Many said it would be a summer flop. Personally, I think strong word of mouth is the reason it did so well and gave it legs to get close to $1B or beyond. Some say its the lack of wokeness. The timing of pandemic restrictions loosening could have played a part too. Or a combination of all these factors? Thoughts?
sharethis, plus many critics calling it the best action movie in years, plus it won't be released on vod for months.
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Well, by pretty much all reports, it's a slick, exciting, well-crafted action movie. I think audiences are responding to the practical stunts. CGI has its place, but people have been a bit starved of practical stunts in recent years -- so I suspect that's been an important factor in encouraging people back into cinemas. And I hope future film projects draw a lesson from that.
I feel NOTHING watching CGI. That is not why I pay for a live, filmed movie. I do hope more get back to doing it this way.... I'd prefer a story wrapped around REAL feats - live, tom Cruise stunts even - than a computer generated, way over the top cartoon: people leaping with incredible(impossible) skills, getting punched through buildings and living etc
There is some CGI buried in MAVERICK - of, course, some had to be, but with most of it shot in real flight, it is so much more enguaging for me.
I do love pixar CGI cartoons, but it is what I expect from that.
Yeah, CGI is at its best when it is 'buried'. It's a useful tool. But there's still no beating practical stunts, real sets, puppetry and in-camera FX. They're more tactile.
Above all, I don't think wall-to-wall CGI much impresses audiences any more. They take it for granted. 'Oh, you can do pretty much anything now. Um, well done I guess.'
yes, exactly! we're just numb to it, and assume it is everything now. yawn.
I've been telling EVERYONE this film has real flying and G's in it, so they dont go and just, again, assume it's all CGI fakery
I forget who but someone once said of the Star Wars prequels that "special effects cease to be special when they're in every shot." And that's the truth. Less is more.
shareThat was one of the reasons I was looking forward to it. To see real acrobatic flying instead of tons of CGI.
shareI think it's what you wrote plus Tom Cruise's summer movie star power, the urge/curiosity to see some cool fighter jet action scenes, the knowledge that it's a harmless popcorn movie etc.
I think there's a bigger picture here as well. Audiences will go to the theater to see quality movies, but in today's world of wokeness, CGI comic book movies, the dumbing down of EVERYTHING, pandering to every possible race/sex/orientation it's too much work to just make a quality movie anymore. Bad writers, lazy producers, virtue signaling directors are the norm in today's world. We're really in a messy America right now it's scary to think what it will be like in 10 years.
Very well put
shareJust think, Spielberg was possibly forced to quit his job as director of the upcoming Indy 5 movie. The Indy 5 writer, one of the best scriptwriters of all time, left at the same time. Probably because they didn't agree with adding so much wokeness..Soo, the studio hired a director/writer who would ask no questions.
All this tells me the studios are under extreme pressure to make woke movies. Not by the audience, but by the upper management of the studios. Guess who they are?
Spielberg is still a producer, but Kathleen Kennedy is also a producer and the film is produced by Lucasfilm, so I expect a woman (Phoebe Waller-Bridge?) will play the actual lead, full of girl power, and Harrison Ford will probably get another "proper sendoff". Mikkelsen of course is the bad guy, maybe the one doing the said sendoff.
sharesad part is, audiences will STILL go support them, find the movies mediocre, not knowing they could be so much better, and keep the industry doing this. just sad.
being INCLUSIVE is fine with me, but not at the detriment of story, character development, theme, and direction. getting 9 more people to show up while pissing off 90,000 is not good business.
I think you're right about audience still going to see these movies. I guess my question is this "do woke people like watching these movies where the iconic character gets turned into a puzzy or killed off?" If so, then their hatred is really, really off the charts.
shareGreat points, ebhaynz.
This film was the perfect storm of everything we needed, and at just the right time. And that....is why it clicked so well for everyone.
Coming out of COVID, and MeToo, and cancel culture, and political unrest/burnout, and cabin fever, and an overload of viewing options that started to feel cookie-cutter (and tied to our couches)....I think we all needed (or longed for) a good old-fashioned night out at the movies, and a great movie "experience".
