Review of Top Gun (1955) by Adam F — 02 Dec 2013

It's true that at times "Top Gun" simply feels like a Navy Recruitment video and that for a significant amount of the film it follows a familiar formula but the charismatic leads, some great action sequences and a lot of energy make the film a winner. There's room for movies that follow familiar formulas so if you're going to watch that old "rebellious rookie goes to school to become the best of the best" you might as well watch the greatest one there is right? It follows Pete Mitchell (Tom Cruise) but you'll refer to him by his flight name, "Maverick". He flies a F-14A Tomcat along with his co-pilot Nick "Goose" Bradshaw (Anthony Edwards). After an incident over international waters, the top ranking pilot of their program steps down and this proves a big opportunity for the two. Now that they're the heads of their class, they are allowed to attend the Navy's Fighter Weapons School or "Top Gun". When they arrive, not only does Maverick's family legacy come back to haunt him (his father was shot down during the Vietnam War), but he finds himself a rival in the form of top student Tom "Iceman" Kasansky (Val Kilmer). The new school he's attending admire his aerial skills but are not impressed by his reckless behavior, his hot-shot attitude and affinity for breaking rules. Lucky for him, he catches the eye of Charlotte "Charlie" Blackwood (Kelly McGillis), a civilian contractor serving as an instructor at Top Gun. The film follows Maverick and Goose's friendship through the program, the developing relationship between Maverick and Charlie, the rivalry between the students and the drama in between.

As I mentioned earlier, the film is often formulaic. Maverick is the guy who refuses to play by the rules, but he's such a skillful pilot that he's mostly able to get away with his bad behavior. His rebellious side ends up costing him points, meaning he's never quite the top of the class. If you think that his attitude is going to come and really bite him in the ass eventually, at which point he'll have to take things seriously and leave his childish antics behind, well you'd be right. If you think a tragedy is going to affect his performance at school and put a serious strain on the romance between him and Charlie, you would also be right. If you think Maverick's "I'm the best there is, I just chose not to show it" attitude eventually proves itself to be wrong when he fails to co-operate with some of his fellow wingmen and that he'll have to learn the meaning of teamwork to rise to the top... well you get the idea. Here's the thing though, none of these individual elements are inherently bad and thanks to some memorably well done elements, "Top Gun" manages to stay fresh despite these familiar tropes. First of all, there's the lead: Tom Cruise. It's the actor's undeniable charisma that really saves the movie from being forgotten as just another "rebel teen" movie. He's just instantly likeable and thanks to a believable romance between him and Charlie and a genuine friendship between Maverick and Goose you really care about the character. You're always hoping he's going to smarten up and be the team player he should be, even while having his back and thinking "yeah, THIS guy is the best, forget that chump Iceman!".

Another standout in the film is anything to do with the F-14 jets. The aerial manoeuvres on display here are truly spectacular (remember, these are all practical stunts, no CGI) and thanks to some good editing, you'll forget how unlikely it is that Tom Cruise is actually the pilot shown on screen in some of the wide shots. The dogfights, training exercises and the in-air confrontation during the climax of the film are all really thrilling. It's also got a great score and a memorable use of the film's theme "Danger Zone". Sure it plays over and over, but in my book it's always awesome. Don't forget "Take My Breath Away" and the so-macho-it-becomes-homo-erotic "Playing with the Boys". There are also a pretty good assortment of memorable lines you'll be happy to pull from the film, the best of which is "I feel the need. The need for speed!".

Yeah, the film often follows its own formula to a fault, but when the final product is this entertaining you won't care. At first you might not see what the big deal is about but by the time the whole ordeal is finished, you'll be happy to have seen the film. Check out "Top Gun", you'll never think of the words "Iceman", "Maverick" or "Danger Zone" the same way again. (Dvd, October 5, 2013).