Although Top Gun: Maverick was a huge hit, its forgotten follow-up, Spiderhead, was trashed by critics despite sharing the same star and director. By the time Top Gun: Maverick’s ending rolled around, it was clear that director Joseph Kosinski had managed to pull off something special. The sequel took 33 years to make, and its release date was postponed by a further three years. This led some viewers to understandably ᴀssume that no movie could live up to its absurd levels of hype. However, Top Gun: Maverick pulled it off.
The belated sequel to Top Gun managed to recapture the atmosphere of action legend Tony Scott’s 1986 original but brought a new level of emotional maturity to the storytelling and improved dynamism to the action sequences. Top Gun 3’s story would always have had a hard time improving on Top Gun: Maverick’s rapturous reception, but the blockbuster sequel’s largely forgotten follow-up proves that its creators aren’t always so lucky. Only a few weeks after Top Gun: Maverick’s arrival, star Miles Teller and Kosinski reunited for another movie.
Top Gun: Maverick’s Joseph Kosinski and Miles Teller Reunited For Spiderhead
Netflix’s Big-Budget George Saunders Adaptation Arrived Only A Month After Top Gun’s Sequel
When 2022’s Spiderhead arrived on Netflix in June 2022, the sci-fi thriller seemed like it was destined to be a hit. Based on the short story “Escape From Spiderhead” by acclaimed author George Saunders, Spiderhead takes place in a futuristic prison where Miles Teller’s Jeff is an inmate. Jeff is wracked by guilt over killing his friend in a drunk-driving incident, and his emotional issues aren’t helped by Spiderhead’s strange facilitator, Steve Abnesti. Played by Chris Hemsworth, Steve is a discordantly chirpy, offbeat scientist who is obsessed with using chemical implants to alter the emotions of his inmates.
In Spiderhead’s ending, the dark truth behind Steve’s real plan comes to light as Jeff and his fellow prisoner Lizzy struggle to escape the secluded island prison. Hemsworth’s hammy villain is a hoot, while Teller’s antihero is a far more mature, world-weary character than viewers typically see from Whiplash’s breakout star. After rejoining the A-list with his stellar turn in Top Gun: Maverick, Teller showcased his range in Spiderhead by portraying a character who couldn’t be less like Rooster. Despite this, Spiderhead failed to resonate with critics.
Spiderhead Flopped Despite Its Starry Cast And Clever Story
Spiderhead Earned a Mere 30% On Rotten Tomatoes
With a risible 30% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes, it is fair to say that Spiderhead received a critical drubbing upon release. There were numerous major issues with the movie, most notably its failure to adequately expand on the range of mood-altering chemicals introduced by Steve early on. While Spiderhead’s Darkenfloxx might not be a real drug, there is a dark history of prisoners being used as test subjects for dangerous medicines and mood-altering drugs. Spiderhead could have delved into this, but its plot felt too thin and threadbare to sustain such serious subject matter.
The Top Gun: Maverick director’s undeniable action chops were utterly under-utilized in a story that mostly took place in three or four plain rooms.
Spiderhead was an enjoyable sci-fi romp like 2011’s Limitless or 2005’s The Island, but viewers hoping for something more cerebral from the Saunders adaptation came away disappointed. Hemsworth and Teller’s stellar central performances weren’t enough to salvage Spiderhead’s middling critical reception, with Kosinski’s movie earning a mere 39% from reviewers on Rotten Tomatoes. Meanwhile, the Top Gun: Maverick director’s undeniable action chops were utterly under-utilized in a story that mostly took place in three or four plain rooms and featured almost no substantial action sequences or set pieces until its final act.
Spiderhead Isn’t As Bad As Reviewers Claimed
Top Gun: Maverick Set The Bar High For Kosinski and Teller’s Second Collaboration
Despite its ignominious reputation and the avoidable problems outlined above, Spiderhead wasn’t as bad as its failure suggested. The outsized success of Top Gun: Maverick would have made any follow-up look like a lesser effort, and the fact that Spiderhead arrived on the streaming service while Top Gun’s sequel was still topping the box office didn’t help matters.
However, Spiderhead remains a surprisingly canny satire with two great performances at its core, thanks to the heartbreaking Teller and the gleefully villainous Hemsworth. Spiderhead is a visual treat and, at its blackly comedic best, the thriller feels somewhat akin to a sci-fi spin on Shutter Island. Spiderhead is a fun dystopian thriller despite its flaws, and it stands to reason that Kosinski and Teller’s second collaboration might have fared better if it had not arrived in Top Gun: Maverick’s large shadow.
Despite Spiderhead’s problems, Top Gun: Maverick’s follow-up deserves to be reconsidered by sci-fi fans.
Although Spiderhead’s twists were predictable, this might not have been an issue if the 107-minute movie had been trimmed down to the runtime of a Black Mirror episode. This might have also helped with the thin motivations of Jeff and Steve, who are brought to life well by their respective actors but never feel entirely believable as human beings. Still, despite Spiderhead’s problems, Top Gun: Maverick’s follow-up deserves to be reconsidered by sci-fi fans.
Source: Rotten Tomatoes
