Radm. ‘Hammer’ Cain: “The end is inevitable, Maverick. Your kind is headed for extinction.”
Maverick: “Maybe so, sir. But not today.”
Like a big old slice of Americana, Top Gun: Maverick throttles us back onto the ‘highway to the danger zone’ a whopping thirty six years after the original was released in 1986. Helmed by Joseph Kosinski (Oblivion), it harkens to a time when men were men, box office success screamed for pro-American storylines (for example, Rocky IV – which was released just a year earlier in 1985), and Tom Cruise was a bankable movie star (I guess some things haven’t changed).
Oozing a most unique brand of joyous buoyancy, this sequel will likely find you grinning from ear to ear through large portions of the action seen onscreen. Following the titular Maverick (Cruise), not much has changed for the talented pilot. Never having progressed past the ranking of Capt., his call sign is aptly given. . . as his maverick ways have always hindered him from moving up the ranks.
After a rather cool if mostly unrelated introduction (unless you go with the very intriguing Ambrose Bierce-style death vision theory first hypothesized on movie website Vulture.com), Maverick is corralled by hard ass Radm. ‘Hammer’ Cain (Ed Harris). . . thinking it is the end, instead, the Rear Admiral informs him that he will be heading back to TOPGUN on the orders of Maverick’s longtime best friend, Adm. ‘Iceman’ Kazansky (Val Kilmer – who provides a very touching cameo).
With a most dangerous mission ahead, Maverick mistakenly believes he will be flying, only once there he realizes that he will be teaching the top young aviators in the game. Under the thumb of by the books Adm. ‘Cyclone’ Simpson (Jon Hamm), his and the Navy’s cookie cutter methods clash with Maverick’s wild card ways. . . though the latter’s method might be the only way to complete a daunting task with nuclear implications (the impossible odds somehow feel a little bit like a Star Wars Death Star mission).
Bringing back memories both fond and heart-breaking, the hardest part will be instructing his former wing man Goose’s son, ‘Rooster’ Bradshaw (Miles Teller) – who blames him for his father’s death as well as the late start to his career. He will also be tasked with a slew of other top flyers, including the aptly named ‘Hangman’ (Glen Powell), one of only two women, ‘Phoenix’ (Monica Barbaro), bland ‘Bob’ (Lewis Pullman), African American ‘Payback’ (Jay Ellis), as well as many others. Though most of the characters are a bit cookie cutter-ish, it fits, as they are what the Navy has molded them into.
On the more pleasant side, Maverick meets up with former fling Penny Benjamin (Jennifer Connelly), a bar owning single mom with a playful yet bold persona and a certain je ne sais quoi.
Quite predictable in its storyline, that doesn’t make this sequel any less rewarding. Jam packed with some of the most impressive stunts and visuals you’ll see on the silver screen (as Tom Cruise explains in an introductory message prior to the motion picture, the technology has caught up so that they could shoot a movie like this practically – there is very little green screen or CGI), there’s nothing like seeing the actors struggle with the actual G-force up in these high powered jets. After receiving extensive G-force training, the actors also had to be the ones to turn the cameras filming them on and off, do their own lighting, sound, as well as their own makeup while up in the air. . . meaning that Kosinski and the crew had to wait hours on the ground to finally see the footage. Though extensively planned, this meant the story boarding and visuals had to be a bit more fluid than normal (talk about a unique experience for both actor and director). Shooting this way meant that there were always going to be some imperfections, yet this adds to the intense realism. . . providing the film with an extra special something.
A perfect breath of fresh air for the box office in 2022, Top Gun: Maverick soars above the competition (already Tom Cruise’s top grossing film ever). Yet, it’s also nice to keep it grounded by having so many callbacks to the original. . . a sports beach sequence, musical cues, a Maverick motorcyclist speeding along as a jet takes off, a “Great Balls of Fire” singing scene, basically the same intros and outros, as well as so much more. So, feel the need. . . the need for speed in this stunning sequel, and just remember, what’s good for the goose is good for the gander.