is as Hunt – it’s a performance that has more going on than just your standard action hero. In addition to Ferguson there are other returning characters from previous films with Ving Rhames and Simon Pegg both back as part of Hunt’s crew as well as Vanessa Kirby as a nefarious arms dealer known as the White Widow.

The new additions include Hayley Atwell as a thief who becomes an ally for Hunt, Esai Morales as a terrorist named Gabriel with a past connection to Hunt and Pom Klementieff as an assassin hired by Gabriel. All are fun additions to this already talented cast.

This is the first of a two-part saga with the second film set to be released next summer. And while the film ends with a (literal) cliffhanger it still serves as a satisfying film that stands alone – while building anticipation for what lies ahead.

“Reckoning” is the film of the summer – an old school throwback to the bygone days of action blockbusters.

Starring: Tom Cruise, Hayley Atwell

Directed by: Christopher McQuarrie

Rating: PG-13 for intense sequences of violence and action, some language and suggestive material

Playing at: Regal Bowling Green Stadium 12, Regal Greenwood Mall Stadium 10, Highland Cinemas (Glasgow)

Grade: A-