Top Gun Movie Script |
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1. EXT. NIGHT. - THE PACIFIC IS ANYTHING BUT WINDS HOWL. Rain drives horizontal. The sea surges up, nearly to the flight deck of the Aircraft Carrier USS Kitty Hawk. The carrier plunges, driving its bow into a wall of grey water. The deck pitches forward and back, rolls left to right, and yaws in a corkscrew motion. The entire 93,000 ton behemoth rises and falls in the TYPHOON-DRIVEN SWELL. 2. SOMETHING DROPS DOWN OUT OF THE NIGHT A ROAR. Silver wings flash by, a cockpit, fiery jet exhausts. A forty ton monster drops at 120 knots into an area the size of a tennis court in a CONTROLLED CRASH. 2A. A SHOWER OF SPARKS, A SCREECH OF RUBBER AND METAL as the gear hits the deck. The hook catches the 3 wire and the F-14 TOMCAT is slammed to a halt. It's the scariest thing you've ever seen, the most dangerous maneuver in aviation and just another day at the office for a Naval Aviator. TITLES OVER HARD DRIVING ROCK AND ROLL - THE CARS - RIDE ME HIGH 3. FLIGHT DECK - THE LANDING SIGNAL OFFICER - (LSO) Leans almost horizontal into the winds. He holds the pickle, controlling the landing lights and speaks into a mike. His calm, professional commands belie the extreme conditions. LSO POWER, POWER...DON'T CLIMB... OKAY, HOLD WHAT YOU GOT. 4. ANOTHER TOMCAT FLIES OVER THE RAMP It slams in. The pilot hits full power, catches the wire, slams to a stop, cuts his engines. 5. OMITTED 6. AIR OPS - BELOW DECK Lots of scopes and electronic gear. The CARRIER CONTROL APPROACH OFFICER (CCA) watches a blip on radar, reaches for his mike key. 7. EXT. THE TWILIGHT'S LAST GLEAMING - (AERIAL) We float like gods, above the storm, above the cloud cover, looking down. From overhead, a probe slides into frame, then a graceful nose. The cockpit sides by, Pilot, then Radar Intercept Officer (RIO) barely illuminated by the orange glow of their instruments. The fuselage gracefully swells to two enormous air intakes, then variable angle wings, swept back for high speed flight. Twin tailbooms cant outward, horizontal stabilizers make constant adjustments. Enormous twin jet exhaust ports glow red in the moonlight. 8. INT. COCKPIT - (AERIAL) We become aware of WIND WHISTLE, JET ENGINE SOUNDS, RADIO STATIC. The pilot, COUGAR, is calm, steady. The Radar Intercept Officer in the backseat, GOOSE, is a wildman, always an edge of humor in his voice. A UHF transmission breaks in.. STRIKE (V.O. filtered) GHOST RIDER, THIS IS STRIKE... WE HAVE UNKNOWN CONTACT INBOUND, MUSTANG. YOUR VECTOR ZERO NINE ZERO FOR BOGEY. Almost immediately the RIO picks up a target and responds. GOOSE CONTACT 20 LEFT AT 25, 900 KNOTS CLOSURE. 8A. ANGLE - SECOND F-14 - 115 - COUGAR'S WINGMAN Come in on the cockpit with stenciled name and call signs: LT. EVAN MITCHELL is the pilot, MAVERICK. In flight suit and oxygen mask, we can only see his eyes. they are confident. In his mid-twenties, he is lean, hard, athletic...the archetype fighter pilot. His rear-seater is LTJG. WALTER MERLIN; WIZARD. MAVERICK I'LL I.D. HIM, YOU HOOK 'EM. Maverick peels off to right, to high cover position; 5 o'clock. 9. INT. GHOST RIDER 117 - COUGAR'S POV HEADS UP DISPLAY (HUD) glows dimly on the windscreen. Directly in front of the stick, two CRT screens display data. The bottom screen shows a radar sweep. Wedged between the instruments is a snapshot of a pretty young woman with a 2 month-old baby. GOOSE Closing fast. MUSTANG, THIS IS GHOST RIDER ONE ONE SEVEN. CONTACT ONE BOGEY, 090 AT 15 MILES, 900 KNOTS OF CLOSURE. COUGAR Look for the trailer. GOOSE I don't see anything. MAVERICK, YOU HAVE A TRAILER? 10. MAVERICK'S F-14 Flying in combat spread, 1 mile abeam, higher. GOOSE NEGATIVE, COUGAR. LOOKS LIKE HE'S SINGLE. 11. INT. 117 - COUGAR'S COCKPIT COUGAR HANG BACK AND WATCH FOR HIM. HERE COMES...MIG ONE. 12. EXT. SKY Closing at 900 knots, The MiG is a speck, then a flash and a ROAR, a knife-edge pass at 300 feet. It rockets past his left wing tip and disappears. Cougar kicks rudder, whips the stick, screams into a tight turning roll and dives after him. He slams the throttle forward to ZONE 5 AFTERBURNER. 13. EXT. - MAVERICK'S F-14 Maverick sees a SECOND MiG drop from above onto Cougar's tail. MAVERICK BOGEY ON YOUR SIX. I'M ON HIS. Maverick swings after him, lights it. 13A. ALL FOUR JETS SCREAM DOWN IN A POWER DIVE. They punch through cloud cover into the soup. 14. EXT. COUGAR'S F-14 He is closing on the first MiG when a shocking BLIPBLIPBLIPBLIP tone breaks into their headsets. GOOSE I've got a six strobe. I think he's locked on us. COUGAR It's a MiG 21. They don't have radar missiles! GOOSE Let's hope you're right! COUGAR What is he doing? GOOSE He's pissing me off! Cougar swings mad gyrations, cutting back and forth across the front MiG's tailpipe, trying to break the lock-on. The TONE grows more insistant. COUGAR Can't shake him. MAVERICK (V.O.) WHAT'S MIG ONE DOING? COUGAR Maintaining course. Straight for Mustang. GOOSE Stay with him. The tone grows steady, BLIPBLIPBLIPBLIP. GOOSE (alarmed) That's missile lock! COUGAR He better be kidding! GOOSE Lordy! Eyeball to Asshole. Hope nobody burps! 