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Maiden (2018)
When your destiny is to prove a large part of the world... Wrong.
I was closing in on the last segment of my High school year when this story started gathering momentum.
I'd started sailing a year or two before; only dinghies on a local reservoir. Not that learning to sail in and around a small village on the outskirts of Manchester was something common, and certainly not something your school friends really wanted to talk about when they were all obsessed with football. I'd rather don a wetsuit and go get wet sailing Toppers and enjoying the single challenge of sailing than talk about or play football.
When this story really gathered speed though and started getting a lot of media attention it was like a hobby I alone enjoyed was suddenly becoming a huge topic at school.
It was that big of a deal.
Tracy Edwards is an amazing human being and did something phenomenal.
Showed the world "Telling me no isn't acceptable". I looked up to her and admired her as a teenager and that message stuck with me till this day and still motivates me. Having watched this film, more so now as a grown man.
She was a large part of the reason years later when given the chance to sail on yachts. I didn't flinch; I signed up and went for it. Even making sure I pushed others out of the way to ensure I got to crew and they didn't.
(I was in the Army and a lot of more senior guys were signing up for a course to sail around the Greek islands and none of them had sailed before but were trying to pull seniority as they saw it as a fun holiday and an easy 2 weeks fun in the sun - So I made sure the fact I had sailed before and crewed on a 37 foot yacht was a better reason to get a ride than give it to someone who had no idea what was involved other than sunbathing and pretending they were in a Duran Duran video. Worked out well as when we sailed out from Cyprus it was into force 6 gales for 4 days and I enjoyed every moment of it while others were wishing they were dead and crying for someone to kill them as they were terrified and also sea sick.)
I eventually got to crew on a 55 foot Nicholson Yacht which had won stages of the Whitbread previously before it had been bought and taken on by the Armed Forces. Stepping aboard that Nic55 was one of the highlights of my life because I felt the history of it and knew what it had been through.
So I thought till I watched this film.
This is a well put together film using archive footage and personal memories.
Openly and frankly discussed with hearts and soul shown to the world.
I'll avoid going into detail about the events as it's worth seeing the story unfold if you do not know much about it.
It clearly shows also how much the world needed to change and the Maiden crew certainly did that, and rightly so. These ladies had everything to prove and they just got on with their jobs regardless of how much they were being looked down upon and slated.
Not a fan of sailing, watch it anyway.
It has drama and heartbreaks, smiles and tears of joy. Tragedy and elation in equal amounts. Without the whimsy and fluff often contained in "Sports films".
Most of all though; it's about doing what people tell you that you cannot do. The underlying message isn't hidden nor shied away from.
If you want it bad enough and are prepared to play for all the marbles, you might just surprise yourself and send a ripple around the world.
The fact the Maiden crew did what 95% of the sailing world considered impossible is amazing enough. Against the odds all the crews faced and under the immense stress and pressure of being the first all female crew and being snubbed and snobbed over is simply inspiring to not just females. Though of course this story is hinged on that part. It's not hung up on it. Which is what makes this film so great.
It's a heartfelt journey of adversity and epic trials. Sailing around the world on a yacht is not easy and it is bloody dangerous.
It raises many questions, but also shows what happens when you raise your middle finger to the world and state "I will do this".
So many people had to eat humble pie due to what the Maiden crew did and some of them were huge names in the sailing world or very famous.
While the Brits are known for the underdog spirit, there is a reason; people like Tracy Edwards and the rest of the Maiden crew.
You have to watch this till the end though; just to see how much Maiden changed the world and thinking. It's a very emotional and moving climax and highly unexpected.
I've rated this 10/10 because it really did deliver what I expected and then added multiple layers on top.
Don't be surprised if Hollywood jumps on this and does a theatrical version based on it.
Hail Maiden, hail to Tracy Edwards and the crew who sailed on her. Thanks for being such an inspiration and giving me real life heroes to cheer for. I may not have gone on to crew in competition on yachts and sailed the world; I did get to sail on some lovely yachts and visit some exotic places though and in large part to you and this story unfolding when it did.
