One of the biggest movies of the 1980s was Top Gun. Along with hits like Risky Business and All the Right Moves, Tom Cruise was able to become a major A-list actor and the guy that all the girls wanted thanks to his bad boy roles. The HD version of Top Gun was released by Paramount Pictures on October 2, 2007.

Top Gun was known for many things. All the guys that watched it wanted to experience the power of a Jet in their control. Meanwhile all the girls wanted to experience love, Tom Cruise style. Top Gun is one of those movies offering the best of both worlds. Men got a good dose of action and women got some romance. If that wasn’t enough there were several popular or soon to be popular stars that were included in this production. Tom Cruise takes the lead role as Maverick and Anthony Edwards (Revenge of the Nerds, ER) is Mav’s partner Goose. Another big jet pilot in the flock is Val Kilmer, who plays Ice Man.

Top Gun follows the exploits of Peter Mitchell, otherwise known as Maverick. He has the ability and talent to become the next big jet pilot. The only problem is that he loves to break the rules. Due to the fact that he’s a rule breaker, him and his partner Goose become the known troublemakers in Top Gun school where they will learn to be ace pilots and be sent on some of the most dangerous missions in the world.

Maverick is one of those confrontational kinds of guys. Being that he thinks he’s the best at what he does, he doesn’t get along well with the guys that think they are the best, too. The number one enemy ends up being Ice Man. If that wasn’t enough Maverick decides he needs a little love in his life. Instead of picking up a nice local girl, he finds himself falling for one of the female flight instructors, Charlie (Kelly McGillis).

As you would expect, there is some trouble, some volleyball, a little bit of sex, a death or two, and loads of action. All of the excitement leads up to the climax which is really in the last twenty minutes of the film. This is where the remaining members of the flight class have to put out all the stops to save the day.

Looking at the film, years later it’s easy to see it as a typical action movie of its time. It was amazing at the time and Cruise (before Scientology) was certainly right for the role. Maverick is a smug little jerk who thinks he has what it takes to be the best so he feels the need to ignore authority. The only sad thing is that Cruise hasn’t really grown from this role. That’s him in real life! Top Gun is fun, but not as fun as it was 20 years ago. It’s not as substantial now that things have been done that are better than this movie. In the end, it really doesn’t hold up in the same way as many of the other classic 80s movies have.

Top Gun had some good moments. Don’t get me wrong. However, there is more uncontrolled acting, cheesy lines, and homoerotic moments between the men in flight school then there is a completely solid film. The music is one of the redeeming qualities of the film due to the fact that the big blockbuster hits of the year were used in Top Gun. Otherwise, the movie was much cooler when it was first released.

Audio/Video
The video on Top Gun comes out a little grainier than one would expect an HD movie to offer. There are some shaky moments and some filter issues, but it still comes out looking good. It appears to be better than the original DVD and the special feature edition DVD that was released years ago. The sound offered is Dolby Digital True HD 5.1 Surround Sound. As you might expect, the sound is crystal clear and passes with flying colors.

Special Features
Surprisingly enough, Top Gun HD offers nothing in the way of special features beyond the typical menus and chapter selection.

Bottom Line:
Top Gun HD offers a much clearer look at a movie that was once a blockbuster. Fans of the movie will love this release if they are looking for the movie and nothing more. However, if you want special features and added bonuses, you will not find them here. Paramount should have added some new or some previously released special features with this. If you already own the collector’s edition you may want to stick with that and call it a day.

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