14A. INT. MAVERICK'S F-14 MAVERICK I'LL LOCK ON THEM, COUGAR. (to himself) Gotcha covered, don't nobody move. COUGAR I'M UP HERE TOO, MAVERICK. MAVERICK ROGER, COUGAR. (to himself and his RIO) Okay boys, pull out with your hands up and nobody'll get hurt. 14B. INT. COUGAR'S F-14 Up front, Cougar checks his gunsight...He gets I.R. lock... COUGAR We're locked on MiG ONE. Why doesn't he disengage? GOOSE These guys are getting on my nerves. 14C. FINALLY, MIG ONE TURNS AWAY. GOOSE GHOST RIDER TO MUSTANG. BANDITS TURNING AWAY. But Cougar presses forward, and MiG TWO stays on his tail. MAVERICK COUGAR, BREAK LEFT. TRY A HIGH G ROLL UNDERNEATH. BREAK OUT THE BOTTOM. Anger gives way to discipline. Cougar's Tomcat breaks left, dives into dense cloud. MiG TWO still follows. MAVERICK HE'S STILL ON YOU, COUGAR. 15. EXT. COUGAR - IN THE CLOUDS Still hears the tone, BLIPBLIPBLIP... COUGAR I KNOW. I KNOW. He rolls over into wild evasive maneuvers, finally breaks lock. 16. INT. MIG Breaks out of cloud, looks around, startled. There is nothing, no F-14. He scans the sky frantically, while rolling the aircraft. ...Suddenly, he feels a presence. He looks straight up and behind him. A few feet away, a TOMCAT slides into position canopy to canopy, an incredible feat of flying. Maverick and Wizard stare at him. Maverick slides even closer, canopies nearly touching. The MiG pilot acknowledges them with a weak wave. Maverick stares for a moment, then flips him the bird. The MiG pushes negative G, hard down and away. He heads for the deck. WIZARD He's running for it. MAVERICK Ah, the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat. WIZARD Speaking of feet, fuel's down to 4.0. We're gonna get them wet unless we find a Sonoco station. MAVERICK COUGAR, THIS IS MAVERICK. I'M GETTING HUNGRY, LET'S HEAD FOR THE BARN. ...COUGAR, WHERE ARE YOU? 17. EXT. KITTY HAWK FLIGHT DECK - THE LSO Stands the on plunging deck, peering into the roaring night. CCA (Filtered) GHOST RIDER ONE-ONE-FIVE, THIS IS MUSTANG. WX THREE HUNDRED. ONE MILE VISIBILITY WITH HEAVY RAIN. FINAL INBOUND BEARING THREE-FOUR- ZERO. DECK IS MOVING. 18. INT. COCKPIT 117 - COUGAR COUGAR This is crazy. How the hell we supposed to land on something we can't even see! GOOSE Hey, if it was easy, everybody would want to come up here and do it..... Instead of just us. COUGAR (corrects him) You. MUSTANG (V.O. filtered) MUSTANG TO GHOST RIDER 115...110 SPIN, 42 LOCK. AT 5 MILES READ YOUR NEEDLES. 19. INT. COCKPIT 115 - MAVERICK MAVERICK NEEDLES READ DOWN AND LEFT. CCA (V.O. filtered) CONCUR, FLY YOUR NEEDLES. MAVERICK NEEDLES CENTER. CCA (V.O. filtered) ROGER. CALL THE BALL. MAVERICK Call the ball? I don't see the ship! 20. INT. COCKPIT 117 - COUGAR'S POV BLASTS slam the airframe. Rain tattoos the canopy. A gust rolls the Tomcat, he straightens it, A gust flips it again. 20A. MAVERICK'S POV The Carrier lights appear and disappear through the storm. 21. INT. COCKPIT 117 - COUGAR GOOSE (To Himself) A walk in the park, Mustang. You with me, cat man?...Cougar...you with me? Goose is thrown about as the wing dips, straightens, dips. COUGAR Help me with this one, I'm really screwed up. GOOSE Bring it left. Bring it left, You're high. COUGAR This is crazy! GOOSE What is? COUGAR Wait! Hell!..Something's wrong! GOOSE What? What is it? COUGAR Were upside down! GOOSE You're crazy. We're level. COUGAR Can't you feel it? I'm hanging in my straps! GOOSE You're not. We're level. Look at the instruments, we're okay! COUGAR They must be broken. I'm hanging in my straps! We're inverted! GOOSE We're not! Trust me! We're okay. 22. FLIGHT DECK - LSO CONTROLLING 115 - MAVERICK LSO A LITTLE POWER...FLY THE BALL. LOOKING GOOD...HOLD WHAT YOU GOT. 23. MAVERICK'S F-14 - ON FINAL APPROACH. 24. INT. COCKPIT - MAVERICK He hears Cougar's chatter over the air. COUGAR (V.O. filtered) WE'RE UPSIDE DOWN! WE CAN'T LAND! GOOSE (V.O. filtered) WELL, WE CAN'T STAY UP HERE EITHER. 25. FLIGHT DECK Maverick's plane settles in over the ramp, suddenly, BLASTS FROM IT'S AFTERBURNERS...it ROARS over the deck without touching and off into the night. The LSO is shocked into comment. LSO WHERE THE HELL YOU GOING? 26. MAVERICK'S COCKPIT - (AERIAL) MAVERICK I...FORGOT SOMETHING. WIZARD What the hell you doing? MAVERICK Helping him in. WIZARD What makes you think we can get back in? We don't have the fuel for this. MAVERICK Just get me to him. WIZARD He's nine o'clock high. We're two thousand pounds low! 27. DARK TURBULENT CLOUDS Maverick's plane pulls up behind Cougar's. Cougar's plane suddenly flips over, flying inverted. COUGAR I'm pulling up. GOOSE No! Now we're inverted! Maverick pulls up off the wing of the inverted aircraft. His voice is calmness itself. MAVERICK HEY, ANY OF YOU GUYS SEEN AN AIRCRAFT CARRIER AROUND HERE? Cougar looks over, surprised. COUGAR WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE? MAVERICK EVERYBODY'S GOT TO BE SOMEWHERE. ..NOW