Top Gun: Maverick (2022) [Blu-ray review]

Top Gun: Maverick kicks off our Oscar Week with this repurposed Blu-ray review. Why? Well, because everything here has been so reworked that we’re just now getting everything into the proper hubs.

How many ways can we praise Tom Cruise?

Tom Cruise saved theatrical distribution. We all heard Steven Spielberg say it. Top Gun: Maverick now on Home Video, streaming on Paramount Plus and dominating 4K driven home theaters everywhere saved American cinema from collapse.

What does that mean for people that don’t get to ponder pop culture and California economics? Well, the theatrical exhibition got bailed out again. Whether it’s the advent of Sound Recording, the rise of Television, the rise of the VCR, the rise of premium cable, streaming services, the Internet and any other tech creation…life is always on the verge of collapsing for the theatrical exhibitor.

I jest about this now, while watching Top Gun: Maverick on a Blu-ray for the eighth time. What can be said after pouring through the special features and watching the movie in a brilliant 1080p presentation? Hell, even the Atmos track sounds pretty close to the 4K Steelbook I have sitting right next to this copy. So, if I can have my choice in viewing methods to watch Top Gun: Maverick…then what has it all been about?

The short answer is the simplest…it’s been about money. Hollywood works on an escalated scale that would destroy most businesses. But, they are in the habit of making money for more and more spectacle. Between COVID, rising insurance rates and our efforts to save the last few movie stars…spectacle has gotten a lot more expensive.

36 Years Later, Top Gun is still Military Propaganda

Many will go on about how Top Gun: Maverick is just as much propaganda as the first movie. Honestly, I think it might be a little worse. Glamorizing the military has been around on film since the 1920s. However, few films try to show you the system. Maverick goes out of its way to show how people from Iceman to the new class get grounded into the system and left for dead.

What’s so amazing about that is I don’t believe Maverick meant to play it like that. But, there is about a quarter of the film that is dedicated to the fact that is these cadets don’t die right away, they are either going in the ground or ending up like Iceman. Hell, even Goose’s wife didn’t get to live to see this movie.

It’s this giant culture of death surrounding a flying group that statistically should be faring better. Just don’t ask them to address anything like PTSD or military misappropriate behavior. The gang still hangs at the bar, sings around a piano and Cruise still gets to look like he has all the Thetans in the world.

Top Gun: Maverick answers how to reach Mach-10 in 1080p!

Paramount brings Maverick to Blu-ray with some stunning A/V Quality. The Dolby Atmos track plays well for a downgraded track. Plus, you get that rather impressive 1080p transfer. While I would push for you to watch this one in 4K UHD, it’s a great presentation for those of you with parents that haven’t made the resolution jump.

The special features run the gamut with over 30 minutes of behind-the-scenes looks. Everything from the stunts to the pilot training gets the spotlight. If this is your kind of bag, then I’d recommend checking it out.

It’s probably the most friendly Oscar nominee for Best Picture. I don’t count Avatar: The Way of Water because it’s so aggressively long. People have the attention span for TikTok, not James Cameron tech demos.

Top Gun: Maverick is now available on Blu-ray and every other major format