Top Gun: Maverick Review – Much-Improved! Much-Entertaining!

Top Gun Maverick is a sequel to the much-celebrated 1986 action-drama of the same name and picks up nearly thirty years after the events of the first film, with Captain Pete “Maverick” Mitchell still finding ways to piss off his superiors. The story begins when Mav (close to his retirement age) is summoned back to Top Gun when the enemies pose a new threat in the form of a uranium enrichment facility. After being asked to train the new batch of Top Gun graduates, including Rooster (Goose’s son), Mav takes up the job, and the remainder of the story travels through a spectrum of emotions and more.

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To begin with, when I watched the 1986 film for the first time recently, and I got a good understanding as to why it opened to mixed responses from the critics. I felt that it was extremely choppy. The build-up to a sentimental scene we usually anticipate from a drama went missing, and there is no breathing space for the emotions to sink in. It almost felt like the writers, Jack Epps Jr. and Jim Cash, kept finding ways to not make a dramatic scene work, and the studio interference diced the runtime below two hours on the cutting room floor.

However, with Top Gun Maverick, screenwriters Ehren Kruger, Eric Warren Singer, and Christopher McQuarrie were extra focused to make the drama side of the film work by developing the characters, allowing extra time for the scenes to breathe, blend in with the plot and leave an impact with the viewer. The scenes transition from one to another smoothly, accompanied by a splendid background score by Lorne Balfe. As a result, I feel that this film wouldn’t have been soo good without the glaring problems of the first one.

Additionally, I also loved the treatment of all individual stories in Top Gun Maverick. Starting with the romantic arch between Pete and Penny, which is simple, sweet, and sailed beautifully throughout the runtime. The entire subplot of Maverick’s personal legacy was also concluded well. But most importantly, his dynamic with Rooster and how their relationship comes full circle by the end of the film was remarkably narrated, and I teared up a little, which the first film failed to do.

The central plot of Top Gun Maverick was solely utilized to focus on the action and the entertainment aspects, and Joseph Kosinski does not miss and lets loose in any single scene. The fighter jet combat scenes are soo ridiculously entertaining and breathtaking to watch on the big screen as they provide you that summer blockbuster vibe. In addition to the action, the original movie songs just give you that kick of nostalgia flawlessly.

Tom Cruise, at age 60, still manages to do most of his stunts with ease, carries that hero charisma, steals every scene he is in, and never lets the movie exhaust the audience member. The new cast, including Miles Teller, Jennifer Connelly, Jon Hamm, and others, blended in their characters very decently as I had no problem watching any single one of them.

Overall, Top Gun Maverick took what lacked in the 1986 film and doubled down on delivering in those areas with incredible writing and execution. This is a much-improved, much-entertaining, and a more re-watchable sequel and a beautiful send-off to the franchise if the makers decided to end on this high note. “Do you feel the need—the need for speed!?” Do not miss this one on the big screen.

‘Top Gun: Maverick’ Rating – 3.75/5