If Tom Cruise ever quits Scientology to found a cult dedicated to worshiping this movie, I will be the first in line to pledge my soul and worldly possessions.
There are so many smart choices in this movie. Like, for instance, the way that McQuarrie tips his hand quite early that Walker is "John Lark", and then arranges the reveal in such a way that it's not played at all like a shocking moment for the characters or the audience, but rather it has Walker himself being surprised.
In the five days prior to Thursday I rewatched the first five films on a nightly basis, which turned out to be particularly pertinent, since McQuarrie somehow manages to tie all of them (except for poor orphaned 2, unless I missed something) together, particularly from 3 onward. I especially liked that the issue of Julia was dealt with decisively, as the exact status of their relationship was kind of hanging over Rogue Nation whenever Ethan and Ilsa were together. They did a great job of giving Julia a proper explanation/sendoff here (I also like that, while nobody could be under the wrong impression by the end of the movie, they don't have it end with Ethan and Ilsa making out or anything like that).
R.I.P., Secretary Hunley. Being the head of the IMF seems to be a more dangerous occupation than being on Ethan's actual team.
Initially I assumed that at some point the White Widow was going to learn (or else already knew) that "Lark" was the man who doublecrossed her mother, but I guess that was just an Easter Egg (unless that's being saved for a sequel, since this series has plot continuity now).