scott fortune

It’s one of the best movies I’ve seen in years. I did not care for “Call me by my Name” and avoided Chalamet because of it. I was therefore very pleasantly surprised by The King. The writing, casting, acting, scenery, music — all were fantastic. I did not want the film to end. I believe Chalamet is one of the best actors alive at this point. And I believe The King is a better film than any I’ve seen in the past year.

My wife and I re-watched the original Top Gun to prepare for Maverick. The original was way schmaltzy — more than either of us had remembered. Regrettably, the first 20 or 30 minutes of Maverick is equally schmalzy — so much so, we felt we’d made a mistake. The scene where all the young aviators meet in the bar/poolroom next to the airfield is awful. They keep telling each other they’re the best pilots in the world and their efforts to be competitive and jocular are strained and contrived. The flight scenes are intense. But the acting is never convincing. Ed Harris has a small part as a grizzled war-hardened admiral who intensely dislikes Maverick but has a grudging respect for him. I was embarrassed for Ed Harris for taking the role. And John Hamm is another admiral with a stick in his anus who plays a cartoonish numskull who hates/admires Maverick and is always outsmarted by him. Jennifer Connelly is great but her love for Maverick is nonsensical. She’s a knockout, mature beauty with brains; he’s a narcissistic, childish loner who is one false move away from crashing into everybody he encounters. The cinematography is excellent. And the ending goes back to being schmaltzy. Best to get wait to see it on TV.