Top Gun-Maverick 10/10
Wow. How is this so good? I probably rolled my eyes when I heard they were doing a Top Gun sequel but this is absolutely not just the benchmark for how to do a summer blockbuster but how to make a sequel to an old film. What it gets right that so many of these reboots and sequels don't, is having a real understanding of what made the original work while still having its own story to tell. And only making nods to the original when it makes sense rather than just descending into a checklist of "remember this bit?! and this bit?! and this bit?!".
It has heart, it's exciting, funny, sad and cheesy but never in a bad way. The tone is spot on and it avoids many obvious tropes it could have got caught up-I'm glad Maverick was still the absolute best (and they didn't do a student beats the master story) and also that Rooster wasn't angry with him because of his dad dying and they went a deeper with it.
Loved the cinematography too, so much great use of colour (and not just during the sunset scenes, of which there were many). And the action was incredibly well directed. It would be really easy to lose an audience in some of those sequences in the air and get confusing but somehow they managed to avoid it every twist and turn. And the final 45 minutes are just incredible. You won't see a better final act in an action film. It's a shame I had to pay for my seat in full because I only needed the edge of it. So many brilliant, memorable moments and the pay off on Rooster and Maverick's relationship was superb. I also thought it was really clever how much they drummed the mission into you throughout the film so when it got down to it you knew exactly what was happening and what the plan was. When that
bridge appeared you were just as surprised as the pilots.
Tom Cruise is absolutely unrivalled in the summer blockbuster stakes and he's perfect here, one of his best performances in my opinion. Supporting cast are really good too, Miles Teller is brilliant especially in the final third ("What the hell were you even thinking?! "You told me not to think!") and Jennifer Connolly is great (and jesus christ she still looks incredible-that scene where
she leaves the door open . The inclusion of Val Kilmer was really well done too, incredibly sad but really respectably done.
I just can't fault it. Brilliant.