In my latest piece for Shadowproof I outline the production history of Top Gun: Maverick, using documents from the Pentagon, Navy and Marine Corps, and show how they massaged the script into a vehicle for military recruitment and propaganda. I also reflect on the first Top Gun as one of the first post-war films, and draw parallels between how the first film rehabbed the military’s image in the wake of the Vietnam war, while the new film will try to do the same following the ‘end’ of wars in Iraq, Libya, Syria and Afghanistan.
READ FULL ARTICLE HERE (ON SHADOWPROOF)
Documents on Top Gun: Maverick
US Marine Corps entertainment liaison office reports 2008-2015
US Navy entertainment liaison office reports 2012-2017
DOD entertainment liaison office reports 2017-2019
Pentagon Production Assistance Agreement for Island Plaza/Top Gun: Maverick
Addendums to Pentagon Production Assistance Agreement for Island Plaza/Top Gun: Maverick
US Marine Corps emails re Top Gun: Maverick Production Assistance Agreement