Mayday (Apple) - Review

Rating: 4 out of 5

APPEARANCES can be deceptive and buddy action comedy Mayday, starring Ryan Reynolds and Kenneth Branagh, benefits greatly from its sustained ability to surprise.

Taken at face value, writer-directors John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein would appear to simply be paying homage to the mis-matched buddy blockbusters of the 80s and 90s as well as the likes of Top Gun (a blatant reference point), Misery and pre-Daniel Craig era James Bond.

But it’s also a deceptively smart commentary on the current state of the world that offers a renegade, even anti-establishment vibe, as well as a film that almost exists to deconstruct the very genre it seeks to represent.

That it succeeds on almost every level is tribute to the quality of the writing, as well as the ingenuity of the set pieces and the winning nature of its performances.

Reynolds stars as US Navy pilot Troy Kelly (callsign ‘Assassin’), a Maverick poster child in the Top Gun mould (the film is set in 1987, a year after Top Gun was released), who is shot down deep inside Russian territory while on a spy mission.

He is rescued by Branagh’s retired KGB man Nikolai Ustinov, a self-confessed Top Gun obsessive who dreams of creating a new life for himself in America, and who resolves to help Troy get home and evade capture by the authorities.

Their ensuing adventure has all the hallmarks of a classic bromance, with some nifty chase sequences and inspired fight sequences intercutting scenes of the two overcoming their differences to work together and grow in the process.

So far, so genre generic.

But there’s a lot more going on here than initially meets the eye.

The film’s title offers the first clue: serving as both a rescue distress signal and the one-time Russian date for a massive political and military demonstration. It’s further expanded in the story behind Troy’s ‘Assassin’ call-sign (the reveal for which I won’t spoil).

But central to the film’s theme is appearance. The script challenges the notion of good and bad, as perpetuated by politicians, and looks at the things people have in common, no matter where they come from.

Hence, whereas Troy is trained to view Communist Russia as a country of brain-washed people, bereft of any human rights, he is shocked to find kindness and compassion in the actions of many everyday people, while also coming to realise that his own country - and its capitalistic ideology - is far from perfect.

He also comes to realise how expendable he is, à position echoed in à sub-plot involving his cancer-stricken father (David Morse), whose health condition is the result of his sustained exposure to asbestos while working as a ship builder for the US Navy. Interestingly, this is drawn from fact: Up until the early 1980s, the US Navy used asbestos for insulation, fireproofing, soundproofing and preventing corrosion, exposing many personnel to potentially life-threatening conditions such as mesothelioma and lung cancer after their discharge. Affected veterans can file claims through the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs for healthcare and disability compensation.

There’s a clear takeaway here: that people are inherently good, even if governments don’t always act in their best interests.

That’s not to say that Mayday is overladen with heavy material or seeks to ram its messages home. For in terms of its reverence for the buddy action genre it also gets things spot on - while still managing to throw in some twists to that format.

Reynolds, for instance, brings a certain expectation to his laidback charisma that feels slightly more reigned in here. He often plays straight man to Branagh’s deadpan style and unexpected action man status. Sure, he’s funny and the odd quip lands really well - but this isn’t another of his Deadpool or 6 Underground rollouts. It’s a little more subtle.

Branagh, on the other hand, is the really cool one; his KGB man à slick expert in counter-espionage, hand to hand combat and James Bond style heroics. He does it in a very droll manner, adopting another Russian accent in a career that has become increasingly full of them (see also Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit and Tenet). But he’s funny without forcing it and cool without over-milking it.

The relationship between Reynolds and Branagh is also nicely played and even nods to the homosexual undertones that Top Gun has since been accused of (by Tarantino). It isn’t afraid to display a sensitive side and openly embraces the LGBTQ community with another sub-plot involving Branagh’s daughter and her homosexuality (which was deemed illegal in the Soviet of the 80s, albeit now decriminalised).

If anything, Mayday flips up a middle finger to the male machismo that dominated the 80s and 90s action scene without skimping on the action itself. Another of the movie’s strengths lies in the way that it invites comparisons with other movies before often deconstructing any surrounding expectations.

Hence, while the opening sequence may well be a play by play of the Top Gun opening, from Mig sighting through to emergency landing, it then digresses somewhat into more leftfield territory. The early scenes between Reynolds and Branagh, which find the former tied to a bed while the latter confesses his fanboy feelings, owe more than a passing nod to Stephen King’s Misery and thereby toy with the expectations surrounding this, while the Cold War dynamic has shades of films like The Hunt For Red October mixed with Spies Like Us.

The mis-matched buddy element, meanwhile, nods to former classics such as Midnight Run and Red Heat without overdoing either the brazen animosity or overtly pro-Americanism, while à late chase involving a huge army vehicle carrying a nuclear weapon wreaking havoc through the streets of Moscow tips its hat to Goldeneye’s tank sequence and the OTT absurdity and infectious quality of that movie. In all cases, there’s combined fun to be had in recognising the references while enjoying Mayday’s individual take on them.

Likewise, there’s immense joy to be had in seeing Branagh’s character outwit opponents with some deft hand to hand combat manoeuvres that would make John Wick envious! As well as several laugh out loud moments such as à dinner sequence involving a creepy child (featured in the trailer) and a scene involving various characters having to hide in à closet that feels borderline slapstick.

Hence, while Mayday looks like a bog standard action vehicle that’s easily consumed and quickly forgotten, it’s actually a high quality crowd-pleaser that works on many levels - and which deserves to be remembered fondly for sometime afterwards.

It’s offers both a really good time at the movies and something relevant to say.

Certificate: 12A

Running time: 1hr 51mins