Top Gun: Maverick

We have long been aware that Kosinski knows how to work with visuals and emotion, and here Bruckheimer and Cruise take him on a very pleasant journey of nostalgia. The connection to the original film is literally loving, the characters’ motivations complex and expansive. Fans of the original will get more of the same, but better, with an upgrade of the action scenes to a never-before-seen, physically honest airshow in the mold of Nolan. It’s been a long time since I’ve been so glued to an IMAX seat. I’m not giving Top Gun: Maverick a fifth star because the plot was safely predictable through the first 90% of its runtime in order to soothe fans of the original. The final 10%, however, is a wonderfully delightful Hollywood attraction. And I was pleased by the inclusion of Val Kilmer’s character. (25.05.2022)

Tommy negotiated a 20% cut of every ticket sold, clever boy, and with himself as producer he serves us a fairytale that is beautifully filmed, but with a plot that is cliché as hell. Fighter jets have never been so sexy, in the cockpit shots you can totally see the effects of overload on the actors' faces, every extra mach – nostalgia is fine if you know how to work with it – but it all goes follows classic predictable Hollywood notes, you can guess exactly what will happen in the next scene, there is no moment of surprise, this film can only dream of some surprising twists. I was thoroughly bored for the first half, and in fact for the rest of the film. The only one who gave me the creeps was Val Kilmer, especially if you know about his health. The final praised action set-piece looked like a CGI cut scene from “Call of Duty”, the only thing missing was a gamepad in my hands. I think the current 92% here is nonsense. (31.05.2022)

Of course, the biggest attraction of the new Top Gun is not the supersonic fighter jets, but Tom Cruise in thrall to his own acting legacy. As is usually the case with legacy sequels, 90% of the plot is a copy/variation of the events of the first film (the opening and closing credits are practically identical). Whereas Cruise was a student in the first Top Gun, this time he’s an instructor (and stand-in father) who shows the novices how it (aerial manoeuvres and action movies) is supposed to be done. Thanks to his emphasis on the human element (repeating the line that what matters is the pilot’s skill, not the machine’s capabilities), he saves the day (and the action genre, which he is breathing new life into). Nevertheless, he remains a rebellious outsider who rides the (same) motorcycle, wears the (same) leather jacket, doesn’t respect authority and doesn’t read manuals. At the same time, however, he obediently serves the military-industrial complex, so his rebelliousness is only superficial. Because Maverick chose to go his own way (just as Cruise’s career comprises a separate universe that is not part of the dominant comic-book multiverse), he has not put down roots and remains a solitary figure (which is constantly emphasised by how he observes the other characters from afar rather than coexisting with them). Like the most recent Bond film, Top Gun: Maverick is packed with nostalgic looks back at the past, admitting one’s own vulnerability and coming to terms with the fact that our time on earth is limited (Cruise will soon be 60 years old). Seeking out and pondering the parallels between Maverick and Cruise by going through his filmography and reflecting on his image as a star was truthfully more entertaining to me than the numerous aerial scenes, which, with the exception of the last one, which takes place over a snow-covered landscape for the sake of variety, are interchangeable, with such rapid cuts that you can’t really enjoy them much anyway (it’s worth seeing the film in IMAX mainly for the sound). The same is true of the variation on the legendary volleyball scene. The game of (American) football on the beach is shot predominantly against the sun, chopped up with a lot of unnecessary cuts and absolutely asexual. I guiltily admit that watching it made me long for Scott's advertising-video aesthetic and shameless objectification of semi-nude male bodies. I would have found such stylisation more appropriate for a blockbuster heroic, action-melodrama that basically takes place completely outside of any real socio-political context, in a world that exists solely for the purpose of showing off aerial acrobatics and Tom Cruise’s smile. 75% (24.05.2022)

One of the movies of the year and one of the best sequels ever. Joseph Kosinski isn't a standout directors for me, Only the Brave is a big emotional hit, Tron was interesting and Oblivion was mediocre, but Top Gun: Maverick is definitely his best and most ambitious work to date. We've been waiting a long time for the film and the trailers already indicated that it was going to be one hell of a ride, but I didn't expect it to hit me and pull me in so much, as fighter jets aren't exactly the stuff I seek out in movies. Everything here is just right from the performances (Tom Cruise is excellent and really cool, Jon Hamm, Miles Teller and Glen Powell are also great), the precise technical side caught up to perfection, great dialogues, emotional scenes, decent pacing, occasional humour, great music with Lady Gaga's final song included, intense tension and great action from the training to the 30 minute finale, which is built up ad absurdum – I stopped breathing there and lost track of time. The story itself may not be sophisticated, but that doesn't matter at all. The film has heart, balls, juice and drive and won't leave anyone cold, certainly not anyone who loves movies. What Le Mans 66 is to racing movies, Top Gun 2 is to aviation movies. Definitely the best movie with fighter jets and with The Northerner for me the movie of the year so far. Story 4/5. Action 5/5, Humor 3/5, Violence 0/5, Fun 5/5 Music 5/5, Visuals 5/5, Atmosphere 5/5, Suspense 5/5, Emotion 5/5, Actors 5/5. 9/10. (27.05.2022)

