Now, obviously, I have not seen the new Top Gun. If there is anyone who has not seen it, it is me. But I’m not surprised to see that Kelly McGillis is credited with “archival footage” on her IMDb page, not with an actual, you know, appearance in the movie. I did see the first one, many years ago, and she’s basically in it because gay panic is a thing. To make sure her odious costar is seen as Definitely Heterosexual, You Guys, Seriously, they introduced a character who it turns out is played by a woman who is not going to be attracted to him regardless of his personality.
McGillis, to be fair, may just not be interested in being in a blockbuster right now. She has grown comfortable in her skin, in a way that Hollywood in general and her odious costar in particular aren’t inclined toward. Not for her plastic surgery or intense exercise regimens. Certainly she’s not the sort to show off that she’s climbing all over the sides of buildings or diving out of airplanes or what have you. She’s 65 and has no problem looking and acting like a 65-year-old woman.
Honestly, it’s kind of surprising that she was cast in the role. It’s actually one of two movies I have seen her in where she’s older than her costar, which is unusual for a woman and her romantic lead. The other is the considerably better Made in Heaven, wherein she and Timothy Hutton meet and fall in love in Heaven, but then her character is born, and his character must agree to be born and go looking for her so they can be together forever. It’s a sweet, strange little movie full of odd cameos, and hardly anyone has seen it.
She wanted to be in The Accused because she and her roommate were raped when she was living in New York during her Julliard days. It’s not that Jodie Foster didn’t deserve all the attention she got for her performance; Jodie Foster was of course amazing. However, McGillis wasn’t exactly a slouch in the role herself, and because of the attention given to Foster, McGillis got less notice. She deserved more than she got, which seems to be the theme of her career.
McGillis continues to act onstage, which she seems to prefer. She enjoys the work. And if Hollywood isn’t banging down her door, well, it’s their problem so far as I’m concerned. It’s not about her talent; she’s got it to spare. It’s that she doesn’t fit the mold of what’s expected of a woman in the film industry. She’s content with that. Since from what I can tell the recent Top Gun was an attempt to just be the same thing over again, the fact that she’s showing her age was just not acceptable for it.
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