Top Gun: Maverick

Originally published on 30/05/22 on Letterboxd

It’s fine. I prefer the dreamy formlessness of Scott’s original and this is definitely plagued to a certain extent by the notion of Cruise-as-auteur conflicting with Kosinski’s authorial intent. The centring of the flight sequences as something to be perfected, rather than mediators of the emotional currents of the flight academy as in the first film, definitely weighs it down. That said, I can’t deny that I adored the sense of momentum generated in these sequences, and Kosinski has a real knack for the geography of the action. A pleasant enough watch that I will probably not think about after watching it once. As much as the film is entirely in service of Cruise’s ego, I can’t say he doesn’t deserve it, because there is truly no one dedicated/psychotic enough to commit to something as visceral as this.

“In loving memory of Tony Scott”