An inexplicable phenomenon in the form of a film that does not advance the genre forward, does not stand out in terms of acting, repeats itself like a song, and visually quotes a decades-old original scene by scene – and yet critics, viewers, children, and grandparents all nod their heads in agreement and struggle to admit that they just saw the film of the year. Honest action, where screws visibly fly off fighter planes and oil drips, a cliché seen a hundred times, which quakes with every emotion, and the essence of the 80s, extracted to the core, still works a couple levels better at every moment than it did in 1986. Top Gun: Maverick is the opposite of fan service because it brings us back to a fandom that most people only halfheartedly like, and not many would include it among their favorites. And yet it crushes us with nostalgia for times we didn't experience, forcing us to melancholically ponder fates we didn't know for three decades, and we honestly go in any direction it shows us, wondering why we never became pilots. (30.05.2022)

In Mission: Impossible – Fallout there were several sequences when the film crossed the line of fiction and built an exalted monument not only to its protagonist, but also to the actor who portrayed him. Top Gun: Maverick works simultaneously at the levels of fiction, reflective adoration and meta-commentary. Thus, when the line “The end is inevitable, Maverick. Your kind is headed for extinction” is uttered and Maverick responds, “Maybe so, sir. But not today”, it’s not just the title character or Tom Cruise, as the last thoroughbred Hollywood star, speaking for himself, but also for the 1980s blockbuster model. All of the warning lights are blinking red, alerting us that this old/old-world colossus shouldn’t be able to stand up to the bigger, faster, more finely tuned competition made with the latest hardware and software. We constantly have the feeling that this isn’t how it’s done anymore, that the time for that has passed, that everybody wants something more sophisticated, more advanced and more contemporary. But here it is simply confirmed that it is not the machine that matters, but the pilot. Of course, there are cheesy camp and crypto-queer levels to the film, but judging by the audience’s reaction, these are not flaws, but part of a delightful viewing experience, as the film doesn’t just wink at the viewers, but looks them right in the eye with its hard-to-resist gaze. Also, following Žižek’s analysis of Rammstein’s music and concerts in relation to Nazism, we can even say that the second Top Gun gives us a passive experience with Scientology (though, unlike in the case of Rammstein, this is not all based on caricature and it certainly does not subvert the reflected ideology). Tom Cruise can be condemned and hated for a number of things, but unlike other megalomaniacs of our time, he cannot be denied the recognition that he is without equal in his field, i.e. in cinematic spectacles. Not because of the massive paydays that he receives or how he fleeces his subordinates, but rather because he can tear down everyone for the perfectionist vision that he has worked so hard to create. Top Gun: Maverick proudly shows off its banal and obsolete engine, which should be in the salvage yard, but the living awe generator working the stick squeezes more power out of the old beater than anyone before him. ___ Footnote: In a handful of melancholically dreamy moments and plot motifs, Cruise’s ode to flying evokes Miyazaki’s understandably more poetic and multi-layered monument to fighter aces, Porco Rosso. (26.05.2022)

Nostalgia pushed to the limits, driven by the human desire to overcome obstacles. Cruise breathes life into this and sets out on the ancient battle between man and the machine meant to replace the man. The test is a Mission Impossible = to destroy an impregnable and almost invisible (probably) Soviet nuclear missile development center. Overall quite current right now... nostalgic but still current. Excellent actors. Primarily Teller and Powell. Equally macho hard-asses as last time learn to work together and keep pushing the limits and Maverick is the boss that is meant to teach them how. This direct and simple story is presented excellently and giving feelings of intense pleasure in just the right places, with the main protagonist looking for a place to belong. The bits with Kilmer are great and Jennifer Connelly is amazing again. Oh, and Tom Cruise carries it all on his shoulders with the strength of the last rightful star in Hollywood. A dying breed. But a chapter in itself. The mucking about at Top Gun is just a warm-up for the final inferno which will bowl you over not only at the IMAX, but even in a regular movie theater. Marvelous maneuvers by the F-18 (and another iconic machine) with gripping dog fights that have the viewer pinned to his seat. For two hours, the world was completely fine; the movie worked wonders on me again - I enjoyed it. Time is your worst enemy! (25.05.2022)