WE'RE RIGHT WITH YOU. YOU ARE INVERTED. ROLL IT, COUGAR. Nothing happens. MAVERICK COUGAR, THIS IS MAVERICK. HALF ROLL IT. NOW! Cougar's plane completes the roll, is now upright. GOOSE We're on vapor, Cougar, you got to put it down. COUGAR It's crazy, man. Instruments are crazy. We're gonna have to eject. GOOSE TELL HIM, WILL YOU TELL HIM? OUR INSTRUMENTS ARE OKAY. MAVERICK YOU'RE STRAIGHT AND LEVEL, COUGAR. COUGAR I'M HANGING IN MY STRAPS. I TURN IT OVER AND I'M STILL HANGING IN MY STRAPS. WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON UP HERE? MAVERICK YOU'RE NOT IN THE STRAPS. IT'S VERTIGO, THAT'S ALL IT IS. STAY ON MY WING. I'LL DROP YOU OFF. Maverick pulls up wing tip to wing tip, inches apart. COUGAR MAVERICK. MAVERICK YEAH, COUGAR? COUGAR YOU BETTER NOT BE RAGGING ME... IF YOU'RE FLYING UPSIDE DOWN... MAVERICK NO JOKE, COUGAR. ON THE LEVEL. EVEN I WOULDN'T DO THAT TO YOU. COUGAR I'M UPSIDE DOWN. I KNOW IT. I'M GONNA EJECT. GOOSE Look at the weather! They'll never find us! We're near out of fuel. Put it down. MAVERICK COUGAR, YOU'RE ON THE BALL. COUGAR OKAY... OKAY. BUT IF I LAND THIS THING UPSIDE DOWN. AND I LIVE. I'LL HAVE YOUR BUTT! GOOSE You'll have mine, Cougar. It'll be where your head used to be. 28. EXT. FLIGHT DECK All eyes are on what they can see of the approach of the two planes. Maverick drops him off at the pattern and circles. The LSO watches the approach. The Tomcat drops a wing, straightens, drops the wing, straightens ... the approach of a pilot experiencing vertigo as Cougar tries to satisfy his inner ear. LSO LEVEL...YOUR WINGS... EASY... YOU'RE SETTLING....FLY THE BALL. A wind shear just off the ramp drives the plane suddenly down. LSO POWER...POWER!..POWER!...WAVE OFF! WAVE OFF WAVE OFF! AFTERBURNERS BLAST, but the Tomcat horrifyingly settles tail-low toward the deck. The deck crew watches in terror as the plane wallows in toward them. The LSO'S turn, take a few steps and throw themselves off the flight deck. They sail into the night toward the surging seas a hundred feet below, then are caught in safety nets hung off the side. 28A. THE PLANE Settles, settles, standing on it's engines, trying to arrest it's downward momentum. The hook raises sparks as it skids across the deck... The plane stops falling and hangs for a moment, about to blast back up, when the hook catches the last wire.. The wire snags it, plucking 45,000 pounds of fuel, metal and men out of the air and slamming it all to the deck. WHAMMMM! Right wheel flies up the deck and over the side...the gear collapses. The plane SCREECHES sideways. The crew watches helplessly as it skids slams into it and comes to rest in cloud of fuel vapor and steam. The LSO runs up, shouting into the mike. LSO COUGAR, GOOSE...COME IN COUGAR! SHUT YOUR ENGINES DOWN, YOU'VE ARRIVED. AIR BOSS GHOST RIDER! ACKNOWLEDGE! GHOST RIDER! ACKNOWLEDGE! Crash crew leaps into action. The fire crew is there. The man in the Silver Suit jumps up on the wing and crawls to the cockpit. The figures inside are not moving. He hits the canopy release. The canopy pops open. Silver suit grabs at the rear seat harness release. He screams through his suit's aluminized cloth... SILVER SUIT Goose, can you hear me? Goose! Nothing for a moment. He's dead! Then the RIO'S helmet moves...His head turns. He tears the mask away from his face, looks up at Silver Suit. His head clears. GOOSE Oh, Hello... Valet parking? Silver suit is stunned for a moment. He straightens up, his head inclines quizzically. Then it hits him. SILVER SUIT Son of a bitch! GOOSE You will put it up front, with the Porsches? He grabs him under the armpits, drags him out of the plane. GOOSE Hey...easy...Take it easy... I'm a veteran! Goose grabs a passing crewman by the arm. GOOSE Can you check under the hood. I thought I heard a funny noise. Other crewmembers help Cougar out. He seems stunned, but Goose reacts to his fear with frantic one-liners. He grabs a crew member's radio, as Silver Suit helps him away and looks to the figures of the Admiral and the Air Boss far up on the bridge... He waves to them, does his best impression...Desi Arnaz. GOOSE Lucy...Ricky...I'n Home! 28B. BRIDGE FLIGHT DECK A moment of disbelief... Then hysterical, tension relieving laughter. 28C. FLIGHT DECK Goose spots Cougar being helped out. He pulls away, reaches back into the cockpit and grabs Cougar's snapshot of wife and kid. They lead Goose away as firemen blast the aircraft with foam. GOOSE Is it extra for the hot wax? 28D. BRIDGE - FLIGHT DECK - AIR BOSS AIR BOSS Clear the flight deck. 29. FLIGHT DECK A TILLIE, a four wheel mobile crane, slams up to the plane and slings its lifting harness. Goose turns to Silver Suit. GOOSE Well...there goes your tip. 30. INT. MAVERICK'S PLANE They have monitored the chatter. WIZARD It's Goose. He's alright. Bring it left...You're settling. IS THE DECK CLEAR? LSO (V.O. filtered) (softly) ROGER, BALL, LITTLE POWER...DON'T CLIMB...OKAY, HOLD WHAT YOU GOT! Wizard does a quick sign of the cross, reaches down, grabs his balls...as... 30A. FLIGHT DECK The TOMCAT slams onto the deck, clearing the wreckage by inches. 