TOP GUN: MAVERICK’s Glen Powell Produces THE BLUE ANGELS Documentary
By Movieguide® Contributor
Amazon MGM Studios recently revealed the trailer for THE BLUE ANGELS, a documentary about the U.S. Navy’s Flight Demonstration Squadron set to hit theaters in May.
“The doc, which hails from J.J. Abrams and TOP GUN: MAVERICK star Glen Powell, will jet to Imax for a one-week run from May 17-23 before it hits Prime Video worldwide on May 23,” Deadline reported.
“Paul Crowder directed the film, which goes inside the cockpit to show how one becomes a Blue Angel, from the selection process to the training regimen. A demanding eight-month show season follows,” Deadline said.
The footage displays aerial shots, filmed with IMAX cameras, of the planes performing stunts just feet apart.
“The first time you take off,” one pilot says in the trailer, per Deadline, “you’ve got to push the ‘I Believe’ button.”
The squadron is made up of 138 sailors and marines, which is 0.02% of the whole Navy and Marine Corps. TODAY noted that 2024 marks the entry of the squadron’s 78th year.
“This fascinating and layered documentary is wholly representative of the kind of work ethic, teamwork, and perseverance that goes into being a Blue Angel,” said Brianna Oh, Amazon’s head of documentary features. “We are incredibly honored to join this talented filmmaking team in bringing their story to audiences around the world.”
Navy’s fighter pilots inspired 1986’s TOP GUN movie. THE BLUE ANGELS producer Glen Powell played Lt. Jake ‘Hangman’ Seresin in TOP GUN’S sequel, TOP GUN: MAVERICK, which was nominated for a Movieguide® Teddy Bear Award®.
Movieguide®’s review of TOP GUN: MAVERICK reads:
TOP GUN: MAVERICK is a sequel to the popular 1986 hit starring Tom Cruise. Cruise plays Pete “Maverick” Mitchell who after 30 years as a fighter pilot is now a test pilot. After he crashes a supersonic jet, Maverick is sent to the Top Gun school in San Diego to pick six fighter pilots for a dangerous mission to bomb a uranium enrichment plant in a foreign country. He faces two major obstacles. First, the mission looks impossible. Second, one candidate is the son of his late friend, Goose, who died on a training flight with Maverick.
TOP GUN: MAVERICK is a terrific, powerful, exciting movie. It’s full of high drama and heart-pounding action scenes. This role was made for Tom Cruise. He gets great support from Miles Teller as Goose’s son and Jennifer Connelly as Maverick’s romantic interest. TOP GUN: MAVERICK has a strong moral, Pro-American, patriotic worldview. It also tells a strong redemptive story leading to sacrifice, forgiveness and reconciliation. However, TOP GUN: MAVERICK is marred by too many obscenities and three strong profanities. So, MOVIEGUIDE® advises strong or extreme caution.