Top Gun: Maverick

"...131 minutes of fan service where the fan isn't truly served until the last 30."

One of the best legacy sequels we've ever gotten: a movie that knows how to move along and give you what you came for.

Brings Maverick's story full circle in a satisfying manner that adds depth and dimension to its predecessor, but still tells a story that's all its own.

It helps that the filmmaking is pretty much impeccable, with director Joseph Kosinski providing the kind of clear, streamlined action sequences that make blockbuster spectacle feel fun instead of mandatory.

As a stand-alone blockbuster that's just trying to suck viewers' eyeballs out of their sockets with hellacious flight photography and thunderous sound, Maverick is just what every cineplex in the country has been crying out for.

Even as you see all the plot twists coming, Tom Cruise's charms and the spectacular aerial action still take your breath away.

Maverick is truly one for the ages in its deliverance of a distilled summer blockbuster whose thrills are strong enough to inspire highs totally indistinguishable from narcotics. Beware, and welcome to the Danger Zone.

The jet-fueled sequel to the 1986 flyboy classic has charisma to burn, soaring airplane indulgences and a narrative that honors the past while breaking the sound barrier as it shifts to the future.

The sequel is still rah-rah about American imperialism, but who cares? Thirty-six years after the original, Tom Cruise is having the time of his life, the in-flight thrills are off the charts and-hot damn!-you won't find more blazing action anywhere.

Top Gun: Maverick is one of those rare breeds: a sequel that's better than the original.

Goes with popcorn like butter... I liked it in spite of myself.

Top Gun: Maverick is not a dislikable movie, by any means... But it's also a little depressing, because of where it says movies are going, what it says about the lack of creativity making its way on screen.

Joe Kosinski matches his well-established architectural precision with suitably nostalgic but never pandering emotionality, while Cruise commands the screen in a performance that leverages his multimillion-dollar star wattage to brighten the entire film.

Absolutely thrilling. You truly feel like you're in the plane with Tom Cruise pulling Gs.

It is a thin, over-strenuous and sometimes very enjoyable movie. But it is also, and perhaps more significantly, an earnest statement of the thesis that movies can and should be great.

Somehow Cruise's foray back into the danger zone will be remembered more than the original, setting a new standard in the era of reboots.

This is old-fashioned summer popcorn movie fun in all its high-octane glory. And Cruise is just the leading man for the mission.

All the visuals glisten, are well composed, perfectly lit and many are bigger than life due to cinematographer Claudio Miranda's (Life of Pi) penchant for closeups.

Top Gun: Maverick is a perfectly tolerable time-killer, and I enjoy popcorn as much as anyone, but I just hope these won't be the only kinds of movies that bring audiences back to the theaters.

"Maverick" satisfies by delivering exactly what it promises.