Anyone see the Top Gun sequel?

[BuriedTartaria]

I am a nerd and I tend to rarely watch movies. If I do watch a movie I like it to be fantastical (like a fantasy setting or compelling science fiction, maybe something that explores the paranormal), I like movies that are built for multiple sequels with an interesting world you want to explore and a lot of characters with different stories occurring at once. This is a big reason I gravitate to anime (Dragon Ball, One Piece, Hunter X Hunter) and video games for entertainment.

I don’t typically watch what I call “real world" movies, especially stand alone movies and on the way to the theater to see this new Top Gun movie with family I was immediately regretting my choice to go along with them.

My negative attitude quickly changed and I became fascinated by what I was seeing; a sequel to a classic "real world" movie from the 80s that felt good enough to justify existing.

The character who has the stinging death in the original movie still feels important and relevant. The movie doesn't just move past him and the emphasis placed on the impact he has on the main character feels real. The old rival from the first movie (Iceman, played by Val Kilmer) he and Tom's character have become like brothers and their interactions are a delight.

The new cast is FANTASTIC. Often, the new characters in these sequels to old classics are so hard to pull off. People want to see the originals. They don't want to see the original characters brought down and given limited roles to prop up new characters (this is something Disney didn't understand with Star Wars, if they had given Luke compelling material, people would have been more open to the new cast, but when Luke and the other original characters are treated like yesterday's news fans get turned off and are irritated and not open-minded to new characters). Goose's son succeeds at adequately filling the void of Goose's absence. And this other new character, Hangman, flawless acting for what the character is supposed to be.

The movie handles every character returning from the first movie (and every non-returning character referenced from the first movie) so authentically and so well while on top of that giving you a story that quickly causes you to care about new characters (with fantastic acting behind them, the scene that introduces them is so fun) and has a clear problem with high stakes that makes for a tense and emotional final act.

This movie was so good. It did the impossible. It is a worthy successor to a classic "real life" movie. It's not a bad sequel. It's not a decent sequel. It is so freaking good. I am amazed they pulled off this kind of movie.

I don't even like these kinds of movies


There have been a ton of revivals of beloved franchises over the past 10 years or so: Star Wars Sequel Trilogy, the Independence Day sequel (that COULD have had a sequel just as good as this, but they just didn't deliver), the Twin Peaks season 3 revival, Ghostbusters: Afterlife, Spider-man No Way Home, the Jurassic World movies, there's lots of others escaping my mind at the moment.

I think this movie pulled off revisiting a classic better than any of these other attempts have. I'm not saying these others weren't good (I thought Ghostbusters Afterlife was pretty good and made with a ton of love, I loved Spider-man No Way Home)


It also largely stays away from feeling political in any direction. IMO. It shows an appreciation for the United States without feeling conservative--though some will see display of the American flag as coming off as conservative. Isn't it nuts we've reached this point? Simply flying the flag feels conservative--and I don't see any of today's social trends in the movie. There's definitely no preaching of today's social politics in the movie.

There is a very mild "love" scene but it's tame. Swearing is largely minimal but there is one f-word.


I am really blown away by the team behind this movie. They pulled off something so hard to do.

[Lexew1899]

Haven’t seen it yet, but it looks amazing.

[Cruiserdude]

I am a nerd and I tend to rarely watch movies. If I do watch a movie I like it to be fantastical (like a fantasy setting or compelling science fiction, maybe something that explores the paranormal), I like movies that are built for multiple sequels with an interesting world you want to explore and a lot of characters with different stories occurring at once. This is a big reason I gravitate to anime (Dragon Ball, One Piece, Hunter X Hunter) and video games for entertainment.

I don’t typically watch what I call “real world" movies, especially stand alone movies and on the way to the theater to see this new Top Gun movie with family I was immediately regretting my choice to go along with them.

My negative attitude quickly changed and I became fascinated by what I was seeing; a sequel to a classic "real world" movie from the 80s that felt good enough to justify existing.

The character who has the stinging death in the original movie still feels important and relevant. The movie doesn't just move past him and the emphasis placed on the impact he has on the main character feels real. The old rival from the first movie (Iceman, played by Val Kilmer) he and Tom's character have become like brothers and their interactions are a delight.

The new cast is FANTASTIC. Often, the new characters in these sequels to old classics are so hard to pull off. People want to see the originals. They don't want to see the original characters brought down and given limited roles to prop up new characters (this is something Disney didn't understand with Star Wars, if they had given Luke compelling material, people would have been more open to the new cast, but when Luke and the other original characters are treated like yesterday's news fans get turned off and are irritated and not open-minded to new characters). Goose's son succeeds at adequately filling the void of Goose's absence. And this other new character, Hangman, flawless acting for what the character is supposed to be.

The movie handles every character returning from the first movie (and every non-returning character referenced from the first movie) so authentically and so well while on top of that giving you a story that quickly causes you to care about new characters (with fantastic acting behind them, the scene that introduces them is so fun) and has a clear problem with high stakes that makes for a tense and emotional final act.

This movie was so good. It did the impossible. It is a worthy successor to a classic "real life" movie. It's not a bad sequel. It's not a decent sequel. It is so freaking good. I am amazed they pulled off this kind of movie.