Top Gun (1986)
If you feel the need, the need for speed, Top Gun is what you need!
A Legend in it's own time.
Timeless classic.
Really does get better with age.
Yep, all of the above are true and many more platitudes that are bandied about or discussed when this film is mentioned. I struggle to grasp why this has a sub 7 rating on here, especially considering some of the dire films that have been rated 9 or above on IMDb, this film deserves a much higher rating.
It's a great night in with "pizza and popcorn" movie, more fun if everyone has seen it before so you can play the Top Gun quote game. I'd love to see this on the big screen with the full sound system to hear the big adrenaline rush that comes with hearing the jets screaming around and the music pumping. Even though I happily watch it at home of a 40 inch TV with a 5.1 PC audio system which isn't exactly lacking in power or effect...
It's a fun if somewhat cheesy 80's film that is of course a formula film that was repeated several times (Especially with Tom Cruise starring in them!) with a soundtrack that is still as good today as it was in the late 80's when this film came out. The plot may be paper thin but the action, the music and the quotability and great fun of the film is what makes it so much fun to watch and gives it massive replay value.
It's fast paced action sequences and aerial cinematography are top notch, simply breathtaking and stunning for the most. The drama of the shooting is the backbone of this film, the adrenaline it can induce is spectacular and some of the shots are simply haunting.
The humour is laugh out loud funny and it featured some bloody good looking men and great looking women so the eye candy is never far away. The film has very few lulls and the action is never far away. It has emotion and feeling but always gets back into the Danger Zone pretty quick with characters that are likable and fun to watch. The casting was very well done and you can sense that the cast and crew must have had a riot while making this film (With The exception of Iceman/Val Kilmer, who actually kept himself apart from the crew for the most to allow for his character to be felt as a true outsider.)
As may be apparent I'm a Top Gun fan, have been since I first watched this film, I was gripped from the opening chimes of the epic Top Gun theme followed by that big haired 80's guitar riff and the initial sounds of engines winding up as the steam drifts across the deck of the aircraft carrier. I'm a firm believer that if this film doesn't get your stuff going at some point, your stuff is broken. It's not a film to be taken seriously, it's meant to be enjoyed with friends and laughed along with.
The film may have a few plot holes, there are about a million goofs, it spawned more than a handful of web sites to point out all the goofs and flaws in the film, dialogue and all other things Top Gun related but it's got a fan base the size of a massive army and for a reason, it's just a good movie because of all that.
The soundtrack and aerial footage really are the stars of this film, even though the cast was pretty huge, the Director Tony Scott really went all in and made a huge effort with Top Gun (Even at his own personal expense considering he ended up hiring a US Aircraft carrier to get a shot just how he wanted!)
It's just one of those films if you like it, whenever it is on, you can sit down and watch it no matter where you walked in, or turned over and found it was on. It's like a really comfortable pair of slippers that always feel good to slip on when you get the chance. I often wish I could turn back the clock to being a teenager again to watch it for the first time all over again and get the chills down my spine as each action sequence gears up; the rush as the roar of the F-14 engines scream and howl. I envy the people who have not seen this film as they have experience the roller-coaster ride that this film can offer.
It's funny as I was inspired to come write this review after meeting someone the other week who had not seen Top Gun, which for me has been a rare experience. In fact I don't know many people who do not own either a copy if the VHS or a DVD of Top Gun, and most of my friends have the OST in their music collection or the larger part of it as Singles/MP3's.
If you have not seen it, get on ebay or Amazon or wherever, spend a few quid and buy a copy, get some friends around for the night, snag some beer, popcorn, pizza or tofu if that floats your boat and have a great night in. If you don't take it too seriously you should have a good night.
If you have seen it and enjoyed it, get on here and give it some love and vote it up, if only to get it ranked above a lot of the rubbish ranked highly.
It's also worth watching the DVD extras/Making of Top Gun if you liked the film as it's pretty interesting stuff and very funny in parts, as some of the trivia about the film is fascinating.