Film Review: “Top Gun: Maverick” (2022)

Welcome back to the Danger Zone

Back in the day, Hollywood’s method of churning out hit after hit relied on star power. In the 70s we had Clint Eastwood, in the 80s we had Arnold Schwarzenegger, in the 90s it was Bruce Willis, and so on and so forth. Nowadays, it seems to have changed. It’s no longer about going to see the next Will Smith movie, it’s about seeing the next big Marvel or DC movie. With streaming services rising over the past few years, our theatrical landscape has changed even further. However, if there’s one star who has withstood the rapidly changing world of film, it’s Tom Cruise.

While he may be overzealous about his personal beliefs, Cruise has always remained truly dedicated to the films he has worked on. The man is known for doing his own stunts, commanding the screen with his presence in a smorgasbord of action films, and yes, long takes of him running. Not all of his films land: I personally found the 2017 “Mummy” remake to be his absolute worst movie. However, they are very much the classic representation of Hollywood at its best: bombastic, entertaining, and always pushing beyond limits. One of his best-known films, 1986’s “Top Gun” is a prime example of that. Aside from Tom Cruise being, well, Tom Cruise, The Jet sequences were thrilling and engaging. The film’s climax, most notably, was very much the…