‘Top Gun: Maverick’ Review
Stars: Tom Cruise, John Hamm, Miles Teller, Glen Powell, Val Kilmer, Jennifer Connelly, Bashir Salahuddin, Charles Parnell, Monica Barbaro, Lewis Pullman, Manny Jacinto, Ed Harris | Written by Ehren Kruger, Eric Warren Singer, Christopher McQuarrie | Directed by Joseph Kosinski
Tom Cruise hasn’t just returned to the big screen to reprise one of his most iconic roles, he’s returned to save the summer blockbuster, and cinema itself.
Top Gun: Maverick takes place 36 years after we last saw Tom Cruise go by the call sign Maverick. Now he’s been sent back to the Top Gun school to train past Top Gun graduates to undertake the most daring mission they’ve ever seen, a mission that seems impossible. Among these graduates is Rooster (Miles Teller) who’s the son of Goose (Maverick’s best friend who died in a tragic accident in the first film). From the moment Rooster and Maverick lock eyes we know there’s a deep history that lead them on different paths, paths that seem to have drifted further and further apart. The core relationship Maverick has here has rippling effects that can be traced back to the first film, over 30 years ago. It’s the history of these characters that really is the beating heart of this film, you always get the feeling the heart and soul of the first instalment never stopped beating. For anyone who loved the first film there is everything you want in this sequel.
The film’s opening is dripping with nostalgia in a series of shots Tony Scott would be proud of. Throughout the film there seemed to be nods to the late director that always felt well placed and helped connect the two films, so we always felt like we’d never left the world Tony Scott created. After this sun-soaked opening we finally see Tom Cruise once again as Maverick, a smile, the ultimate movie star smile, beaming off his face, and at that moment I knew I was in safe hands. It’s a smile that lets you know he’s just as excited to be back as we are to see him. It shows a man who really cares about this character, this story, and most importantly, he cares about entertaining us on the biggest screen possible.
In a recent interview Tom Cruise did at Cannes film festival, he was asked why he puts his life at risk while making movies, his answer “No one asked Gene Kelly, ‘Why do you dance?’” Tom Cruise can’t help it, it’s part of him, he’s so dedicated to making movies for the big screen in the most exciting way possible that he’s willing to put his life at risk. And it’s that passion, love, dedication, and madness that comes to life on screen in Top Gun: Maverick.
The film dives into multiple nostalgia-fueled moments, and they are handled with such a delicate and committed touch that you can’t help but smile from to ear. Nostalgia is sometimes a tricky tool to deal with, it’s an easy way to get the audience back on your side and make a crowd-pleasing movie, however, if used too much or in the wrong way a movie can fall flat and seem like it’s trying too hard to please everyone. This can cause the film to never offer audiences anything new or original. That is not the case here, the nostalgic moments are always in the right place and spaced between these moments are new, fun ideas and characters, wrapped up in an exciting story that takes off at breathtaking pace.
This pace takes us into the third act, which is by no exaggeration one of the best action sequences I’ve ever seen. Perfectly encapsulating the heart, nostalgia, and excitement of the films previous two acts. The intensity and suspense the sequence creates had my hands gripped to my seat so hard my knuckles were turning white. The sequence is as edge of your seat exciting as you can get without falling off. The action is directed in such a way, that you always know where you are and never get lost in the action, and the shots this movie conjures up are spectacular in every way a summer blockbuster of this magnitude should be. Every shot inside those fighter jets truly takes your breath away, hurtling you straight into the centre of the action. The fact there is no green or CGI involved in the fighter jets makes all the difference and puts every other studio movie to shame. Watching from the cockpit as the landscape in the background drops and rises, turns and spins, adds so much to the intensity, and to the spectacle. It makes it a must-see on the biggest screen you possibly can.
The star-studded cast are all great too. Tom Cruise is always impressive and once again fully embodies Maverick with all his charm and charisma. John Hamm gets a great role as the Admiral that never trusts Maverick. The new young hotshot pilots are all great too, but the two standouts are Miles Teller as Rooster and Glen Powell as Hangman. And there is a touching return for Val Kilmer as his iconic Iceman.
Top Gun: Maverick is a film that must be seen on a big screen. It encapsulates everything a summer blockbuster should be, and will probably end up being the best time you’ll have in a cinema this year.
***** 5/5
Top Gun: Maverick is in cinemas now.