I don't even like these kinds of movies


There have been a ton of revivals of beloved franchises over the past 10 years or so: Star Wars Sequel Trilogy, the Independence Day sequel (that COULD have had a sequel just as good as this, but they just didn't deliver), the Twin Peaks season 3 revival, Ghostbusters: Afterlife, Spider-man No Way Home, the Jurassic World movies, there's lots of others escaping my mind at the moment.

I think this movie pulled off revisiting a classic better than any of these other attempts have. I'm not saying these others weren't good (I thought Ghostbusters Afterlife was pretty good and made with a ton of love, I loved Spider-man No Way Home)


It also largely stays away from feeling political in any direction. IMO. It shows an appreciation for the United States without feeling conservative--though some will see display of the American flag as coming off as conservative. Isn't it nuts we've reached this point? Simply flying the flag feels conservative--and I don't see any of today's social trends in the movie. There's definitely no preaching of today's social politics in the movie.

There is a very mild "love" scene but it's tame. Swearing is largely minimal but there is one f-word.


I am really blown away by the team behind this movie. They pulled off something so hard to do.

Excellent! I'm excited to see it hermano I appreciate the solid, honest review you made of it

[cab]

I am a nerd and I tend to rarely watch movies. If I do watch a movie I like it to be fantastical (like a fantasy setting or compelling science fiction, maybe something that explores the paranormal), I like movies that are built for multiple sequels with an interesting world you want to explore and a lot of characters with different stories occurring at once. This is a big reason I gravitate to anime (Dragon Ball, One Piece, Hunter X Hunter) and video games for entertainment.

I don’t typically watch what I call “real world" movies, especially stand alone movies and on the way to the theater to see this new Top Gun movie with family I was immediately regretting my choice to go along with them.

My negative attitude quickly changed and I became fascinated by what I was seeing; a sequel to a classic "real world" movie from the 80s that felt good enough to justify existing.

The character who has the stinging death in the original movie still feels important and relevant. The movie doesn't just move past him and the emphasis placed on the impact he has on the main character feels real. The old rival from the first movie (Iceman, played by Val Kilmer) he and Tom's character have become like brothers and their interactions are a delight.

The new cast is FANTASTIC. Often, the new characters in these sequels to old classics are so hard to pull off. People want to see the originals. They don't want to see the original characters brought down and given limited roles to prop up new characters (this is something Disney didn't understand with Star Wars, if they had given Luke compelling material, people would have been more open to the new cast, but when Luke and the other original characters are treated like yesterday's news fans get turned off and are irritated and not open-minded to new characters). Goose's son succeeds at adequately filling the void of Goose's absence. And this other new character, Hangman, flawless acting for what the character is supposed to be.

The movie handles every character returning from the first movie (and every non-returning character referenced from the first movie) so authentically and so well while on top of that giving you a story that quickly causes you to care about new characters (with fantastic acting behind them, the scene that introduces them is so fun) and has a clear problem with high stakes that makes for a tense and emotional final act.

This movie was so good. It did the impossible. It is a worthy successor to a classic "real life" movie. It's not a bad sequel. It's not a decent sequel. It is so freaking good. I am amazed they pulled off this kind of movie.

I don't even like these kinds of movies


There have been a ton of revivals of beloved franchises over the past 10 years or so: Star Wars Sequel Trilogy, the Independence Day sequel (that COULD have had a sequel just as good as this, but they just didn't deliver), the Twin Peaks season 3 revival, Ghostbusters: Afterlife, Spider-man No Way Home, the Jurassic World movies, there's lots of others escaping my mind at the moment.

I think this movie pulled off revisiting a classic better than any of these other attempts have. I'm not saying these others weren't good (I thought Ghostbusters Afterlife was pretty good and made with a ton of love, I loved Spider-man No Way Home)


It also largely stays away from feeling political in any direction. IMO. It shows an appreciation for the United States without feeling conservative--though some will see display of the American flag as coming off as conservative. Isn't it nuts we've reached this point? Simply flying the flag feels conservative--and I don't see any of today's social trends in the movie. There's definitely no preaching of today's social politics in the movie.

There is a very mild "love" scene but it's tame. Swearing is largely minimal but there is one f-word.


I am really blown away by the team behind this movie. They pulled off something so hard to do.

Saw it today with the fam haha. I agree with the entire OP. Best movie I’ve seen in a long time. Walks the line between being appropriately nostalgic while not self-indulgent and a great but simple story without a blogged down plot.

Loved it.

[p8riot]

Yes. I liked it. It did a good job of paying homage to the original and maintaining the vibe while being able to stand on it's own. The aerial footage is amazing. Gotta hand to the stunt pilots.
Keep in mind, this is still an over-the-top hollywood movie. Some of the maneuvers and action would never happen in real life and much of how the military works is a simplified/glamorized version. With that in mind, it is a great flick!

[randyps]

I heard that it did not cave into the whole "lets not offend china" crap. With that being said we should probably support it. Im going to take my family to see it.

[BuriedTartaria]

I heard that it did not cave into the whole "lets not offend china" crap. With that being said we should probably support it. Im going to take my family to see it.

