ReelBob: ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ ★★★
By Bob Bloom
The fiercest enemy dogging Navy aviator Capt. Pete “Maverick” Mitchell is time.
That is the crux of “Top Gun: Maverick,” the long-awaited — and delayed — sequel to 1986’s “Top Gun.”
After more than 30 years in the Navy, Maverick remains a captain, tossed around like a jetfighter caught in turbulence.
He is considered a dinosaur in a new age in which machines — not pilots — will fly new and highly sophisticated aircraft.
But Maverick has one more mission. He must teach all he knows to a group of Top Gun graduates chosen for a mission with a high probability that many of them won’t survive.
Maverick is a lost soul, disdained by superiors as an insubordinate relic. He is still haunted by the death of his friend “Goose.” But Maverick has a guardian angel, Adm. Thomas “Iceman” Kazansky, his one-time rival at the Top Gun school.
Kazansky orders Maverick’s return to Fightertown USA he will train the latest “best of the best” for their near-suicidal mission.
Among the pilots is Lt. Bradley Bradshaw, call sign “Rooster,” the son of his late friend, who still blames Maverick for his father’s death.
To succeed, Maverick must confront his ghosts and make peace with his past.
This may sound weighty, but, in reality, “Top Gun: Maverick” is a supersonic thrill ride with dazzling aerial cinematography and a strong emotional core.
Tom Cruise is more granite-like, his boyish charm chiseled away by decades of following his own flight path.
Director Joseph Kosinski (“Oblivion,” “TRON: Legacy”) pays homage to the 1986 movie with a stunning opening reminiscent of the original — including a reprise Kenny Loggins’ “Danger Zone” — but also looks ahead to a navy in which pilots will be obsolete.
The movie is not as jingoistic nor as testosterone heavy as the original. The pilots remain doggedly egotistical and self-assured, their bantering and rivalry obscuring a camaraderie they acknowledge only in the air.
The mission for which Maverick must train these pilots is a “Death Star”-like run through a narrow corridor in which they must fly at a specific speed and attitude to avoid anti-aircraft missiles. They also must complete their mission — to destroy a complex holding nuclear-grade uranium — in a 2½-minute time frame.
The question is will they succeed or not. With Maverick leading them, the answer is obvious. “Top Gun: Maverick” is about the journey, not the destination.
Cruise displays a maturity as Maverick, not wanting to repeat the mistakes of his younger self. Cruise has not shed Maverick’s cockiness, but he has tempered it. Cruise shows you moments in which you see the weight of Maverick’s past weigh him down — especially in his dealings with Rooster.
The most poignant moments in the film center on the short meeting between Maverick and Iceman, again played by Val Kilmer. If you have seen the wonderful documentary, “Val,” you know that Kilmer is battling throat cancer. He underwent a tracheotomy and lost his vocal capacity. For the movie, his dialogue was dubbed using artificial voice technology.
Allowing him to “speak,” unfortunately, dilutes the resonance of the former rivals’ reunion. It also feels a bit creepy.
Miles Teller as Rooster is somewhat underwritten. He enters the film with a chip on his shoulder, is a cautious pilot — too cautious according to his fellow flyers — and is antagonistic toward Maverick. That’s it — the movie fails to go any deeper.
Jennifer Connelly plays Penny, an old flame of Maverick’s and her part, as well, is not well developed.
Among Teller’s fellow pilots are Glen Powell as the braggadocio “Hangman,” Monica Barbaro as “Phoenix,” Jay Ellis as “Payback” and Danny Ramirez as “Fanboy.”
The cast also includes Jon Hamm as Adm. Beau “Cyclone” Simpson, whose smoldering contempt for Maverick nearly jeopardizes the mission, and Ed Harris as the rear admiral advocating for computer-flown aircraft instead of pilots.“
Top Gun: Maverick” is flashy, exciting and dazzling. Even if you were not impressed with the original, the sequel is a movie that will provide dazzling thrills and down-to-earth sentiment.
I am a founding member of the Indiana Film Journalists Association. I review movies, 4K UHD, Blu-rays and DVDs for ReelBob (ReelBob.com), The Film Yap and other print and online publications. I can be reached by email at bobbloomjc@gmail.com. You also can follow me on Twitter @ReelBobBloom and on Facebook at ReelBob.com or the Indiana Film Journalists Association. My movie reviews also can be found at Rotten Tomatoes: www.rottentomatoes.com.
TOP GUN: MAVERICK
3 stars out of 4
(PG-13), language, intense action sequences