Top Gun is pure cinematic magic that we will discuss in many ways, but the most contentious part is whether it should have been created. Is it a good thing they did? Wasn't it too long to create a sequel? Those questions may be argued, and some may argue that it would have been better if they hadn't done it; but, it was created, and in light of that unavoidable truth, this pro believes it's the finest sequel they could have developed under the circumstances. Top Gun is like the finest symphony you can play with specific musicians, as excellent as they could have done.
The problem that we could find is that the protagonist is too old to walk in those matters, but we have to see two things: on the one hand, reality surpasses fiction, and strangely, it gives credibility to it, because Tom Cruise did not stand in front of a green screen simulating driving a supersonic jet, but he trained, got on a supersonic jet, personally drove it, and also filmed himself doing it; remarkable. On the other side, the trailer already showed a character asking Maverick's character why he hadn't ascended, and why he kept flying, and this demonstrates Cruise's recklessness when producing movies; not only does he do it, but he does it from the beginning. Already in the trailer, he seizes the bull by the horns and confronts the film's main criticism, so that we can debate it in our homes before going to the cinema, and if we answered the initial questions and decided that they should be made it to Top Gun 2, Cruise knows that when we arrive at the theaters, we will be delivered and that he has a truly overwhelming show to offer us, he knows well that when the lights go out in the room, the magic will turn on.
source
The plot is predictable, but the writing is brilliant in terms of how to lend legitimacy to the acts, how to maintain the action sequences, how to explain Cruise's age, how to use actual planes, and how to weave all of this into a tale. Make it interesting and consistent. It is an outstanding achievement by the authors. Maverick is now a test pilot and still flying, but during a critical test to achieve Mach 10, he fulfills his task by breaching certain laws, preserving the test program but destroying the plane. He is expelled as punishment, but thanks to the intervention of Iceman, played by Val Kilmer, his opponent at the academy and now buddy, he ends himself in Top Gun as an instructor of the best navy pilots for a very perilous mission in enemy territory. As an instructor, he is very unconventional, pushing the pilots to their limits, as well as his superiors' patience, and devising a very complicated plan to carry out, but it is the only plan that not only guarantees the bombing, but also gives the pilots a real chance of not being shot down, and no more plot than necessary will be revealed here, but obviously, the public expects Maverick to fly again and participate in the mission, and it is up to you to see if that happens.
source
The training of those pilots is a large part of the film's footage, but it doesn't feel like an academy or training film; it feels more like action and adventure film, with a happy spirit, enthusiasm, valuing life, inspiration, where reality and fiction are mixed extraordinarily because Tom Cruise is Maverick, but Maverick is Tom Cruise, and that is one of the film's fascinating aspects. Cruise plays a pilot, but he's not simulating on a green screen, he's flying a real plane; Cruise plays an instructor teaching things to a new generation, but in real life, as a pilot, producer, and filmmaker, he taught actors how to fly, film themselves in flight, and give it their all; Cruise plays an optimistic, enthusiastic man of action, but in real life, he is that, making incredible achievements without the use of stuntmen.
Maverick is a guy who pursues his profession despite all difficulties; he appears to be a figure inspired by Tom Cruise; Maverick gives his everything, even sacrificing his own life for the sake of a mission; Cruise does the same thing in real life, but with the distinction that he does it for Making Movies! and not to save the world from nuclear annihilation. Maverick is an endangered species that prioritizes human interaction over technology, as is Cruise, who could have employed special effects but chose to risk his life in genuine aerial sequences by piloting a plane. Where do the lines between Cruise and Maverick blur? You don't know, they mix, we don't know how much is fact and how much is fiction, and that is one of the film's strong qualities, its realism, but also its semiotics, its message.
source
The realism in various aspects is impressive, especially in the aerial and action scenes, nothing looks fake, everything looks real, the realism of the film in terms of the aerial scenes is incredible, they all seem to be filmed for real, and most of them are, they are in a way documentaries, but with the actors literally taking off from an aircraft carrier, incredible that they were allowed, you can deduce that there are special effects since they surely did not destroy 150 million dollar jets in the filming, but the effects are fair, and minimal in relation to the actual footage filmed, a true production achievement, in addition, the film is very competently directed, making very correct use of the shots and the director, Joseph Kosinski, doing a great job in achieving that the action, even being vertiginous, is clearly understood and also that produces emotion, achieving a film full of adrenaline, but that can also move us to tears.
source
In terms of semiotics and the message, the film discusses and expresses the importance of vocation in people's lives, vindicates that call that some of us have, which is like a fire inside, and the heat of that fire is felt in each frame of the film, and also how that vocation inspires, moves people, causes them to develop, and ultimately leads to a better world. It also discusses second chances, working, learning, teaching, and loving, and reminds us that as long as there is life, there are chances, and possibilities, and you can still accomplish it. And that is also related to the vindication of the human part and what already works in the face of technology and the replacement of humans by machines, and in that sense, it is similar to Toy Story, where a character seeks not to become obsolete, but without the bitterness that Woody had in the first film. And in that sense, Top Gun is a love letter to the human race, but more importantly to life; it is an inspiring film, one of those that make life love, that recharge batteries so that, when we leave the cinema, full of life, like the characters, full of enthusiasm, like Maverick's, we go out into the world to make it better, to inspire us, to put our vocation into practice and "risk once and for all, what I am for what I can be," as the song says; Top Gun is pure cinema, pure magic, Top Gun is Life, and it is the joy of living it, it is the enthusiasm of being alive and enjoying it, erasing the limits that separate Cruise from Maverick, and those that separate Cinema from Life, everything is mixed, and seeing a character/actor living fully, we value cinema and its magic, and above all, we value life and living it fully.
Thanks so much, Tom, enjoy your Palme d'Or.
