'Top Gun: Maverick' A Review

Top Gun: Maverick is an action drama a sequel to 1986's Top Gun. The movie opens on Maverick(Tom Cruise) who is working as a test pilot. After disobeying orders to prove the viability of the project he is reassigned, by the intervention of now Admiral Iceman(Val Kilmer), back to Top Gun as an instructor for a top priority mission. 

Cruise returns to Maverick with pretty much the same swagger but with a lot more emotion and internal conflict, its effective but kind of generic but to be fair the whole movie is, no necessarily in a bad way. It's wonderful to see Kilmer back on screen and Jennifer Connelly as Maverick's love interest is always a joy to see but there's a breezy, blockbuster type of shallowness about the characters, not out of line for the type of movie that it is, but even so no one is particularly stretching their acting chops. The young supporting cast are all serviceable, Glen Powell in particular is one of the only ones that has any real energy or differentiation, and Miles Teller unfortunately mostly flails in the shadow of Cruise. But again, the narrative doesn't really require any of them to be particularly dynamic or dimensional.

The movie looks absolutely incredible, the multiple extensive practical flight sequences are completely stunning, worth seeing on the big screen just for that. The soundtrack checks all the boxes, there's enough nostalgia to satisfy fans of the original but is fresh enough to feel unique and if not exactly fresh than at least fitting. Even though it is a sequel almost 40 years in the making its nice to have an old school blockbuster that isn't CGI superheroes or a disaster flick with absurd collateral damage. Ultimately its relatively simple and contained and this is one of it's greatest strengths.

Thrillingly made with a story that may be only intriguing by comparison rather than in and of itself.

Currently in theaters coming soon to VOD.

Rent It.