31. INT. CARRIER HATCHWAY - FLIGHT SURGEON, OTHERS Watch as they bring a shaken Cougar past. Goose, eyes wild, waves at Maverick and Wizard, rolling up. They flame out - VVOOOMMMMM! They sit there, immobile, waiting for a tow, looking numb. Goose does his "stewardess". GOOSE On behalf of your Captain and your crew, I want to thank you for flying VF101. And next time your plans include the middle of the goddamn ocean in the dead of frigging night, I hope you'll think of Naval Aviation. The surgeon looks into Goose's eyes. SURGEON Stress reaction... XO Check his head. GOOSE (wobbling off) Never mind my head, check my shorts! 32. SICK BAY - LATER Cougar lies alone in the dimness, staring at the overhead. 33. 03 LEVEL - BELOW DECKS - OFFICER'S COUNTRY The usual CLANGS, WHISTLES, ENGINES of Navy life sound FORLORN ECHOING through the dim, deserted passage. From the distance, a single figure passes in and out of the glow of the overhead lights. Cougar comes closer, hobbling unsteadily. He reaches a door, pulls himself erect and knocks on the sign: Commander Tom Otawoczek CO VF 101 STINGER 34. STINGER'S CABIN The skipper works at his desk, responds without looking up. STINGER Come in. He looks up. Cougar stands in the doorway, a strange, dazed look on his face. STINGER Cougar, what is it? You should be in sick bay. What are you doing? He walks over to the skipper's desk. His eyes are glazed, but his jaw is firm. COUGAR Thinking of my wife and kid. A determined movement. Hand to chest. 34A. OMITTED Something metal hits it, skids across the polished surface and clangs up against the coffee mug: gold wings. 35. PASSAGEWAY Cougar comes out of Stinger's room, bumps into Goose, and Maverick. He turns the other way. GOOSE Cougar! He stops, turns to them. There is nothing to say. Goose hands him his snapshot. Cougar looks at his wife and kid for a moment, then looks up at them. He turns away. MAVERICK Cougar? STINGER (O.S.) Maverick, Goose...Come in here. 36. STINGER'S OFFICE - DOORWAY Maverick appears, followed by Goose. They stand at attention. MAVERICK Sir? The Skipper says nothing. Maverick sees the wings on the desk. He enters, walks over, stares down at them. He picks them up. GOOSE Don't worry. I'll talk to him. STINGER Don't. MAVERICK He's a good pilot. STINGER I talked a man back once. Three months later, we lost him. It's his decision. Only he knows. GOOSE He's the best you have. He's going Top Gun! STINGER Was. MAVERICK What? STINGER Was going. (Turns to Maverick.) Now you are. MAVERICK Me? Maverick stares at the wings, lost in conflicting emotions. STINGER Well, he's going (indicating Goose) and he needs someone to fly the plane. GOOSE Skipper, you can't do this! STINGER I didn't do it, he did it himself. Something about a wife and kid. The fact is, he's lost it. He knows it. I know it. You were up there, you know it, too. GOOSE Give him a break, Skipper. It was raining snakes up there. He'll be alright, soon as all the gorillas go home... The Skipper stares at Goose, non-plussed for a moment. STINGER I know some RIOS are a little wiggy...but you abuse the priviledge! I don't believe I'm going to have to put the two of you in the same cockpit...but there it is! It may be good for the Navy. It might be good for you, but most of all, it's good for me. It'll get you out of my sight. GOOSE But, Skipper, Cougar's been picked for Top Gun...He's the best of the best! STINGER Well, you'll just have to make do with him (indicates Maverick). Goose and Maverick exchange looks. GOOSE Mav's a great flyer but.... STINGER He's a hell of a flyer. In fact, he's so damn good he might have been picked for Top Gun himself. Except for one thing. (SCREAMS) He just can't seem to follow orders! Stinger moves slightly, to stand now, directly in front of Maverick and speak eye to eye at four inches. STINGER You just did an incredibly brave thing! What you should have done was land your plane. You don't own that plane, the taxpayers do. I should ream you out for it. But it just doesn't work with you. You're a hell of a flyer. You are maybe ...too good. You never really stepped in it yet. So this is your chance. I'm gonna send you up against the best. They are better than you. Maybe they'll knock that shine off your eagle and you'll see, finally, where discipline and teamwork fit it. Maverick hasn't really heard anything but TOPGUN. He snaps out of it. MAVERICK Sir? STINGER That is all. Tell me about the MiG some other time... MAVERICK Yes sir! He snaps off a salute and does an about face. STINGER Maverick.. He turns back. MAVERICK Yes sir.. STINGER The wings.. He looks down at the wings in his hands, slowing walks over places them gently on the Skipper's desk. STINGER Gentlemen! MAVERICK/GOOSE Sir? His facade cracks just slightly. STINGER Good luck. 37. INT. PASSAGEWAY Maverick and Goose push through a gauntlet of aircrews. They have become notorious. Guys grab at them...questions...the