Paramount Pictures
‘You saw the new Top Gun already? That’s so cool!’ said the man sitting next to me at the bar. ‘Danger Zone’ was playing and we got to talking. ‘The original film,’ he continued, ‘was huge for me. I was 20 years old and in the military. It spoke to me. I must have watched that movie 400 times.’
I wasn’t alive when the first Top Gun movie sold stores out of bomber jackets and aviator sunglasses. And I can’t say that the original film, which I finally got around to in preparation for this new film, really did anything for me. I found it a frustrating watch – what am I missing?
The new film, Top Gun: Maverick, isn’t nearly as frustrating. It’s the straightforward, fun, speedy thing you look for in a summer blockbuster.
Tom Cruise is back as the aptly-named Maverick, where, 35 years after the first film he’s still up to his same old nonsense, pushing the boundaries of what he can get away with. He’s the best naval aviator around, even at nearly 60 years old, but he’s still a … well … maverick. No one can tell him what to do. He’s even avoided promotions simply so he can keep flying planes.
He doesn’t want to do anything else. But as soon as he slips up (in an undeniably awesome opener to the film), the Navy finds the excuse they were looking for and he’s grounded. His new job? Heading back to Top Gun to teach the latest batch of sexy airmen and airwomen how it’s done and, more importantly, prepare them for a nearly impossible mission.
Wait – isn’t that how the first film ended? Didn’t Maverick decide he could serve best by serving others? Didn’t he want to return to Top Gun?
‘That was thirty years ago,’ he quips when he gets his new assignment. ‘I lasted two months.’
Got it – he doesn’t want to be there. So, just like every other 80s lega-sequel character (try Rocky Balboa, Luke Skywalker, or Rick Deckard), he must learn a new way of life — one that includes less action and more mentorship. Maybe even a dash of humility. Tom has never been a schlub, but he hands off the reins to new a group of mavericks. That’s the first of many things this movie gets right.
The young supporting cast is entirely new to the series (plus a few not-quite-as young performances from the always excellent Jennifer Connelly, Jon Hamm, and Ed Harris) and they all have the same movie-star quality that Tom is known for: they’re handsome (Glen Powell), charming (Monica Barbaro), and rogue-ish (Miles Teller). You like them quickly. It’s easy to root for them when it comes to the simple but high-stakes mission that the movie centers around.
That’s another thing this action flick gets right — the action. Maverick must tame and train the latest bunch of Top Gun grads to overcome a life or death mission. It doesn’t matter who the enemy is (it’s vague), it doesn’t matter why these orders have come in, and it doesn’t matter how they get it done — they just have to get it done.
‘It’s not the plane, it’s the pilot,’ is repeated over and over again in his lessons. Get it done, no matter what.
If you’ve seen any movie, you know whether or not the mission will be a success, but the thrills and twists will keep you engaged from the jolting opener to the explosive finale.
It would keep you on the edge of your seat if it wasn’t for the capabilities of IMAX blowing you back in your recliner. The advertising for the film boasts that it was ‘Filmed for IMAX’ and that’s really the only way to see this. It’s a big-screen movie, it’s a biggest-screen-possible movie. This popcorn flick requires that buttery snack, a recliner, and the rumble of the cinema to be its most effective.
You’ll leave happy if that’s all you ask of Top Gun: Maverick. The jokes will land, the music will rock, and the nostalgia will wash over you.
And that’s the final thing this movie gets right: nostalgia.
Somehow, someway, this movie made me nostalgic for the original — a film I wasn’t alive for during its original run and something I didn’t even really like when I got around to it. But when the film’s titular anthem hits, it hits you hard. When Val Kilmer cameos as Iceman, you remember the thrill of the original. When they play football on the beach, you’ll get sweaty just thinking of the glistening volleyball from the first film.
Not only does this movie succeed in bringing you that warm fuzzy feeling that you want when you revisit a property last relevant in the late 80s, but it also does it better than just about any other movie trying to capture that same charm and magic.
Top Gun: Maverick has a run time of 2 hours 11 minutes, and is rated PG-13 for sequences of intense action, and some strong language.
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