Daily Dirt: ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ should already be considered a classic

Daily Dirt for Sunday, June 19, 2022

It’s now been a few days since I saw “Top Gun: Maverick,” and I’m still amazed. It’s been a long, long time since I enjoyed a film that much … Welcome to today’s three thoughts that make up Vol. 316 of The Daily Dirt.

1. To be perfectly honest, I wasn’t expecting a whole lot after agreeing to go with our youngest daughter, Melissa, to see “Top Gun: Maverick,” the Tom Cruise film that is a follow-up to the 1986 classic “Top Gun.” I had figured Cruise, the characters and the film itself had outlived their usefulness.

Wrong. So very, very wrong.

“Top Gun: Maverick” was not only best movie I have seen this year but in many, many years. (With the possible exception of the James Bond movies, but that’s an entirely different subject for a different day.) Cruise’s recreation of his Pete Mitchell character will please both oldtimers who were coming of age in 1986 when the original “Top Gun” was released, plus more than satisfy a new generation of moviegoers not familiar with the original back story.

There is absolutely nothing this movie lacks. Emotion? Check. Action? Double check? Great ending? Triple check.

In addition, Miles Teller, Glen Powell and Jennifer Connelly are superb in supporting roles. Teller is especially impressive. He has “future star” written all over him.

“Top Gun: Maverick” is already Cruise’s most successful box-office hit ever, heading toward $900 million at the gate.

If you decide to see it, I think you’ll understand why.

2. Since we’re in a Tom Cruise frame of mind today, here’s one man’s opinion on his top films:

• 1. “Top Gun: Maverick” (2022): This movie’s release was delayed several times, due to the pandemic. Another reason I’m glad the pandemic is behind us.
• 2. All of the “Mission: Impossible” (1996-2018) films: I never thought Cruise’s efforts in this series would be bettered. I was wrong.
• 3. “Top Gun” (1986): One of the best supporting casts ever assembled for any movie ever.
• 4. “Jack Reacher” (2012, 2016): I keep waiting for another film in this series, which is perfect for Cruise’s ability to play the ultimate drifter.
• 5. “Risky Business” (1983): Hard to believe this classic was first released 39 years ago.

3. Let’s begin the week with another sickening dish from somewhere around the globe.

The headline kind of says it all: “Roasted rat is much like chicken, except for the extra legs an tail.”

“When it comes to eating rat, there are two kinds of people: those who grew up eating it and those who are repelled by the idea,” writes Craig Gima for the staradvertiser.com website.

Gima reports rat is a popular item at tables in southeast Asia — particularly Thailand. He had the chance to try some.

Gima reports the local folks prepare rats much like … well, chicken. That includes “grabbing the neck and hind legs and stretching out the animal until the neck or spine snapped.” They also use charcoal ash to burn off fur that is difficult to remove by hand.

The insides are then cleaned out. The paws and head are also cut off, but the tail is left.

“People like to eat (the tail),” he wrote.

The rat is often roasted in an oven after seasoning it with oyster sauce, fish sauces, garlic and spice.

“I tore off a piece of leg meat and considered what to do next,” Gima said. “On one hand, rat is a common food in farming areas, and these were field rats, not city rats from the sewer or trash pile. On the other hand, it’s still a rat.”

It helped that the meat, separated from the tail, looks a lot like chicken. The leg bone is about the same size, and the meat is fatty and juicy.

“I took a bite,” he said. “It was good. The meat was tender, not at all gamy, and the garlic and oyster sauce gave it a nice flavor.”

It’s a bit of a food cliche to say strange meats taste like chicken. Frog, alligator, rabbit — they kind of taste like chicken. But you can tell the difference.

“Rat meat really tastes like chicken,” he said. “The tail, however, is not as tasty. It’s kind of crunchy — like a rat cracker.”

And with that comment, it’s time to go to McDonald’s.

Steve Thought O’ The Day
Steve says the oddest food he has ever tried is probably clam chowder.

Steve Eighinger writes daily for Muddy River News. He was offered a role in the “Top Gun: Maverick” movie as Tom Cruise’s son, Maverick Jr., but he declined because he doesn’t like to fly.