MiGs?..What happened up there? How close did they get? What did the MiGs do? One word is heard over and over..."TopGun". Goose is left behind in the crowd. Maverick pushes through. He walks fast...faster. Up ladders, around turns, down ladders, through passageways. Faster. He breaks into a trot, then a canter, squeezing past enlisted men, parts lockers, then he breaks into a run... 38. EXT - CARRIER - NIGHT AND STORM A hatch slams open on the side of the Carrier. He's out on a catwalk, instantly soaked, running on rain slicked stairs cantilevered high over the breaking seas. He plunges forward to the bow of the ship, stands on the very peak. He is yelling something. He stands there as the bow plunges terrifyingly into the trough. The water rises like a green mountain, up, up to break just a few feet below him, showering him with spray. The noise is incredible. Come around on his face. It is maddened. He raises his fist and punches the night. The foaming slope of the wave rushes up, changing color as it DISSOLVES TO: Desert Sand whipping by... 39. MOJAVE DESERT - 1 WEEK LATER A big bike, a real big bike, a turbo...rockets across the desert. Fast. Real fast. Aviator shades low above the handlebars --Maverick. Goose hangs on in back. It cranks faster, pulls closer...ENGINE SCREAMING. It cranks up a notch, it's going to explode. It can't go faster, but it does. It SCREAMS HIGHER. It ROARS under, by and away, leaving dust... 39A. THE BIKE - STILL Silence. Just the HISS AND POP OF METAL COOLING. Maverick sits on it, staring out past us. Goose looks over Maverick's shoulder. We see why. Feet come into the frame. Then the uniform: California Highway Patrol. 40. COUNTRY ROAD - NEAR SAN DIEGO 40A. ANGLE ON MAVERICK. CHP enters the frame, the usual hypercivil arrogance tinged with awed disbelief. The usual questions are spaced for effect as if he might be talking to some other form of life. Maverick is off the bike, standing at attention. Goose follows more slowly. CHP Son. Do you know why I stopped you? Maverick has some good idea how to deal with authority. MAVERICK Yes sir. I do sir The CHP adjusts his own aviator shades. CHP Well... What is it? MAVERICK (more than sincere) Sir. You are going to give me a warning, Sir! CHP - A touch of a smile, quickly surpressed. CHP License and registration. Maverick hands them over with his Navy ID. CHP scans them, hesitates a moment over the last, looks up with a touch more respect. CHP Lieutenant, do you know how fast you were going? MAVERICK Yes sir. I do, Sir. CHP Well? MAVERICK Sir. I was going Mach point one five. CHP nods sagely. CHP One SIXTH the speed of sound! MAVERICK Yes sir. CHP (a guess) Lieutenant... What do you... usually fly? MAVERICK F-14's sir. CHP (new respect) Tomcats? MAVERICK Yes sir! A long pause. Respect in the cop's eyes. He taps the Navy ID on the handlebars...staring at this sincere young man. CHP Lieutenant... Is there... a Russian attack? MAVERICK No sir! But you have to be ready. The cop nods and stares at him. 41. EXT. MIRAMAR NAVAL AIR STATION - LATER 41A. OMIT The bike is BLURPING... barely going fast enough to stay upright. Maverick cool in shades and campaign cap dorks past the hanger with the sign: FIGHTERTOWN, USA. He pulls ahead. In back of him, escorting with flashers...the CHP. They pull up at the gate. Maverick and Goose salute the guard, hands over their ID. The CHP gets out of his car, leans against the door. CHP Lieutenant. Maverick turns to him. MAVERICK Yes, Sergeant? CHP Remember one thing. MAVERICK Sir? CHP Outside of this gate... I...am Top Gun. MAVERICK Yes sir! He salutes. The CHP returns a snappy one. He gets back in his car and turns away. Maverick receives his ID and clearance. As he passes through, a couple of pilots in flight suits (ICE AND HOLLYWOOD) stare at him. The taller, dark, cool one speaks in a dry voice, meant to be overheard. ICE Uh oh, police escort. This one must be a real killer. The second pilot grins big at them. Maverick turns slightly stares over his shades at them as he passes. Goose grins back the challenge. 42. AERIAL COMBAT - VIETNAM ERA - F4'S, MIG 17'S - STOCK The Doors on the soundtrack. Jets swoop, missiles fire, a plane explodes. Gun camera views of MiGs, SAMS, flak, bombing runs... VIPER (V.O.) During the Korean War, the Navy kill ratio was twelve-to-one. We shot down twelve of their jets for every one of ours. In Vietnam, this ratio fell to three-to-one. Our pilots depended on missles. They lost their dogfighting skills. F-14's fighting with F-5's. Music becomes current. VIPER (V.O.) Top Gun was created to teach ACM. Air Combat Maneuvering...Dogfighting. Richthofen, Guynemer, Rickenbacker, Galland, Rudel, Bong would envy us. We do just what they did, but we do it beyond the speed of sound. 