Non-Spoilery review of Top Gun Maverick

baimun

baimun

Funkasaurus Rex
Well son of a bitch....


... just when I thought that the recent Ghostbusters did such a great job of telling a new story while paying such respectable tribute to its beloved original, Top Gun Maverick goes and pulls some spectacular one upmanship.

Tom Cruise is finally starting to show some squidgy marks around his edges to let us know that he isn't Dorian Grey or Paul Rudd. Somehow the jokes, nods, and winks in the movie pay just the right amount of respect without feeling too much like a retread.

Tom Cruise and Val Kilmer really sell their stories and it doesn't feel like 80's stars wrapped in new plastic, but more like "Yeah... we've been out here living this reality for the past 30 something years until this story brought us back together again." The only notable omissions are Kelly McGuiness and Meg Ryan, but they are explained in the story.

The new additions to the cast... Jennifer Connelly, Miles Teller, Charles Parnell, John Hamm, and a brief appearance of Ed Harris all somehow bring each of their flavors to the table, while somehow fitting right into this universe and connect all the right dots.

The stunt pilots will likely get a LOT of praise for this movie, as the majority of those scenes were shot practically. I watch a thing a while back (I think this movie was almost complete in 2020) that showed how they put Cruise in the back of a military jet and really rolled him through these turns. There are some really good special effects out there, but none are as real as Tom Cruise's face actually getting squished and all the blood rushing to the back of his skull during a high G barrel roll.

I definitely give this one four and a half Goose heads.

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I just saw the 97/99% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. I’m taking the kids to see this tomorrow. There just aren’t enough movies about cool jets being fast.
 
Quick confession: I’ve never seen the first one. It was the most popular film my freshman year of Ha, I just never got around to it.
 
It’s a killer summer popcorn movie. Lots of zooming and booming. But for some reason every time Jennifer Connelly was onscreen all I could think of was “ASS TO ASS!”
 
jp_nyc said:
It’s a killer summer popcorn movie. Lots of zooming and booming. But for some reason every time Jennifer Connelly was onscreen all I could think of was “ASS TO ASS!”
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I usually look at her and try to compute how Jarvis (Paul Bettany) is her husband.... It doesn't compute in my MCU brain. :grin:


but then I remember that she voiced "Friday" in Spiderman No Way Home and then it all works. :helper:
 
Seemed like a good movie to see on the big screen, so we went the other day. My takeaways,
  • If you liked the original, then you will probably like this one too. Lots of very well-filmed flight scenes with no noticeable CGI.
  • Many references to the original film.
  • As with the first, there are several cheezy plot points that don't pass the reality litmus test. Check your scrutiny at the door.
  • Also like the original, there is a gratuitous sunset sports scene with a bunch of cut young men (and women in this one) running around the beach shirtless.
  • Jennifer Connelly has aged like fine wine.
  • Tom Cruz has aged like fine cheese. Seriously, this guy is a year younger than me and has the body of a 30 yr old (unless there's a body double in the aforementioned sports scene).
  • Val was looking a bit rough, but good on him for pushing through to tie the stories together.
Would I recommend it? Sure. It's a fun, summertime action movie. It's not meant to be deep or though provoking. If that's what you want in a film, maybe skip it.
 
I caught it last Sunday, and I enjoyed it. Parts of the final act were really a stretch, even more than the first film, but just check your brain at the door and go along for the ride.

And I love fast jets so it's all good to me.
 
If you seen the first one, the second is better. A lot of parallels between the first and second that come alive in a different way.

Loved the 1st and religiously watch it when it comes on Satellite (add on we own it but to lazy find it). The second will definitely be a purchase for home use.
 
GusChiggins said:
You're missing out on Vanilla Sky then....
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So be it.

Unfortunately for me, this past weekend Mrs. Tralfaz picked the movie for our night out since it was her birthday, and guess what she wanted to see! There's a right time and a wrong time to take a hardline stance on NO TOM CRUISE MOVIES EVER, so yes, I ended up seeing the new Top Gun. :frown:

The aerial stunt flying was, of course, pretty impressive. The movie itself was profoundly stupid. Plot devices that a 3-year old could see coming from a mile away. I mean, I knew it would be dumb, but nothing could have prepared me for how dumb this actually was.

I haven't bothered to look up any reviews on this thing, but I can't be the only person who noticed that the set up for the climatic battle was lifted from that legendary Scientology boondoggle Battlefield Earth -- crafty heroes discover dusty old abandoned jets which miraculously still function and use this old technology to defeat overwhelmingly powerful enemy.
 
I'm going to try and see it this week.
My friend was a Phantom/Tomcat pilot. He really wants to see it. I am meh in the whole thing.
 
jp_nyc said:
It would be funny if there was an alternate ending on home video where a plane explodes at an inopportune moment and the Americans lose focus and the whole mission goes to shit.
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That’s just one reason I like stuff like Black Mirror and Love Death & Robots… some of the episodes have super fucked up endings. Always keeps you guessing.
 
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