Spielberg. Tarantino. The Coen brothers. Nolan. Cameron. Coppola.
Kosinski?
While Joseph Kosinski may lacks the name recognition, let alone the resume of those cinematic giants, he’s still responsible for two of the most all-American films of the past decade. Three if you count a little-seen gem about our brave firefighters.
One film literally saved movies, according to none other than Steven Spielberg.
Kosinski’s “Top Gun: Maverick” did more than extend the popular ‘80s smash. It brought movie goers back to theaters following the pandemic. And you’d be hard pressed to find a more patriotic, “America [bleep} Yeah” movie over the past decade.
He has a feel for old school Hollywood that could save the industry from itself. Here’s what makes his film so refreshing.
“Top Gun: Maverick” soared higher than even the 1986 original. Tom Cruise returns to play Maverick, the hotshot aviator staring down a different kind of challenge.
Irrelevancy.
Hector Vivas/Getty Images for Paramount Pictures
We all know what happened next. Maverick dug back for something extra, defied authority, fell for an old flame and gave young pilots the courage to complete a death-defying mission.
Kosinski didn’t inject woke into a single frame of his film. Nor did he shy away from American excellence, let alone the “need for speed.” His film hearkened back to old-school Hollywood movies with handsome heroes, lovely ladies and a determination that cannot be denied.
Why wouldn’t it earn a whopping $718 million in U.S. theaters alone? It’s the movie audiences were waiting for all along.
And Kosinski just did it again.
“F1” stars Brad Pitt as an aging race car driver hoping for one last shot at glory. He’ll have to make nice with a talented rookie (Damson Idris) and defeat old demons to get back in the winner’s circle.
Sound familiar?
The parallels don’t end there. Both films offer slick, you-are-there visuals, generational tension and a commitment to the American Dream. If you work hard enough, anything is possible.
“F1” raced to $57 million in its opening weekend stateside, the most for any original film this year.
Dan Mullan/Getty Images
Both films feature heroes willing to try new things, to push past conventional boundaries to achieve their dreams. That plays into the entrepreneurial pluck in America’s DNA.
It helps that Kosinski snagged two older movie stars who defy Father Time. Each is given a full-bodied romantic story arc at a time when Hollywood often forgets how much audiences crave that part of the hero’s journey.
Scarlett Johansson co-stars with three handsome co-leads in “Jurassic World Rebirth.” There’s not a hint of romance in the film. And that’s more common than ever.
Cruise and Pitt lean into their movie-star looks, as does Kosinski. He made their characters vulnerable but undeniably masculine. That’s refreshing.
The films deliver crowd-pleasing thrills without guilt or compromise. They also scored a 99 and 97% “fresh” rating, respectively, from general audiences at RottenTomatoes.com.
The irony? Kosinski’s previous film, 2017’s “Only the Brave,” also served up heroism from a decidedly heartland perspective. The fact-based story recalls the men of the Granite Mountain Hotshots who risked it all to defeat an ominous Arizona wildfire.
Josh Brolin, Miles Teller and Jennifer Connelly starred in a film that got ignored by audiences at the time. Seen today, Kosinski’s knack for slick visuals and on-screen bravery paved the way for “Maverick.”
Mireya Acierto/FilmMagic
The film’s core themes aren’t an accident. The 51-year-old director told a reporter he has a weakness for underdog stories, another trait of the American Dream.
“What’s it like to be at the back, trying to score a win, rather than winning all the time? Who wins all the time in life? Very few people.”
The director isn’t shy about his love for the U.S. Military, an affection that bloomed while preparing for “Maverick.” He spent some time with real-life soldiers and came away impressed.
“The fact that [servicemen and women] do that for six months or nine months without seeing their families, I was just really blown away by their sacrifice and what they give up to do that job for us…So, I think all of us on the crew walked away with even more respect for all the men and women out there. And that’s another reason we wanted this film to represent them in the best way possible. Because they worked so hard to help us capture all that.”
SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA – MAY 04: (L-R) Kristin Kosinski and Joseph Kosinski attend the Global Premiere of “Top Gun: Maverick” on May 04, 2022 in San Diego, California. (Photo by Amy Sussman/Getty Images for Paramount Pictures)
It’s ironic that the first film to mirror the kind of all-American storytelling “Maverick” offered came from that film’s director. Hollywood traditionally loves to clone successful projects. When “The Blair Witch Project” introduced found-footage storytelling to the masses, we soon saw dozens of lesser copycats.
The “John Wick” franchise paved the way for more hitmen movies.
Yet we haven’t seen a film like “Top Gun: Maverick” for the past three years. Until that film’s director got back to work, that is.
Kosinski may never reach the heights of a Spielberg or Tarantino, and his planned “Maverick” sequel has some mighty big shoes to fill. The director’s knack for knowing what audiences crave and his willingness to deliver sans compromise means we’ll be hearing a lot more from him soon.
He may not stay anonymous for long.
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Christian Toto is an award-winning journalist, movie critic and editor of HollywoodInToto.com. He previously served as associate editor with Breitbart News’ Big Hollywood. Follow him at HollywoodInToto.com.
The views expressed in this piece are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.
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