Film Review — Top Gun Maverick

Summary

"Top Gun Maverick" is a legacy sequel that delivers thrilling aerial action sequences and nostalgia, with Tom Cruise reprising his iconic role and showcasing his ageless appeal.

Abstract

The film "Top Gun Maverick" serves as a testament to Tom Cruise's enduring star power, as he not only revisits the role that catapulted him to fame but also takes on the mantle of producer. The sequel pays homage to the original 1986 classic with similar opening sequences and the iconic soundtrack, while introducing a new mission that requires Maverick to train a group of Top Gun graduates. The narrative mirrors the original's beats but adds fresh twists, ensuring a crowd-pleasing experience that is particularly enjoyable for fans. The film features a strong performance from Cruise, a touching scene with Val Kilmer, and the addition of Jennifer Connelly as Penny Benjamin. The aerial cinematography is a standout, eschewing CGI for practical effects, which enhances the film's appeal on the big screen. "Top Gun Maverick" is positioned to be a summer hit, offering both nostalgia and new thrills.

Opinions

The reviewer is impressed by Tom Cruise's ageless appearance and his significant influence as the creative force behind the film.
The director, Joseph Kosinski, is somewhat overshadowed by Tom Cruise's presence, to the point that the reviewer initially forgot his name.
The film successfully balances nostalgia with new elements, subverting some of the original's plot beats in a way that adds depth to the sequel.
While Tom Cruise's performance is praised, the younger actors, except for Miles Teller, are noted to have less impactful roles.
Val Kilmer's scene is described as surprisingly touching, especially considering his real-life battle with throat cancer.
The aerial sequences are lauded as truly spectacular and a significant improvement over the original film, contributing to the film's edge-of-the-seat excitement.
The soundtrack is noted for blending classic tracks with new contributions from Hans Zimmer and Lady Gaga, aiming to recreate the musical success of the original.
The reviewer acknowledges an initial skepticism about the sequel but admits to being genuinely surprised by how much they enjoyed it.
The film is not expected to revolutionize cinema but is anticipated to be

Thrilling aerial action sequences and shameless nostalgia are the chief pleasures of Tom Cruise’s return to the role that made him a star.

Credit: Paramount

I don’t know what fountain of youth Tom Cruise is drinking from, but his defiance of natural aging continues to stagger me, with fresh evidence on display in Top Gun Maverick. As producer as well as star, Cruise is very much the creative force behind this legacy sequel, so much so that I had to look up the director, Joseph Kosinski, before writing this review. Normally I know such things from memory, but I’d forgotten his name. Oh well, he’s just the director.

Top Gun Maverick opens as per its 1986 pop culture classic predecessor. The same white on black fonts in the opening titles, the same caption explaining the Top Gun fighter school, orange filter shots of US fighter planes atop an aircraft carrier, all scored to Harold Faltermeyer’s iconic theme, followed by a blast of Danger Zone by Kenny Loggins. Afterwards, we see Captain Pete “Maverick” Mitchell’s ego still blithely writing cheques his body can’t cash, in this case testing a new plane to Mach 10-plus speeds, to the irritation of Rear Admiral Chester “Hammer” Cain (Ed Harris).

Much like Maverick’s superior in the original film, Cain would like to bust Maverick’s butt, but he can’t. He’s been ordered by Admiral Kazansky aka Iceman (Val Kilmer) to send Maverick back to Top Gun. Here Maverick must train a batch of former Top Gun graduates for a nigh-on impossible, Dambusters-style bombing mission to destroy a NATO-defying uranium enrichment plant in an unnamed Russia-ish country. His charges include the son of Maverick’s dead radio intercept officer and best friend Nick “Goose” Bradshaw, Lt Bradley “Rooster” Bradshaw (Miles Teller), who still blames Maverick for what happened to his old man, among other things. Needless to say, Maverick’s unorthodox but brilliant methods frustrate and grudgingly impress students and superior officers alike. But will they result in a successful mission against such overwhelming odds?

Screenwriters Ehren Kruger, Eric Warren Singer, and Christopher McQuarrie (working from a story by Peter Craig and Justin Marks) recreate the plot beats of the original film, milking for maximum nostalgic effect. Yet at times, these are deftly subverted. I want to steer clear of spoilers, suffice to say Top Gun Maverick isn’t memorable so much for what happens but for how it happens. As such, it’s a guaranteed crowd-pleaser, especially for fans of the original film.

For those who are somewhat ambivalent about the original (I recently wrote about it here), this still comes recommended, as it’s surprisingly solid. Tom Cruise gives a fine central performance, and whilst the younger actors don’t get much chance to make an impact (save Teller), there is a surprisingly touching scene with a brave Val Kilmer (afflicted with throat cancer in real life). On top of this, we get Jennifer Connelly in a love interest role, playing a character mentioned but never seen in the original called Penny Benjamin. Thankfully, Cruise has more chemistry with Connelly than he did with Kelly McGillis.

Best of all are the truly spectacular aerial sequences, thrillingly bereft of CGI, which look magnificent on the big screen. The finale is edge-of-the-seat stuff, and certainly tops the original in that respect. Harold Faltermeyer and Kenny Loggins rub shoulders with Hans Zimmer and Lady Gaga in a soundtrack that mixes old and new, with the latter’s Hold My Hand clearly positioned as a potential hit akin to Berlin’s Take My Breath Away. Despite my earlier sarcastic dismissal, Joseph Kosinski helms with a sure hand, dedicating the picture to his directorial predecessor, the late Tony Scott.

All things considered, Top Gun Maverick is a large-scale, irresistibly entertaining piece of uplifting nostalgia. It’s an unashamed popcorn throwback, but one with moments of surprising poignancy amid the thrills. Not destined to change the course of cinema, but perhaps destined to be a sizeable summer hit, I’m genuinely surprised by how much I enjoyed this.

This article was originally published at Simon Dillon Books. For more about me and my writing on Medium, please click here. For a list of my published novels and other works, please click here.