Top Gun: Maverick - A Long-Awaited Sequel That Surpasses Its Predecessor in Wildly Entertaining Style 1

 

Review: After more than thirty years of service as one of the Navy’s top aviators, Pete “Maverick” Mitchell (Tom Cruise) is where he belongs, pushing the envelope as a courageous test pilot and dodging the advancement in rank that would ground him. When he finds himself training a detachment of Top Gun graduates for a specialized mission the likes of which no living pilot has ever seen, Maverick encounters Lt. Bradley Bradshaw (Miles Teller), call sign: “Rooster,” the son of Maverick’s late friend and Radar Intercept Officer Lt. Nick Bradshaw, aka “Goose”. Facing an uncertain future and confronting the ghosts of his past, Maverick is drawn into a confrontation with his own deepest fears, culminating in a mission that demands the ultimate sacrifice from those who will be chosen to fly it.

Rotten Tomatoes gave the movie a 96% rating on the Tomatometer and 99% audience score 1. According to the critics, “Top Gun: Maverick pulls off a feat even trickier than a 4G inverted dive, delivering a long-belated sequel that surpasses its predecessor in wildly entertaining style” 1. Roger Ebert’s review of the movie states that “Top Gun: Maverick is a witty and nostalgic action movie sequel that earns respect for Cruise’s star power and craft, while upping the drama and romance of the original” 2. The Guardian’s review of the movie describes it as “an irresistible Tom Cruise soars in a blockbuster sequel” 3.

Joseph Kosinski’s long-delayed sequel is a confidently rapturous, emotionally involving, take-your-breath-away great time at the movies. The movie is set more than 30 years after the events of the first film, and it follows Pete “Maverick” Mitchell (Tom Cruise) as he trains a new generation of pilots, including Bradley Bradshaw (Miles Teller), the son of Maverick’s late friend and Radar Intercept Officer Lt. Nick Bradshaw, aka “Goose”. The movie is a tribute to the original, with plenty of callbacks to the first film, but it also manages to stand on its own. The aerial sequences are breathtaking, and the movie is filled with heart and humor. Cruise is as charismatic as ever, and he’s surrounded by a talented cast that includes Jennifer Connelly, Jon Hamm, and Ed Harris. The movie is a must-see for fans of the original, but it’s also a great film in its own right.

Rotten Tomatoes gave the movie a 90% rating on the Tomatometer and 96% audience score 2. According to the critics, “Top Gun: Maverick is a witty and nostalgic action movie sequel that earns respect for Cruise’s star power and craft, while upping the drama and romance of the original” 3. IndieWire’s review of the movie describes it as “a confidently rapturous, emotionally involving, take-your-breath-away great time at the movies” 1.