Today isn't technically opening day for Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol but as it opens on 425 IMAX screens across the country with a preview for The Dark Knight Rises running in front of it, it's managed to make a big box office splash anyway. According to the early numbers at Deadline, Ghost Protocol made $1.1 million from midnight showings last night-- that's a lot considering it's on a fraction of the screens a usual blockbuster will open with.

The Dark Knight Rises gets a lot of credit for that number, of course, but given the rave reviews for Ghost Protocol and inflated IMAX ticket prices, it wouldn't be surprising to see the movie give wider new releases like Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows and Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked a run for their money. It's a smart move on pretty much all counts, as Mission: Impossible gets a head start on the huge bottleneck of holiday entertainment next Wednesday, and moviegoers get an early look at an amazing spectacle with the biggest, best screens in the country reserved specifically so they can see it.

So really, you have a choice here America. If you live near a proper IMAX screen, you can shell out a little extra money and see one of the best narrative uses of the format ever, or you can pay to see Sherlock Holmes, which I hear is also perfectly fine. If you're planning to see Chipwrecked I'm not sure we have anything left to talk about.