TOP GUN: Maverick embraces America and rejects culture wars to deliver perfect sequel

Positive reviews have begun pouring in for Tom Cruise’s sequel to the cult classic Top Gun, with some conservatives praising it for rising above politics and delivering pure fun.

Christian Toto wrote that Top Gun: Maverick delivered “no woke, just thrills and nostalgia on steroids” in his review for Hollywood in Toto – The Right Take on Entertainment.

The reviewer celebrated how Cruise used his full control of the movie to honor the original and “avoid, if not all, of the culture war booby traps.”

“No hand wringing over military might or extended emasculation of its rugged hero, for starters. No lectures on America’s imperfect past or gender inequality,” Toto wrote.

“And, suffice to say, ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ isn’t woke in the slightest. It is, though, a testament to American excellence and the ability to achieve a goal no matter the odds.”

“How retro. How… refreshing.”

Toto listed the elements of the blueprint the sequel retraced – the leather jacket, signature Ray Bans Aviator sunglasses and “testosterone-fueled sing-a-longs.”

It even has a beach scene, with football instead of volleyball. Johnny Oleksinski of the New York Post that even with everyone shirtless, the 59-year-old Cruise blends right in with the “ripped, sexy 20somethines” that star alongside him.

It wasn’t just conservatives that noticed the patriotic bravado the movie capture.

Roger Ebert gave Top Gun: Maverick a full four stars – his highest rating – putting it alongside his top movies like Blade Runner, The Shining, L.A. Confidential, and Charlie Chaplin’s The Great Dictator.

“What an entanglement through which one is tasked to defend their nation and celebrate a certain brand of American pride,” Ebert wrote, describing the messy relationships Cruise must navigate in his final assignment.  

Top Gun: Maverick opens in theaters May 27.