The ideal Hollywood experience, refined down to the smallest detail. A huge portion of nostalgia and the well-used star glitter of Tom Cruise. Waiting out the Covid restrictions was worth it. (02.06.2022)

The first one was youthful, impetuous, restless and surprisingly a lot harder and less predictable. The second one plays on safety. Lest it sound bad, it's a great movie. What Bruckheimer was able to produce, Kosinski to shoot, and Cruise and co. to star in will be in the textbooks for the next decade on how to make an "aerial film." All those polished shots, breathtaking camera twists and F18s rolls (and it wouldn’t be Tom Cruise without a Cobra at least once per film) are truly eye candy and you can't help but smile at the commitment of the actors. But there is not a single surprise, not a single unexpected scene throughout – there is one hint towards the end, but after a few seconds the sensation dissipates in another onslaught of clichés. Of course,we are speaking about clichés with refinement, elegance and overall acceptable consistency throughout, though. The filmmakers partially develop the story of Maverick and actually kind of recreate the fan-favorite moments of the first film for audiences three generations younger. The older ones smile because they know, the younger ones stare wide-eyes because they don’t know and they like it a lot. That means everyone is a target and that's why Maverick will make a bundle and deservedly so. However, the screenwriting qualities are not nearly as high as the technical ones. But that in the end is obviously not such a problem for a high rating, because when Cruise puts on his dusty jacket and sits on his motorbike at sunset, it's hard not to just slap five stars on there out of nostalgia. (01.06.2022)

The story is lemonade again, but this time not as flashy and more sensitive than the previous time, and you don't think so much about Hot Shots while watching it, and if you giggle at anything, it's perhaps only at the plan, which is reminiscent of the destruction of the Death Star – even using the Force in the final set-piece :) Otherwise, everything is perfectly fine, the film whizzes along for two hours like a fighter jet, and Tom Cruise proves that he deserves his star status as much as anyone, regardless of all his oddities. The aerial scenes are incredible, and watching the closing credits I thought to myself that at least half of those people must be from insurance companies. The last time I felt this authentically "there" in the cinema was probably when watching First Man, which was not filmed in any rockets. Top Gun: Maverick is, in short, an excellent, honest film with so many scenes that I'd like to see again that I'd rather watch the whole film right away. (03.06.2022)

It may not be the most surprising, innovative, or flawless piece of filmmaking, yet everything in Top Gun: Maverick is done so effectively, engagingly, and simply "right" that I had probably the most perfect viewing experience I've had in months. This is how you make a sequel years later, this is how you make a Hollywood blockbuster, this is simply how you make a FILM. And coming back from the cinema during the magic hour with the orange aura of the setting sun was just the icing on the cake. (05.06.2022)

Not counting Hot Shots, I only got to the first Top Gun two days ago so I could go to the cinema to see the second part, which is now being talked about in superlatives everywhere. Since I've only now seen the first one, I couldn't approach the second one with some nostalgic anticipation like a meeting with an old friend after many years. The first film is a pure product of the 1980s, but it certainly can't be denied a certain cult status as a guy's movie. The sequel, which landed in cinemas after 36 years, really surprised me in many ways. Although it once again exudes that macho, sometimes pompous atmosphere, it doesn't feel as flat (or as slightly silly) as its predecessor, and even has more than one powerful moment that occasionally caused a thick concentration of onions in the cinema. I also loved the casting of the charming Jennifer Connelly, and even Miles Teller, whose nasal voice (like Tom Cruise's) hasn't really suited me so far, but which surprised me in this film (plus the make-up artists managed to evoke a striking resemblance to Goose). I also praise the small but all the more impressive role for Val Kilmer. From a technical standpoint, this is a solidly done piece, with a number of breathtaking shots, some of which subtly reference the first film, while others take full advantage of today's technical capabilities. In the end, it might not be a pure five stars, but I have to admit that Maverick really got me this time. (29.05.2022)

The best possible mix of nostalgia and honestly heavy-handed filmmaking, which is breathtaking in its peak moments. All of which is also bolstered by a very good script that opens old wounds here and there, but does it in a totally founded and sensitive way, which "only" adds to the mosaic of all the things that are delightful about this film. The final mission is a technical, emotional, and considerably cathartic experience, and I wouldn't be afraid of the superlative that this has one of the most impressive final sequences I've ever seen. Thanks, Tom and everyone else. [95%] (15.08.2022)

The prototype of a perfect summer blockbuster. A cinematic blast that is two levels above the rest of the Hollywood production. An awesome mix of action, suspense, fun, nostalgia, and emotion. It’s probably the best of Tom Cruise's extensive movie career. Whatever rave reviews you will read about the new Top Gun, they're very likely to be true. (21.06.2022)