Did Maverick Die at the Beginning of ‘Top Gun: Maverick’?

Did everything we see in Top Gun: Maverick actually happen? Or was most of it actually a death dream that Tom Cruise’s character had right as his mind was disintegrating in the Darkstar?

I first learned about this theory from Bill Simmons’ Rewatchables podcast and an Alison Willmore piece over at Vulture. While my first reaction was to reject it as silly…I think it’s actually possible to read the film this way! In the above video, I break down the case for this theory.

My Top 10 Films of 2021

In this video, I count down my top 10 films of 2021. Despite everything, it’s been an amazing year for movies. I’m grateful I got to enjoy so many of these in a theater and hoping that 2022 brings more cinematic wonder to each of our lives.

Noomi Rapace tells me about her new film, ‘Lamb’

It’s a busy month! October is the first month in a long time that feels packed with major, blockbuster movie releases.

In the midst of that, A24 is releasing Lamb, a new film from first-time director Valdimar Jóhannsson. In the film, a childless couple in rural Iceland make a shocking discovery in their sheep barn one day. How they navigate it will have huge implications for their relationship and their relationship with the nature around them.

Noomi Rapace (Prometheus, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo) plays Maria and she’s incredible in this film. She brings so much intensity and vulnerability to her role and makes the entire thing worth watching on her own.

For Culturally Relevant and on YouTube (above), Noomi chatted with me about her role in the movie, how she got inspired to act in the first place, and what the hardest scene in the movie was to film.