43. INT. DAY - TOP GUN ORIENTATION ROOM. VIPER - A tough-looking, confident leader in a blue flight suit, stands before a video-tape monitor. Behind him, on the monitor, the dogfighting continues. VIPER By the end of Vietnam we upped our kill ratio to thirteen to one. He turns on the lights. We see his audience in F.G. VIPER You're here 'cause you're the top one per cent of all naval aviators. THE CLASS Sixteen young men - eight flight crews - sit at attention. They are trim, fit and confident - high school heroes, college jocks. VIPER (V.O.) You're the elite, the best of the best. We're gonna make you better, because you're job is damned important. ANOTHER ANGLE - THE MEN The camera moves among them. Hold on one of the men; the one who greeted Maverick at the gate, Ice. VIPER (V.O.) With the tensions in the world today, the potential for confron- tation is greater than ever, and carrier pilots will be the first ones there. Air combat excellence is vital. Ice is not looking at the speaker, but, rather, in our direction. HOLLYWOOD, a blond, good-looking pilot, whispers something to him, and gestures. Ice is getting the lowdown on someone. The camera moves and we see who that someone is, as Maverick enters the frame. VIPER ...Someone once asked me if training men for air combat made the world less safe--flying loaded guns... an accidental confrontation and so forth... Maverick feels the stare of the other man and glances in his direction. Their eyes meet. Ice smiles coldly. ANGLE - VIPER VIPER (Con't) My answer is: the dangerous thing is being unprepared. You want trouble, that's what you get when things don't work out, when you can't do what you say you can. When you don't know what you can do. And when your opponents aren't sure either. We are not policy. We don't make policy. Elected officials ...civilians, do that. We are the instrument of policy. The tip of the spear. So we had best be sharp. Maverick has turned to look at Ice. Ice glances back in his direction. Maverick looks at the back of the room where guys in blue flight suits stand. They are the instructors. They look relaxed, poised, mean. Goose is looking up front...Where Viper has stopped. Goose nudges Maverick. GOOSE (whispers) What are you doing? MAVERICK Nothing...That's McGown...that's Singer, isn't it? GOOSE Turn around, pay attention. What are you doing? MAVERICK (musing to himself) ...Just wondering...(turns back) ...who is the best. He's shocked to find Viper staring right at him, with a killer grin on his face. He's feels caught like a naughty schoolboy. VIPER Really... (smiles) Ya know. We'd like to know who's best too. That's why we've got that plaque on the wall... with the Top Top Gun crew from each class. You think maybe your name's gonna be on it? Maverick knows he's in trouble, considers the social alternatives, then tells him the truth. MAVERICK Yes sir. A couple of ooo's and aahh's from the guys. The instructors stare the challenge at him. He slides lower in his seat. VIPER Considering the company you're in, that's a pretty arrogant attitude. MAVERICK (somewhat chastised) Yes sir. VIPER I like that in a fighter pilot. (couple of laughs from the guys) It's okay to be confident. You have to think you're King Kong to want to try to land on carriers. Just keep in mind the other component of success...teamwork. Viper gathers his notes, the lecture is over. MAVERICK Yes sir. Viper turns back for one more thought. VIPER Gentlemen, this is about combat. Remember, there are no points for second place. Dismissed. Viper walks out. Maverick finds Goose looking at him, quizzically. Others mill around the plaque. A big, friendly bear of a RIO speaks. WOLFMAN A plaque? HOLLYWOOD It's not the plaque. The winner can get assigned here as instructor. He gets to fight every day. They move closer to examine the names on the plaque. 44. EXT. "O" CLUB - NIGHT. Fast cars in the driveway, fast music blares into the night. It's Wednesday; Animal Night. Maverick, Goose Hollywood and Wolfman walk to the entrance. 45. INT. WOXOF BAR Loud music, low ceiling, plaques of the squadrons line the walls. A dancer gyrates on stage, largely ignored by pilots talking with their hands. Every pretty girl in San Diego seems to be here. It's a noisy, rowdy place--a "steam releaser" for people under pressure. Nevertheless, there is a control to it all, there are none of the usual bar types, just pilots and Naval Officers. The Ghost Riders enter. The place is on fire: a mob of dancers, flashing lights, blaring HARD ROCK MUSIC. Beer flows. Pilots talk flying and hustle girls. NEARBY - AN A7 pilot stands by the bar. He knows Goose and speaks loudly for his benefit.. A7 PILOT You know the Fighter Pilots motto? It's better to be dead than to look bad. They grin broadly. Goose replies as they brush past. GOOSE I don't know, Frank, anybody gets off on bombing the shit out of dirt has got to be queer. Goose exchanges friendly punches with the attack pilots. Maverick's introductions and friendly barbs are drowned by the music. Maverick is a bit reserved. He doesn't move among the crowd as naturally as Goose does. Hollywood and Wolfman drift away, searching for quarry. Goose orders beer. He nods toward a TALL YOUNG MAN across the room. GOOSE Keller, Black Lion Squadron. I