TOP GUN: MAVERICK – Review

This holiday weekend’s big (and I mean big) release could set some records at the box office, while already setting one big milestone. It’s a sequel (not a reboot as many websites say) that has had the longest “gestating” time between its original flick. While most “franchise tentpoles” have usually two or three years between entries, here we have a whopping 36 years since the same actor, playing the same character, took to the skies. I’d venture to say that most of this weekend’s audiences weren’t alive when the first one was blasting through the multiplexes (often in malls back in the day). Oh, and that’s not counting its many pandemic delays and rescheduled openings in the last two years. Yes, 80s film fans have had a long wait to return to the “danger zone” in TOP GUN: MAVERICK. So buckle in…

Oh, this flick does begin with that familiar pop tune as the paramount mountain (and a military prologue “card”) fades away to reveal…Navy flier Captain Pete “Maverick” Mitchell (Tom Cruise) enjoying some breakfast in an airplane hangar (I’m guessing this is his home). Soon he’s on the road to a nearby testing station. But there’s a “hitch” in his plans. His old pal “Hondo” (Bashir Salahuddin) tells him that one of the Navy “bigwigs” is on his way to shut down the tests on the new fighter jet. Well, he can’t ground him if he’s up in the clouds, so Maverick hurriedly prepares for the big test flight. And that “big gun”, Radm Cain (Ed Harris) arrives at the gate just as the jet leaves the runway. Of course, Pete pushes the craft too hard and is brought into Cain’s office, for at least a dressing down or perhaps he’ll get “the boot”. But to nearly everyone’s surprise, Cain informs Pete that an old friend “in high places” has ordered that he return to his old San Diego training center to instruct a group of new fighters prepping for a dangerous mission. When Pete arrives he is greeted by his hard-nosed superior Adm ‘Cyclone’ Simpson (Jon Hamm) who outlines the big mission (destroying the new Uranium processing plant of a “rogue nation”) and pretty much rattles off the “riot act”. Later Pete heads off to a familiar nearby “watering hole” and is surprised to see that it’s now run by an old “flame”, Penny (Jennifer Connelly). He also observes the fliers he will train including one that he’s got a big connection with, Lt. “Rooster” Bradshaw (Miles Teller) whose father Goose was Pete’s best pal prior to his death in a mission together. Can the two put their past aside in order to complete “the job” as the deadline rapidly approaches? And can Pete pass along his skills to insure their safe return?

Cruise slips back into the role that catapulted him into big screen superstardom as though he’s slipping on a (slightly worn) bomber jacket (and a pair of sharp Aviators). Though he’s been defying gravity (and time) for the last couple of decades in the MI series, he hasn’t really connected in most other efforts, leaving his fans to dream of him soaring into the stratosphere once more. Well, wishes are now granted as he brings the same stern intensity paired with an affable charm, but now with a touch of patriarchal pride as he takes these jet-crazy kids under his still-muscular wings. But we see the regret etched into his face, as this ‘ace’ ponders the “flight path not taken”. Connelly’s Penny is part of that, as she fights that ole’ attraction while trying to assert her independence, even while hiding the rekindled “flame” from her wise-beyond-her-years teen daughter. What a pleasure to see Connelly’s intelligence, and dazzling smile almost as bright as Tom’s) back on the big screen. The other part of Pete’s not-so-golden past is represented by Teller as Rooster, who struggles to put aside his anger with Maverick while striving to be his own man and fly out of his pop’s long impressive shadow. Teller conveys Rooster’s sadness and his furious anger over Pete’s attempt to “protect him”. Hamm is a terrific sparring partner for Cruise as the CO that will try and tame “the Maverick” ( and we suspect how that’ll go). The splaying the young pilots are quite endearing especially Monica Barbaro as the main female flyer, the “Phoenix”, her skilled by somewhat “dweeby” partner “Bob” (“Just Bob”) played by Lewis Pullman (Bill’s son) and the charming bad boy “Hangman” given a rascally smirk by Glen Powell (and full of surprises). Speaking of, the most pleasant one (and I’m not spoiling things) is the return of Val Kilmer as ‘Iceman’, Pete’s rival from the first flick, who’s now a retired admiral. The brief reunion of the two is the real heart of this story (which may inspire an allergy outbreak of sniffles through the theatre).

Taking over the directing reigns from the late Tony Scott is Joseph Kosinski (TRON: LEGACY), who finds the perfect balance between character interactions and edge-of-your-seat action sequences. It’s been reported that all the actors actually went up in the jets, with several actually working the controls, making for some breathtaking backdrops (no “green screen” or CGI, apart from some missiles), and letting us experience the grueling “G-force’ effects on the cast’s faces (we can really see them start to blackout). So, if you get the chance to watch this in Imax, well, go for it! And the story benefits from the sweet, yet mature courtship of Penny and Pete (there’s a hint of a spark between Phoenix and Rooster, too). And there’s a bit of “fan service” as one scene echoes the big “beefcake” beach sports from the original. Now some of it is more than a bit far-fetched as the big “mission” almost plays like a rehash of the “Death Star” trench run in another big movie series. Credulity is pushed further to the edge when the “dogfights” are grounded in the big climax. Plus the producers go out of their way to never identify the enemy as the pilots from the “rogue nation” are completely covered in black (naturally) when seen in their respective cockpits (which happen to have English labels). Oh, but why nitpick. This is that very rare sequel that easily surpassed the original (I barely made it through in one viewing in 86′), earning its advance “rep’ as a popcorn-fueled entertainment machine. As the song from the first flick crooned (wished they had a spot for it this time), TOP GUN: MAVERICK will “Take Your Breath Away”. Multiplex-mission accomplished!

3.5 out of 4

TOP GUN: MAVERICK is now playing in theatres everywhere