It’s amazing what nostalgia can do for a film like ‘Top Gun’ whose legacy has become almost notorious for rushing in a new era of brain-dead, flashy blockbusters. It is a type of film that ‘Top Gun’ producer Jerry Bruckheimer still churns out to this day (see: the upcoming ‘National Treasure’ sequel).
The highest-grossing picture of 1986, a film responsible for more military recruits than possibly every other contemp military film put together, and the film to rocket Tom Cruise from the up-and-comer list to the superstar A-list almost overnight, ‘Top Gun’ is synonymous with pop culture in a daunting amount of ways. Its impossible not to think of ‘Top Gun’ when you hear Kenny Loggin’s ‘Danger Zone’ or Berlin’s ‘Take my Breath Away’ or even The Righteous Brothers ‘You’ve Lost that Lovin’ Feeling’.
Almost every hackneyed line and screenwriting 101 piece of dialogue has made it into the pantheon of enduring quotes for a certain age group. How many times I’ve referred to myself as “Maverick” for God only knows what reasons could probably be in the hundreds. Sorry folks, regardless of what you think about the film, this one is here to stay.
And I’m all right with that. I was eight years old when ‘Top Gun’ came out and my dad was a Navy pilot. Can you imagine the adrenaline rush of seeing this pic and imagining your dad up there (who was still like 29 at the time so it wasn’t that hard to imagine)? So yes, I was unabashedly a fan of ‘Top Gun’ and walked around saying that ‘Top Gun’ was my favorite movie through all of fifth grade without a hint of apology or irony.
Am I saying that it’s a great film? Or even a very good one? Not at all. If these characters were not inhabited by the now iconic likes of Tom Cruise, Val Kilmer, Anthony Edwards, Tom Skerritt, Kelly McGillis, etc., they would be thinly drawn caricatures at best.
The hotshot egotistical young pilot, his goofy married best bud named ‘Goose’, the ‘ice-cold’ quasi-villain who ends up teaming up with the hero to defeat a common enemy and overcome their differences, the civilian instructor hottie who threatens to leave at just the wrong time.
That being said, I don’t think its guilty-pleasure ‘Xanadu’ bad, just cliché-ridden. Tom Cruise, for all the flak he’s getting nowadays, proves to be an indelible lead at a time when he wasn’t a sure thing. After the success of ‘Risky Business’, Ridley Scott’s ‘Legend’ almost sunk the Cruister where he was laughably miscast. Cruise needed a hit and Ridley’s brother Tony might have just the film.
Apparently Tony Scott was on rocky ground as well with only one film to his name, the commercial disaster ‘The Hunger’. As rumor has it, Tony Scott got the film on a bet. On a rafting trip with producers Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer who were shopping the script around to directors who were hungry, they offered him the film if he swam across the raging waters of the Colorado River. Apparently he didn’t drown.
The lore of the film and the cast aside, the movie also sports some nice aerial photography if the dogfight scenes don’t quite hold much water these days. It’s mostly a bunch of cockpit scenes with pilots yelling their lines very quickly three times in a row…”On your right!”, “On your right!”, “On your right!”…but there’s no denying that initial excitement of seeing this stuff over 20 years ago. And who dares be such a pundit as to try and take that away from an eight-year old who feels “the need for speed”?
Now on to what we’re all here for cause let’s face it, you’ve already made up your mind about the film. The good news: The HD-DVD video and audio presentation is fantastic. Presented in a 2.35:1 widescreen ratio using a MPEG4 AVC encode, this is undoubtedly the best this film has looked in twenty years. While it seems to use the same print as the recent 2-disc SD DVD release, the print is very clear with only a minimum of dirt.
The aerial footage, which includes some stock, understandably suffers the most but even then, the footage blends seamlessly for the most part. Colors and contrast levels are bright and colorful and most of the scenes have noticeably more depth to them. If you’ve seen ‘Top Gun’ any countless number of times like I have, you’re in for a pleasant experience.
There are also three audio options in which any one of them would please. We have a Dolby Digital Plus 5.1 track, a Dolby TrueHD 5.1 track and a DTS-ES 5.1 track. All dynamic in different ways, the DTS track has clearer dialogue and comes through louder (if not better) while the TrueHD track has a much smoother overall listen.
Here comes the bad news…not one stinking extra, not even a trailer. Why the powers that be decided this I cannot fathom, as a 2-disc SD release is out there with plenty of worthy extras. An utterly disappointing head-scratcher.
A toughie to give an overall grade to. The HD quality of the film is great and if that’s your main concern for upgrading from the SD release, then this release comes recommended. But if you were expecting the special features from the SD release and even a few HD exclusive features, then prepare to be disappointed and hold off awhile for the inevitable double dip (Paramount did the exact same thing with their original SD releases of Top Gun, an early featureless edition followed by the 2-discer).
As far as the film, what more could be said? Well, maybe there a few more things but then... “I could tell you, but then I’d have to kill you.”
Top Gun HD DVD is now available at Amazon and AmazonUK . Visit the DVD database for more information.
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