You heard right!

[Lexew1899]

Someone uploaded the entire movie on YouTube. Watch before they take it down!
https://youtu.be/dQw4w9WgXcQ

[farmerchick]

I am looking forward to seeing this...probably this weekend.....nothing but good reviews everywhere....it's got to be amazing......

[Ontario]

[Luke]

I haven’t seen it yet. But my great-aunt went and saw it barely, she thought she wouldn’t like it, turned out she loved it. So it must have something going for it

[MikeMaillet]

I'm a huge airplane nerd but I won't be watching this one because of Tom Cruise; I just can't stand the guy. I do suspect that the film was produced and released as American pro-war propaganda given that war is just around the corner. I'll have to satisfy my lust for airplanes by watching YouTube videos of the real planes.

Mike Maillet
Ingleside, Ontario

[Momma J]

I watched the video of Lady Gaga ... I was disgruntled when I heard that 21 Pilots was dropped by Cruise and replaced by Gaga.

I was surprised that I actually liked her song. We may watch the movie when it hits tv.*shrugs*

We generally do not support holliwood in theatre. I am a book nerd and movies have destroyed the characters of too many novels over the years.

[MikeMaillet]

Here are Cruise and Gaga showing their allegiance to Satan.

Mike Maillet
Ingleside, Ontario

[BuriedTartaria]

I'm a huge airplane nerd but I won't be watching this one because of Tom Cruise; I just can't stand the guy. I do suspect that the film was produced and released as American pro-war propaganda given that war is just around the corner. I'll have to satisfy my lust for airplanes by watching YouTube videos of the real planes.

Mike Maillet
Ingleside, Ontario

The movie does make serving in the military seem like a cool thing to do. So I completely see where you are coming from. And I assume Tom, like most celebrities, plays a role in dragging our culture in the wrong direction, so I totally see your perspective on this

[kittycat51]

Someone uploaded the entire movie on YouTube. Watch before they take it down!
https://youtu.be/dQw4w9WgXcQ

That’s a good joke. I love Rick

[Cruiserdude]

Someone uploaded the entire movie on YouTube. Watch before they take it down!
https://youtu.be/dQw4w9WgXcQ

That’s a good joke.

No, it's not! I hadn't been 'rickrolled' in years!

[kittycat51]

Someone uploaded the entire movie on YouTube. Watch before they take it down!
https://youtu.be/dQw4w9WgXcQ

That’s a good joke.

No, it's not! I hadn't been 'rickrolled' in years!

Do not make fun of the man…seriously

[Niemand]

I can't be doing with most "long range" sequels. I watched the original when i was much younger.

[Ontario]

[cab]

Here are Cruise and Gaga showing their allegiance to Satan.

Mike Maillet
Ingleside, Ontario

To be fair, Cruise is possibly ignorantly showing the rock and roll sign at a Rock of Ages event - a movie he did where he played a glam rocker.

[FrankOne]

Good flick. I give it a 4 out of 5 stars . Imo, the first one couldn't be matched. The storyline of the first had more content which made it a total experience of both action and relationships. The sequel is still very worth watching. I like Cruise movies because he doesn't sign up for movies that tow the 'politically correct' propaganda.

[Niemand]

People here will probably hate me for saying this, but here goes... I was lucky to see the original film before it came out in the UK - in Greece of all places - along with Crocodile Dundee. It gave me a bit of "street cred" at school because no one back home had seen it yet.

When I saw it again years later, someone remarked how gay it looked. Not "gay" in the sense of being crap or corny, but as in homoeroticism. The male leads are practically in love with one another, and there were all those suspicious camera shots in it of men's bums etc too. After that was mentioned that, I haven't been able to unsee it. Crocodile Dundee is still a guilty pleasure (although it has dated in some ways), but I've never been able to revisit Top Gun since. It doesn't help that there are all those rumours about Tom Cruise either. Maybe unfair and I do enjoy a lot of his other films.

Some of the female characters feel like they were shoehorned into it later as an afterthought to keep the story on the straight and narrow. (A lot of Hollywood films with mainly male casts do this - Pearl Harbor is another.)

[MikeMaillet]

Here are Cruise and Gaga showing their allegiance to Satan.

Mike Maillet
Ingleside, Ontario

To be fair, Cruise is possibly ignorantly showing the rock and roll sign at a Rock of Ages event - a movie he did where he played a glam rocker.

That is a possibility. How about this one?

Mike

[Thinker]

Here are Cruise and Gaga showing their allegiance to Satan.

His involvement with Scientology & other hints of evil warrant concern when you consider allowing him to influence your mind - even in “just” entertainment.

Maybe it’s just me, but it seems less & less films have that inspiring effect that makes you think or want to be better after watching.

I believe as JS said, we ought to seek truth wherever found. And personally I believe many (not all) religions offer some unique truth. Eg., Buddhism advises “Right Livelihood” - earn a living honorably - & among the careers they advise against is acting. Not sure if this is always the best (some inspire good), but actors have mentioned how playing some roles changed them - sometimes in bad ways - where they had to take a break before they took that mentality home to their family.