Top Gun is that rare movie
where things that shouldn’t work actually make the movie better. The acting is
incredibly over the top, the plot makes little sense, the villains are faceless
and ambiguous (we never actually know where the MIGs are from), and series of
implausible events (and timely exposition) pop up out of nowhere to move the
plot forward and the characters wherever they need to end up. And yet, I can’t
help loving this movie.
I admit a lot of it is probably
nostalgia. I can’t count the number of times I saw this movie growing up back
when I didn’t really care about huge plot holes or that characters’ motivations
turned on a dime. It’s the quintessential 80s blockbuster: an incredible
soundtrack (“something something DANGER ZONE!” as Archer would say); a moody
protagonist fighting demons (think Lethal Weapon with far fewer suicidal
tendencies); an unsurprising lack of minorities; one-note, underdeveloped
antagonists (seriously – you can’t even see their eyes!); a shouting authority
figure who reluctantly accepts the foolishness of the movie’s lead (Beverly
Hills Cop, Lethal Weapon again); and a final battle scene where we think the
protagonist’s demons will overwhelm him, only to see him triumph over evil once
and for all (every Rocky sequel). Cliché, cheesy, and oh so enjoyable.
Maverick (Tom Cruise) is a
hot shot Navy pilot serving in the Middle East with his partner, Goose (Anthony
Edwards), who has an encounter with a mysterious enemy “MIG” aircraft before
being sent to Top Gun, flight school for the best of the best. There they will
train with other pilots for the title of Top Gun, a very prestigious award
whose winner will be immortalized on a plague almost no one will see. Maverick
also has daddy issues; his father died in a mysterious incident a few years
back, and the official story is it was all his fault. This comes up a few
times, so you would be correct in assuming this hang over the movie until the
last possible minute, when the plot requires that he find out the truth.
At Top Gun, Maverick falls
for his female instructor, a specialist in MIGs, and battles his main rival Ice
Man (Val Kilmer – he’s everywhere!) both in the air and on the volleyball
court. You remember this volleyball scene: three shirtless men sweating and
hugging a lot and trying to include Anthony Edwards, who unfortunately didn’t
the shirtless memo. The fun is short lived as Maverick and Goose go down in a
training exercise in which Goose somehow dies. Maverick is devastated and
basically drops out of Top Gun. He meets with the head guy (and also first Top
Gun winner!), who tells him that he both has enough credits to graduate (sure)
and that he was there – the accident was not his father’s fault and he in fact
died heroically. It’s unclear why no one can know about this, but I assume it’s
so we can see a moody, hilariously depressed Tom Cruise bumble around for a few
scenes.
Coincidentally, there is a MIG
attack during graduation, and the only hope are the new graduates. Ice Man,
newly crowned Top Gun, takes the lead and Maverick is called in as back up,
should the other planes need it. Naturally, they do. Ice Man doesn’t trust
Maverick, but when it’s clear the MIGs outnumber the good guys, the Navy sends
in a single backup jet (Maverick’s) and he of course saves the day. They return
to the carrier to much rejoicing, and Ice Man and Maverick hug. “You can be my
wingman any day!” Maverick also throws his father’s dog tags, which he’s worn
around his neck and on his shoulders, into the ocean because SYMBOLISM!
This is a Michael Bay movie,
so subtlety is prohibited. There’s also amble machismo, little diversity, and
only two women in the movie. But sometimes, you just feel the need. The need
for speed. This is a brainless, thoroughly enjoyable escape. The flight scenes
are done remarkably well, and I remember hearing years ago they borrowed actual
Navy jets (and had to promise not to crash any.) It’s amazing what a difference
using real equipment makes in a movie; in the age of CGI, over-the-top effects,
this movie is a nice throwback to the days of real stunts with real machines.
Even if the acting and story are hard to believe, the action sequences are very
enjoyable. This movie succeeds because of the cheese, not in spite of it, and
it holds up remarkably well as a piece of 1980s, cold war action.
Top Gun: 4 of Patrick
Swayze’s 6 abs
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