Top Grin: MAYDAY has a winning perestroika pairing…
1987: Troy ‘Assassin’ Kelly is a respected fighter pilot, something of a maverick but cool under pressure. His reputation means he is selected to co-pilot a trip into Cold War-era Russia to help take photos of a suspect soviet facility.
However, the mission goes sideways after an encounter with a Russian aircraft and Troy finds himself trapped behind enemy lines and his mission disavowed by his superiors. Seriously injured, he’s found in the forest by Nikolai Ustinov, an ex-KGB agent living alone in the woods and nursing an unrequited love for all things American.
Despite ‘Nick’ suggesting that Troy stay with him until the Cold War ends (‘how much longer can it last?‘), Troy is determined to make it back to the West. Nick agrees to help… if Troy will take him and his estranged daughter with him.
But that deal and the subsequent trip westward will not go as planned…
*some spoilers*
Sometimes all you need is a good romp.
Set in the 1980s, MAYDAY retains a cinematic tone of that period and in some ways there’s the feeling that this could be an unearthed project from the time given a modern wash-and-brush-up. It opens with an unapologetic Top Gun motif and overt patriotic sensibilities but evolves into a more modern vibe where both characters slowly learn there are innate qualities and inadequacies to their respective countries beyond the obvious. Yes, it’s a familiar, somewhat simplistic take on the buddy-movie format and a well-trodden path (or flight-plan), but its stars deliver the expected beats with enough background heart among the foreground humour to make this an entertaining throwback romp.
Mayday is written and directed by another reteaming of John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein (whose previous films together include Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves, Game Night and Vacation). Daley was previously best known for his prominent on-screen roles – including ‘Sam’ in Freaks & Geeks and ‘Sweets’ in Bones – but is making quite the impact behind the camera and is still connected to steering the next Star Trek big-screen outing). MAYDAY will do nothing to hurt that second career.
As in 80s outings, there are ‘set-pieces’ that punctuate proceedings. You’ve seen the like before – bar-room brawls, escapes from a moving train and confrontations aboard air-craft. Some work better than others and prove best on a smaller scale. The film momentarily loses some traction when it has a more ridiculous sequence in Red Square that makes no real sense, even within internal logic, but you’ve already suspended belief to a certain point and with the film barreling along to an ideal just-less-than two hour running time, you’ll likely go with the flow.
Reynolds channels the familiar banter that he has made his own, but it’s reined in enough that it never approaches Deadpool levels. It’s essentially a series of snarky asides that work pretty well (though one might think that stage-whispered snark in English is probably ill-advised in the middle of enemy territory if you’re trying to stay inconspicuous).
Branagh (finding a new chapter of his career playing Russians) is impressive, both in playing the wry straight-man and in some of the demanding physical stunts and hand-to-hand combat he undertakes. He subtly steals certain scenes from Reynolds (no small achievement), however, I can’t be the only person to boggle at his uncanny similarity to a bearded Jason Bateman in many scenes.
It’s essentially a two-hander with solid chemistry between the leads, but the supporting cast are also fine: Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part One‘s Marcin Dorocinski is the ruthless agent who has no time for glasnost and pursues the duo with relish and Maria Bakalova plays Nick’s daughter Anna, though it feels like there’s more of a sub-plot left on the editing room floor. Veteran actor David Morse also appears as Troy’s ill, but proud father.
Populated by a knowing Bruce Springsteen soundtrack, Mayday is simply fun, a mixture of Top Gun, Planes-Trains-and-Automobiles a bit of Misery and a host of road movies… and well-executed, but gentle message of reconciliation with a geographic romp that brushes against politics and propaganda in fairly light and inoffensive ways that would have made a perfectly decent big-screen release… in the 1980s or 2020s.
8/10
MAYDAY is now available on AppleTV…