MovieChat Forums > Top Gun: Maverick (2022) Discussion > The First TG was a date movie that...

The First TG was a date movie that...

posted 5 years ago by AnubisRaydeen (7897)
18 replies | jump to latest

Was Top Gun the first "date-movie" that ended up appealing to more men than women? The movie was vacant as hell and succeeded on the back of:

a) apparent universal male fantasy of being jet pilots (this hooks the dudes)

and

b) the iconic bar scene and accompanying hit song (this hooked the ladies)

Top Gun was at best a 5/10 movie that won a beauty pageant with its dance routine and its musical instrument.

This ill-advised sequel will have to be something 100% different to be good.

[–] LTUM (991) 5 years ago

[deleted]

[–] ebhaynz (3605) 5 years ago

It's kind of a weak movie but I remember it was the first Hollywood movie that took advantage of the mass production of VHS. They were able to sell millions and millions of Top Gun VHS tapes at an insanely low price of $19.99 whereas before the cheapest VHS release was almost always $50 or more.
Heck, that same year I remember my friend sucking it up and paying $100(I think) for Aliens VHS. This is why renting and dubbing VHS tapes was such a big thing back then.

[–] AnubisRaydeen (7897) 5 years ago

I forgot all about this. The TG video blitz was an event in itself.

[–] MavKilledGoose (788) 5 years ago

Adjusted for inflation, a twenty dollar expenditure would be forty-seven bucks today. And you just KNOW the studio made even more when VHS died and people, for some odd reason, insisted on building a DVD library.

[–] ebhaynz (3605) 5 years ago

I was a pretty big videophile and have to admit for about 5 years I bought about 125 DVD's and then I discovered I could sell them on Ebay and got rid of almost all of them in a few months. That was when the DVD copying became a big thing.

[–] PrimeMinisterX (8418) 5 years ago

Calling Top Gun a 5/10 movie should result in criminal charges.

[–] AnubisRaydeen (7897) 5 years ago

Perhaps you are right. In the interest of avoiding jail, I will change that to 4/10.

[–] PrimeMinisterX (8418) 5 years ago

I think you meant 8/10!

[–] AnubisRaydeen (7897) 5 years ago

You enjoy the occasional daydream of being a jet pilot, yes?

[–] PrimeMinisterX (8418) 5 years ago

Yes, of course! Who doesn't?

[–] AnubisRaydeen (7897) 5 years ago

That information shocked me then as it does now. I had no idea so many dudes (myself not included) were stricken with ace-pilot-fetish. I was more a tank guy myself. Maybe Bottom G... no, that sounds gay. Maybe Top Tread would have made me blindly worship an all-style no-substance movie. Wouldn't be the first bad movie I liked.

I do look back to the era with fondness. I didn't hate the movie. I only marveled at the social phenomenon. I even benefited from it to a degree.

[–] PrimeMinisterX (8418) 5 years ago

When I was a kid, being a fighter pilot seemed like the sexiest shit imaginable. I was probably seven or so when I first saw Top Gun and not only did the jets seem cool as fuck to me, but Maverick also seemed like the coolest dude on the planet.

I've often wondered, if I had been 18 when Top Gun came out, would I have been one of those guys who got lured in by the Navy recruiters sitting in the lobby? Very possible, I think. The movie makes the life of a fighter pilot seem like an awesome existence.

[–] AnubisRaydeen (7897) 5 years ago

I was 18 or 19 when it came out and three of my friends tried to join the Navy after seeing TG. One actually succeeded. Was never a pilot, though. Another three joined one of the services in no small part due to the fantasy mind set. Has there ever been a more potent recruiting movie?

[–] PrimeMinisterX (8418) 5 years ago

Nah, I highly doubt any other film has ever encouraged the same amount of military recruitment, unless maybe there was some film that came out during WWII that inspired a wave of people to sign up to go fight the Nazis.

Like I said, Top Gun just makes the life of a fighter pilot seem SO. FUCKING. COOL. You can get to be a war hero, ride around on motorcycles, engage in beach-side sporting activities, and pick up hot ladies. Oh, and you just look cool. All the time.

BTW, as a tank guy, I assume you've seen Fury?

[–] AnubisRaydeen (7897) 5 years ago

I got so many "don't see it, it sucks!" from people I know that I skipped it. About a year ago I wised up and decided I had to see for myself but keep forgetting. What's you opinion of it? I believed the hate mostly because I usually only like Pitt when he is crazy (12 Monkeys, Snatch, Fight Club, etc) and not so much in his serious roles.

[–] PrimeMinisterX (8418) 5 years ago

I can't imagine anyone saying it sucks. I thought it was one of the best WWII films I had ever seen. It really drives home the horrors of war and it's also unique in the way that it focuses entirely on a tank crew.

Like yourself, I avoided it for a while because it just didn't seem that interesting, but when I finally watched it I was kind of like, "Holy shit."

[–] AnubisRaydeen (7897) 5 years ago

This endorsement will aid my memory. Thank you. Now I feel some measure of excitement about seeing it.

I love WWII movies but not all. I was underwhelmed by Dunkirk.

[–] PrimeMinisterX (8418) 5 years ago

I actually agree on Dunkirk. It was a little dull and I also found it hard to follow due to some editing decisions that were made.

I'd definitely say that Fury is better than Dunkirk. When you check it out, I'd be curious to hear what you think about it.