knew him at Pensacola. He's damn good. MAVERICK Is there anybody in the Navy you don't know? GOOSE Gotta keep track of the competition. Goose suddenly reaches out and grabs a guy moving past. GOOSE Slider -- they let you into Top Gun? If you're among the best in the Navy, I tremble for the security of this country. SLIDER Why Goose, whose butt did you kiss to get here? GOOSE The list is long, but distinguished. SLIDER So's my Johnson. GOOSE This is Maverick. Smiles good-naturedly, shakes hands with Mav. SLIDER So I've heard. GOOSE Who's your pilot? SLIDER Tom Kazansky. GOOSE (very impressed) No shit. The Iceman.... SLIDER Mister to you. GOOSE You think you can stay up with us. SLIDER I think, yeah, we'll show you a thing or two. GOOSE This is Evan Mitchell, he steers the thing. SLIDER So I heard. Steers it pretty close. Sorry to hear about Cougar. He was a good man. MAVERICK Still is.. SLIDER Yeah. That's what I meant. Suddenly, behind them, a flame shoots up. Someone ducks his head and swallows it. The pilot sets an empty glass on the bar. SLIDER What was that? GOOSE Flaming Hooker. Sort of an institution around here. Or maybe this is the institution, I forget which. It's the house drink. It'll warm the cockles of your heart ... and other things depending on where you spill it. He motions to the barmaid and she moves over, sets them up. GOOSE holds a demitasse glass. The barmaid pours Drambuie. They look at Goose apprehensively. Goose looks at nearby flyers in Camo fatigues. GOOSE You can't show fear in front of Marines...They're like Doberman's they'll go for your throat, it's instinctive. He takes out match and lights it. Maverick holds his arm. MAVERICK You ever done this before? GOOSE What, been drunk? Sure! Plenty! He downs it all in one gulp, slaps the glass on the bar, still aflame. He stands there, blinking. SLIDER How was it? GOOSE Could use a dash more jet fuel. The others are duly impressed. Maverick's gaze falls on Ice watching from the end of the bar - Slider takes one, Maverick takes one too, downs it in a gulp. Sundown, taking up the challenge, motions for one. The barmaid pours it. GOOSE Careful, don't make an ash of yourself... He tries to drink the flaming concoction. He tries to go for a sip, but it's too close to his face, he tries to tilt the flame away, but that doesn't work. Finally he goes for the gulp. He burns his lip and misses. He sets his hair on fire. It goes up in a WHOOOSH!! SUNDOWN Yeow! GOOSE Mayday! Down in flames! He throws a beer in Sundown's face, quenching the fire. Sundown blinks through the beer. SUNDOWN Thanks, I needed that. HOLLYWOOD You guys are not only crazy, you're dangerous! Ice comes up from the end of the bar. He motions the Barmaid for another; it comes. Goose lights it. He gulps it down, cool as hell. ICE (Disdainfully) Frat boys. He walks away. Slider goes after him. MAVERICK Who is that guy? HOLLYWOOD That's Kazanski. GOOSE No shit! That why they call him Ice? HOLLYWOOD Nope. It's the way he flies - Ice cold. No mistakes. Wears you down. After enough time, you just get bored and frustrated, you do something stupid, and he's got you. Maverick moves in Ice's direction. He passes Wolfman dancing with a girl with bright purple fingernails. ANGLE - DANCEFLOOR. GIRL Why do you all have such funny names? WOLFMAN You gotta have a call sign that's just your own...never changes...you have to recognize it immediately. Then, if someone shouts "Wolf, break left!"..you react right away. GIRL Why do they call you Wolf? WOLDFMAN (smiles) Oh, I don't know. Goose comes up with his arm around a girl. GOOSE Hey Mav, this is Sally. She doesn't believe a word I say. Tell her I'm married, will you? MAVERICK Yeah, he's married--but then again, he,s not dead. Sally laughs and tries to pull Goose back toward the dance floor. Something in Maverick's eyes makes him hang back with his partner. ANGLE - THE DANCE FLOOR - DANCERS GIRL Could I get a call sign? WOLFMAN Well, I don't know. That depends. GIRL On what? WOLFMAN Well, it doesn't just happen, you gotta do something famous. GIRL Like what? WOLFMAN Oh...I'll think of something. Maverick smiles at this, but seems on edge... He watches a few pretty girls enter and eye the pilots in their flight suits, then turns and walks up to Ice, who sits, drinking with Slider. Maverick walks over to him. Ice notices Slider's attention going to Maverick. He turns and grins at him. ICEMAN Figured it out yet? MAVERICK Figured out what? ICEMAN Who is the best. MAVERICK Nope. ICEMAN Need a hint? MAVERICK I think I can work it out on my own. ICEMAN You like to work alone. I've heard that about you. MAVERICK I've heard of you, too. You were in 124 with Bargamian. ICEMAN And you were with Cougar. He was my roommate in flight school. MAVERICK He's a good man. ICEMAN The best. SLIDER You must have soloed under a lucky star. First the MiG, then you slide into Cougar's place. GOOSE It's not Cougar's place. It's ours. ICE What do you think it was? Was it that MiG contact that did it? GOOSE Did what? ICE