Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		4.5
Overall		4.5

Top Gun 3D Blu-ray Movie Review

A new dimension of an old favorite.

It's a brand new way to watch an old favorite. Paramount has converted the 1980s crowd pleaser 'Top Gun' to a viable 3D release. This is not a gimmick or '3D in name only' but a surprisingly solid 3D presentation that suits the movie quite well and looks great, particularly in the film's many aerial training and combat scenes. It's not quite the mesmerizing conversion that is 'Titanic,' but fans nonetheless should be excited to see the film in an always dependable and sometimes breathtaking new 3D format. Paramount's two-disc Blu-ray also offers the film on a traditional 2D-only disc. The package carries over the same soundtrack options and supplements as found on the film's previous Top Gun 2D Blu-ray release. For thoughts on the film, audio, and supplements, click through to that review; this page will focus on the 3D transfer only. New screenshots have also been sourced from the included 2D presentation (NOTE: screenshots are representative of the 2D version of the film, which appears to be the same as the previous 2D-only release and do not reflect the quality of the 3D transfer).

Maverick is thrilled after screening 'Top Gun' in 3D.

Top Gun 3D Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

This 3D release represents, quite simply, the best Top Gun has ever looked on home video. While the previous high definition transfer -- by all accounts the same included on this set's 2D-only disc -- looks quite good, at times, it's an imperfect image to be sure. Some very crisp, sharp details and good colors are soured by a bit of noise reduction, reducing many scenes and characters to a rather waxy appearance. It looked pretty good in the 2008 high def landscape, but now, half a decade later, it pales next to even adequate Blu-ray catalogue transfers. The good news is that the 3D disc, anyway, largely rectifies that issue. Top Gun now takes on a gritty, very grainy texture. It's not silky smooth, bright, and glossy, but rather beautifully filmic and faithful to a true cinema appearance. Details are far more natural, trading glossy and flat for organic and accurate. While that old 2D image picks up fine little clothing textures, facial lines, and beads of sweat through a clean, shiny façade, this new 3D transfer offers a more stable, true-to-format-and-film appearance, which actually enhances all of the elements rather than detracting from them, the heavy layer of grain and all else considered. Textured sand at the outdoor volleyball game; facial features; and crisp Naval uniform lines across the dress whites, the tan uniforms, and the olive drab flight suits all look fantastic, quite a bit better than the smoothed over details of the previous edition. Colors are quite warm -- flesh tones occasionally look sunburned or otherwise unnaturally reddish -- but seem to favor the film's intended appearance. The general palette satisfies, however, displaying most everything rather true to form, even with a general warmth attached to most scenes. Black levels are fine throughout the film. There are no major signs of blocking, banding, or edge enhancement. The 2D elements are beautiful; does the 3D add anything to the Top Gun experience?

The short, simple, and correct answer is "yes." Top Gun is a brand new experience in 3D, a wholly satisfying conversion and one that actually suits the film quite well. It's hardly a gimmick but instead enhances the movie's aerial scenes and creates a gentle, accurate sense of natural spacing in straightforward ground-based dialogue scenes, of which there are many. The dogfight and training scenes are really superb. One might not think that much could be done to truly enhance shots made primarily of sky and dotted by a fighter jet or two at any distance from the camera, but quite the opposite is, in fact, true. The 3D image creates a wide-open sky and sense of distance when the ground is visible from above. The opening sequence is a dazzling example of how well the conversion works; there's a very real sense of large space between the sky and the Indian Ocean below. Even in straight-on sky shots, aircraft feel some distance away and the sky takes on an evident openness that becomes even more well-defined when more than one plane is at play in any given shot. The fighters take on a very real sense of volume and space, distances between them is clear, and head-on shots make it look like the nose is about to protrude through the screen. Every aerial scene shares similar characteristics, and it's these moments when the transfer shines most, at least from a 3D perspective.

Elsewhere, the transfer proves polished and competent. Even in the aircraft carrier's cramped control room and under fairly dark lighting, audiences will note very real, very welcome spacing. Something as simple as the distance between a headset's microphone and the wearer's face is very noticeable. Graphics appear to hover off the screen when seen on the fighter's cockpit HUD (Heads Up Display). The volume of the cockpit, even with its transparent canopy, is obvious in a select few shots. General dialogue scenes usually don't offer much in the way of pronounced 3D, but such scenes are so natural that they just sort of go unnoticed compared to the high-flying and very obvious 3D elements up above and for which the conversion was seemingly made. The review 3D equipment (Panasonic plasma, Sony 3D BD player) did reveal a hint of crosstalk over some of the opening titles and again around a few edges throughout the film. Nevertheless, this is a fantastic transfer all around; its general qualities are superior to the included and previously released 2D-only image, and the 3D attributes are really something else, particularly up high where the transfer truly excels.

Top Gun 3D Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Top Gun remains one of the most entertaining pictures of the 1980s, a decade hallmark, a film that defines an era of machismo cinema. It holds up remarkably well, particularly from a technical perspective. It's more than a sturdy, well-made movie; it's nearly faultlessly crafted. Every shot is an experience, each scene structurally coherent, and every sequence either dramatically or exhilaratingly satisfying. It's as much a lightly humorous character film as it is a serious drama, as much an testosterone-fueled Action extravaganza wonder as it is a satisfying, though straightforward, romance. Every character is memorable, each scene quotable, and the entire movie infinitely re-watchable. And now, after a quarter-century in figurative flight, a very well-established fan base has an entirely new way of watching the movie. Paramount's converted 3D presentation is really quite satisfying and a natural fit for the film, much more so than even some new films converted to 3D with no real dramatic purpose or visual reason to be in 3D. The film benefits remarkably well from the conversion, and it's done tastefully and expertly. The aerial scenes benefit the most, but the entire film feels almost like a brand new experience with that added dimension. This Blu-ray release also features the film's original 2D presentation and all the original release's supplements on a second disc. The lossless audio options are killer. This is a must-own for fans of the film and 3D display owners.