Little by little, the opinions about ‘Top Gun: Maverick’, which will be released in theaters on May 26 after having suffered a huge number of delays caused by the pandemic context, continue to feed the already high expectations that it has spawned the sequel directed by Joseph Kosinski. But, among various praises —and the occasional but—, if there is something that those who have seen it agree on is that it is a feature film made to enjoy in a movie theater well equipped.
Tom “Experience Cinematic” Cruise
Within the framework of the Cannes Film Festival, which is currently being held and will run until May 28, Tom Cruise himself —producer and star of the new ‘Top Gun’— has not only defended this idea, but also has been postulated as the great defender of the cinematographic experience in times of sofas, blankets and endless catalogs on streaming platforms.
During the 45-minute masterclass held at the Grand Palais Debussy, and after receiving the Palme d’Or of Honor in recognition of his careerthe actor dropped the bomb: “I love my audience. I make movies for audiences… I make movies for the big screen”. A position that ended with a forceful “It is different to write and create a film for television than for cinemas” and answering that “It never happened, nor will it ever happen” to the question of whether Paramount considered launch ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ in streaming during the pandemic.
Cruise thus reaffirmed his position:
“Films have to be seen in theaters. In them you feel part of a community, you share the experience. I know the business, but I like the experience of making films for the big screen and long-term on the billboard. Cinema is my passion, and that’s why I see premieres in theaters, with people. I put on a hat and go as one of the others.”
Tom “Adrenaline” Cruise
Of course, you can’t attend a Tom Cruise masterclass and not talk about his work as stunt man and of how do you play the guy in each of the films of the ‘Mission: Impossible’ saga. When asked why he decided to do the stunts himself, the actor gave another headline: “No one asked Gene Kelly why he danced”.
After remembering that his taste for risk began at an early agewhen he climbed onto the garage roof at the age of four or five and jumped with a homemade parachute made from a sheet, Cruise made it clear that everything he does, even what involves bruising and the occasional more serious injury, does it for the public.
“I always thought there was something I could do, and I wanted to push that art form forward. I thought, ‘How can I immerse audiences in a movie with this kind of action? How can I entertain them? What can I do?’
Little more can we do than thank you…