As students at the United States Navy’s elite fighter weapons school compete to be best in the class, one daring young pilot learns a few things from a civilian instructor that are not taught in the classroom.
“Top Gun” is one of those movies that is meant to be seen on the biggest screen possible in the loudest way possible. Those F-Tiger jets and MiGs screeching across camera while Tom Cruise shouts over his radio plays brilliantly in new 4K Ultra HD. I didn’t previously understand the hype surrounding the movie. It’s just two guys who aren’t even in combat, they just run training simulations and play volleyball until something bad happens. Admittedly, my reductive viewpoint originally boiled the movie down to its pop-culture highlights but it says something that “Top Gun” is so pervasive in our media its standard cultural touchstone. Upon rewatching I found “Top Gun” to be an impressive display of male bravado mixed with reverence for fighter jet piloting all blended into a character study of Pete Mitchell aka Maverick.
Tom Cruise carries the movie practically on his back with the sheer amount of brooding and strutting his character does. Whether intentionally or not, Cruise’s never-say-die attitude comes off as just raw sexual chemistry with pretty much… everyone. Kelly McGillis seems to be the only one who can handle him as Charlotte Blackwood, the civilian instructor. His RIO (or navigator or second person) Goose, played by Anthony Edwards, seems to just ride wherever Maverick drags them enjoying it as much as possible. Val Kilmer’s Iceman opposes Cruise at every turn. It’s an impressively assembled cast and everyone is turning in their peak ’80s everything.
What this movie nails, more than anything, is its genuine awe and reverence for all things military. The shots line up beautifully when displaying a montage of fighter jets taking off an aircraft carrier. Even Tom Cruise racing along on his motorcycle while jets fly overhead bears perfect precision. The colors of this movie really pop when it comes to fighter jets taking off, the cream orange of the sunset bathing everything in nostalgia. With so much glamour cinematography, it’s no wonder every young boy who saw the movie thinks flying fighter jets are cool. They whip past the camera so fast the movie cuts at lightning speed trying to show the dogfighting.
The music holds these visuals together as an impressive glue. Kenny Loggins’ titular track arguably gained more cultural cachet decades after its release and its synth track with electric guitar completely encapsulates music trends of the ’80s with gusto. It is scored so frequently it almost feels like a musical: short dramatic scenes interspersed among more carefully choreographed dogfights or volleyball or sex scenes. It harkens back to its central riff as well as two or three major songs time and time again simplifying musical codas for the audience to enjoy.
This Steelbook copy comes with the following special features:
Special features on 4K Ultra HD Disc:
- Commentary by producer Jerry Bruckheimer, director Tony Scott, co-screenwriter Jack Epps, Jr., and naval experts
- The Legacy of Top Gun (UHD)
- On Your Six – Thirty Years of Top Gun (HD)
Special features on Blu-ray Disc™:
- Commentary by producer Jerry Bruckheimer, director Tony Scott, co-screenwriter Jack Epps, Jr., and naval experts
- The Legacy of Top Gun (HD)
- On Your Six – Thirty Years of Top Gun (HD)
- Danger Zone: The Making of Top Gun
- Multi-Angle Storyboards with Optional Commentary by director Tony Scott
- Best of the Best: Inside the Real Top Gun
- Music Videos
- Original Theatrical Promotional Material
Available in a limited-edition 4K Ultra HD/Blu-ray Combo Steelbook December 1st
