Top Gun: Maverick Lands Big At Box Office, Streaming But Pitters Out At The Finish

I had no interest in seeing Top Gun: Maverick even before its nomination. I watched the first one, but it didn’t strike me as anything special. This could be because I watched it long after its release, and was hardly the target demographic.

I get the nostalgia factor driving the box office sales. I get the significant boost in streaming from the Oscar nomination. Because I can’t be the only one scratching my head at this movie being in the conversation. I just wasn’t motivated to see it.

But, Regal put it on the schedule on the most convenient day for Adam and me to spend a day in the theater. So Top Gun won’t be why this slacker doesn’t get through all the Best Picture movies.

Adding insult to injury, I can’t rank this as the movie least deserving of a Best Picture nomination (this far). That distinction goes to Avatar: The Way of Water.

Does that mean I’d rank this above any other nominee I’ve seen?

Absolutely not. It was a far more enjoyable and a better-constricted story than Avatar 2. Yes, it physically hurt to type that.

If this film walks away with every technical award it’s nominated for, I will not be surprised or begrudge the win. The effects, sound, and editing were all superb. 

If this film takes home even adapted screenplay, multiple tables will be flipped.

I appreciate the vulnerability they gave Tom Cruise’s Maverick this time around. I like the character more than the version from thirty years ago. That wasn’t enough to save this story from the trope infestation that dominated the entire film. 

Glen Powell perfected his pretty-boy asshole performance here, too-on-the-nose call sign Hangman. Because it’s 2023, one of the elite pilots was a woman. They missed an opportunity with her call sign not being Token. Miles Teller was a brilliant casting choice for Goose’s son Bradley. I’d believe he was Anthony Edward’s son, especially with that mustache. He did a good job being the wronged but obvious apprentice and heir. I won’t go on, but Top Gun: Maverick certainly did. The kill stats obsession…rolls eyes.

The writers didn’t even have the decency to send Maverick off in a swath of flame and glory Obi-Wan Kenobi style. If they had, I’d be writing a very different review- a more favorable review.

And, at that, I will leave it there. Entertaining, if not a bit stretched, but not Oscar-worthy.