All but gone are the days of the big, anticipated movie "event". All but gone are the buddy cop action movies (Die Hard, Lethal Weapon, etc...) sexy thrillers (Basic Instinct) and emotional dramas (Shawshank)....and instead we get a lot of pandering, woke bs that feels forced and assembly-line.
And then along comes the last of a dying breed. The last of the true Hollywood movie stars. A guy who cares intensely about delivering the kinds of movies we used to LOVE going to....(and still do!) Tom Cruise gets it. And....he has the clout to fight for only the best. And he ALWAYS delivers.
Also, Maverick is simply a great movie in all respects. But I think the secret sauce is that the movie and characters grew up WITH us. We were young and cocky and carefree when we first saw Tom Gun...(and so was Cruise/Mav). In this movie, he's still got glimpses of that (the smile...the beach football...the motorcycle....the willingness to buck authority and take chances, etc.), but he has also slowed down a bit, and his maturity shows on his face, and in the way he approaches things. And his relationship with Penny feels much less cocksure, and more adult; more "grown-up".
Ultimately, the movie has all the ingredients we love. And, it's a throwback to a time and "experience" we loved...(and still do). People were all but resigned to the idea of: "Why would I go to a crowded, noisy movie theater...when I can watch stuff on the comfort of my own couch?" But as everyone has said, this is a film you MUST see in the theaters.
It's a shared experience that adds a magic that you don't get whilst sitting on your couch eating Cheetos. (Besides, haven't we been staying at home long enough?)
Sometimes, it's best not to question a perfect storm if it makes you feel good. Just enjoy it.
You're right Tom Cruise always delivers. I think American's know how much time and effort Cruise puts into his movie projects..he's always going to have something that's a must see..He rarely disappoints, maybe 1 out of 10 movies is kind of a dud(The Mummy?) but the other 9 are very solid. Cruise is ALL BUSINESS when it comes to movie making and people know it. When Top Gun Maverick hit the theater I bet people didn't even look at what other movies are showing, it's like why have hamburger when you can have filet mignon.
shareWell first thing is that Top Gun is a very beloved 80s movie so any sequel would be anticipated if it was done right. It's a well done action movie that has had great word of mouth and is meant to entertain not lecture its audience. Also it's a very Pro America movie that I think we all need right now.
shareI'd say timing is the key here, they made a wise choice of waiting out the Covid restrictions. the movie turning out to be better than probably anyone imagined is a huge factor too. It didn't try to make diversity a selling point, it just let different races and genders coexist naturally.
share"It didn't try to make diversity a selling point, it just let different races and genders coexist naturally."
This is huge and one thing that gets lost in the highly polarized discourse of our current society.
Most people I know encourage diversity and have no problem with a diverse cast, as long as it is natural to the setting and the plot. But once you cast a black actress to play Anne Boleyn, then there will be backlash from those that feel it is forced, instead of natural.
The diversity in Top Gun: Maverick does not feel forced to me.
Yes people don't care about organic diversity.
shareI agree it did not feel forced to me either.
shareTom Cruise
Sequel to iconic film
different from the current cgi supehero films
its a good action film
no agenda, just an entertaining summer blockbuster
one of the best third acts of all time
a film that requires the big screen theater experience , not seen since avatar and the original star wars
different from the current cgi supehero films
WHICH ONES?...YOU GREATLY EXAGGERATE THE NUMBER OF COMIC BOOK FILMS RELEASED.
i'm talking broadly about the superhero era, the last decade , not specifically the last few weeks
shareha haa you forgot to turn the CAPS LOCK ON
The mask slipped?
I don’t see a number there. Where did he greatly exaggerate it?
shareI agree about the third act. It turned what was just an okay movie up to that point into a 9/10.
shareNo wokeness, No (or minimal) CGI, Tom Cruise, 80s nostalgia, and in 80s nostalgia I mean it was a MUCH better time than the shit we are in now. It was (in a way) the last great decade. Yes, we had a good economy in the mid to late 1990s, but the moral decline of the country was very evident. Everything that we are going through now was being heavily infected by the 1990s. Socialists, claiming to be Democrats, and Republicans got their fingers into everything. They "invaded" our schools, politics, the military, the music business, the movie business- you name it they infected it, and they have practically destroyed everything. Some schmuck will dispute this, but anyone with even a fraction of an active brain cell knows it's the truth.
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