Movies are a part of our social and cultural life however these audio-visual mediums were in grave danger during the pandemic. Theatres were heavy losses and the film industry faced an immense crisis and was on the brink of collapse. The footfall dropped drastically even after the lockdown was over, OTT content gained more traction and people preferred to watch movies and shows from the comfort of their own homes.
In the midst of this, some films have attracted audiences to the theatres and increased footfall giving hope to the rest, and proving that the industry is not dead. One of them is Tom Cruise’s Top Gun: Maverick.
Top Gun: Maverick saved Hollywood says Steven Spielberg
When Top Gun: Maverick was released last summer, it became the highest-grossing picture of Cruise’s career, generating about $1.5 billion at the global box office. Maverick was the second biggest earning picture since the Covid-19 pandemic.
Although it has since been eclipsed by Avatar: The Way of Water. Maverick also benefited by not being available for streaming until just before Christmas. The film earned overwhelmingly good reviews and tremendous word of mouth, and it was just nominated for six Academy Awards, including Best Picture.
Box-Office collections, Awards, and critics’ appreciation are things Maverick achieved within a few months of its release. The film also managed to get heavy praise from Hollywood’s renowned and revered director Mr. Steven Spielberg.
steven spielberg telling tom cruise to his face, “you saved hollywood’s ass. and, you might have saved theatrical distribution. seriously. MAVERICK might have saved the entire theatrical industry.” i have to lie down. pic.twitter.com/nYbWbgadM7
— amanda (@marisatomay) February 14, 2023
Spielberg and Cruise had already worked together on the blockbuster action blockbusters Minority Report and War of the Worlds. Both were well received by reviewers and spectators. The two met during the Oscars luncheon; Spielberg is up for his ninth Best Director Oscar for his latest film, The Fabelmans.
The director said to Cruise, “you saved Hollywood’s ass. and, you might have saved theatrical distribution. seriously. MAVERICK might have saved the entire theatrical industry.” Cruise tried to deny taking any credit for it whatsoever and remained humble. However, it is no myth that a majority of the film’s success was due to Tom Cruise’s stardom and performance.
Quentin Tarantino called Top Gun: Maverick cheap
Quentin Tarantino is not a huge fan of Top Gun: Maverick as the director called it “cheap”, he was discussing the film on a podcast called CinemaBlend’s ReelBlend podcast where he talked about how Val Kilmer’s death is almost cheap. The director said,
“almost too cheap. But it absolutely works. It’s a bit like Charlie Chaplin dying on stage for the last scene of Limelight…but it f***ing works. You’re waiting for it and the f***ing scene delivers.”
The Pulp Fiction director continues,
“I f***ing love Top Gun: Maverick. I thought it was fantastic. I saw it at the theaters. That and [Steven] Spielberg’s West Side Story both provided a true cinematic spectacle, the kind that I’d almost thought that I wasn’t going to see anymore. It was fantastic. [Director Joseph Kosinski] did a great job. The respect and the love of Tony was in every frame. It was almost in every decision. It was consciously right there, but in this really cool way that was really respectful. And I think it was in every decision Tom Cruise made on the film,”
He appreciates the film and what it has managed to achieve, it seems that the director just has a problem with using Kilmer’s death as an emotional moment in the film to gain the audience’s sympathy. Top Gun: Maverick is one of the year’s highest-earning pictures, generating more than $1 billion at the box office. To the bewilderment of trade analysts, it has beaten superhero heavyweights like The Batman and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness since its debut.
Top Gun: Maverick is streaming on Paramount+.
Source: Twitter