Got you here. GOOSE We're here because we're the best flyers in the wing. Not because of some MiG encounter. SLIDER What luck! Guys fly their whole career without seeing a MiG up close...You're famous. ICE You mean notorious. Something in the way he says it. It's not quite a joke, more an insult. Maverick's about to take the whole conversation too far when something...someone catches his eye. She catches quite a few eyes in this room. She is very pretty and she's walking in on the arm of a Commander. Maverick turns back, but the moment has passed. Ice dismisses him with a nod and weak smile. Goose pulls him away. MAVERICK What do these guys think, I made Cougar quit? GOOSE Pay no attention to it. They're just trying to rattle you. It's all psychological. Sit down..and drink. He deposits Maverick at a chair by a table where other pilots cluster watching and listening to Bugs shoot down his wristwatch. Maverick broods... BUGS We were just really diving down and by then we were right over downtown Haiphong. It was some great shit. Jack says, "What are you doing?" "What, what am I doing, Jack?" He says, "What are you doing?" I said, "I'm rolling in, Jack." "Bugs, we're at thirty-two hundred feet. Oh shit, we were like zooom... So we scraped down at hundred feet right over--downtown Hanoi! Oh shit, goddamn it! And blowing down the river. And so once we were there we let down to about fifty feet just going down the river and Jack says... "Bugs... don't ever do that again!" "Okay, right, Jack, I'll never do that again!" Maverick pays little or no attention. He broods and drinks. Suddenly, Hollywood nudges him, he turns. MAVERICK What, what is it? HOLLYWOOD Target passing. Check your six. MAVERICK Never mind mine. Check hers. They turn. Long legs, great ass, beautiful. HOLLYWOOD Her six is a ten! Uh oh, a turn to engage. HIS POV - ACROSS A CROWDED ROOM Maverick sees a stranger, and somehow he knows, he knows even then. Wolfman turns, sees her walking too. WOLFMAN Bogey...9 o'clock level. SUNDOWN Nine thirty. Bogey? You presume that hostile? HOLLYWOOD Well, we should contact and check it out. She has turned toward them. She passes by. They start to make a move for her. But just then she finds her date at the bar; a distinguished man with Captain's stripes. Their smiles freeze and they slide back in their chairs. Maverick can't stop looking at her...After a while, the intensity of his gaze draws her attention. She feels him. She is nodding and smiling to her date, but her eyes scan the room like radar. A warning tone goes off in his brain dolu dolu dolu as they lock on him. He feels that thrill of excitement and fear you get when you know you're targeted in someone's scope. Her eyes hold on him for a long moment...long enough, and then sweep by the rest of the room. She turns her attention back to the Captain and laughs at something he says. Over in a corner, Goose chats up a couple of San Diego girls. GOOSE The family unit -- that's the most important thing. It's the only thing you can count on. I'm married --did I tell you that? FIRST GIRL Four times. We don't believe you. GOOSE I've been married since I was eighteen. Why don't you believe me? SECOND GIRL Because you don't look married. FIRST GIRL You're not even wearing a ring. GOOSE (big smile) I take it off when I'm chasing women. It's the only honorable thing to do. ANGLE - MAVERICK He's half listening to Bugs rattle on. His eyes are drawn back to the woman. He tries not to stare. She seems to know a lot of people in the club. He looks away. Hollywood is chatting up a girl with a sincerity that cannot be taught. His line is just as polished as his appearance. HOLLYWOOD You don't think about death up there, but you think a lot about the danger. One mistake and you're a smoking hole in the ground. GIRL I never knew it was so dangerous. HOLLYWOOD Oh yeah, it makes everything down here more meaningful. You feel a certain intensity of life, and you want to grab onto every moment. Maverick looks up at the bar again. A shock. She (Charlie) is staring right at him, intensely, as her date whispers something in her ear. She notices him, staring back, quickly looks away, embarrassed. She says something to the man. He nods and turns away as someone else grabs his attention. The woman, now wouldn't look this way for anything. She picks up her purse from the bar and walks through the crowd and out of the room. Impulsively, Maverick's up, he follows. 46. INT. HALLWAY - OUTSIDE THE BAR He breaks out, looks around, doesn't see her. Someone disappears around a corner. He moves after. CORNER - A door slams shut. Impulsively, before he realizes what he is doing, he's through it. 47. WOMEN'S ROOM. A feminine GASP! He should have looked at the sign on the door. The realization of where he is hits him too late. She is standing by the mirror, with her make-up out, looking back at him. He's not quite sure what to do. A hasty retreat would be appropriate, if embarrassing. Ah, what the hell, he is a fighter pilot! He just walks |