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‘T“It’s hard for me”; “Don’t mock me”; “I want a BUTT!” The comedy takes the identity of sex in Top Gun is very common after Quentin Tarantino’s monologue on the subject that it would be redundant now to say that the film was 100% gay. But perhaps the humor came from the ignorance of ordinary cinephiles about what military life and language have become.
In the glory days of the Reagan administration, producers Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer selected a magazine story about the US Navy Fighter Weapons School in San Diego, California; this trained an elite group of pilots to fight dogs and enemies, the first award of the sword-honor is called “Top Gun”. Tony Scott he was chosen to lead and 23-year-old Tom Cruise went through the A-list as Lt Pete “Maverick” Mitchell, a wisecracking pilot whose father flew in ‘Nam and is annoying but still gets into the sky with his instinctive, daring, law-breaking instincts. A chain-smoking old man does nothing in the film but yell “God-DAMMIT, Maverick!” as a junior officer describes the latest Maverick cheek.
Maverick is recruited to “Top Gun” training in San Diego, where he meets his rival and rival, Tom “Ice Man” Kazansky, played by Val Kilmer; they are often found sneaking into the storage room with nothing but snow-white towels around their waists as if they are in some impossible place for the eyes. Maverick falls in love with a casual instructor with a PhD in astrophysics, who seems to have a nickname for him; this is Charlotte “Charlie” Blackwood, played with almost Veronica Lake sultriness by Kelly McGillis. (McGillis was secretly denied that he came later: Top Gun: Maverick, an oversight that we hope will be corrected. Top Gun 3). Maverick’s good, dirty side is revealed in his friendship with pilot Lt Nick “Goose” Bradshaw (Anthony Edwards), a pilot symbolically dressed in a red Star Trek cloak; The fate of Goose’s sacrifice is to bring Maverick’s rise to maturity and his wife, Carole, is played by Meg Ryan, whose appearance is almost lost in testosterone.
It’s all very silly, although it’s impossible not to like the film: Cruise’s dedication, perseverance, the disturbing look of his supervisor, and the series of video games with MiGs – the words “Soviet” or “Russian” are not mentioned. There have been a few moments: Maverick happily chewing gum in front of his boss; Maverick follows Charlie into the ladies’ room to beat him up – and, of course, no beta male has gotten up to the nonsense of wearing a helmet to ride a motorcycle. Perhaps the most amazing scene is the beach volleyball tournament against Ice Man and Slider (Rick Rossovich) in which Maverick and Goose do the double-five/low-five routine every time they win a point. This was universally understood.
