SERIOUSLY. This is what the crap Hollywood still puts out?

Masterful Cinema

A lot of perfectly good film show their cards early, establish a unique premise and let the audience explore a topic at a leisurely pace, without much in terms of surprise. this film is not one of those films.

A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.

After finishing up a gig on the Space Shuttle in Houston, I called Billy (Aerial Unit) and he says "We can use a guy your size, come on out!". So I was an extra: A Carrier Deck Hand, Iraqi Soldier, they guy who holds up the weight sign to the pilot, etc. Then one day Matthew the 2nd AD is looking for Charlie to set up a scene and says "Go tell Wardrobe to put you in Charlie's dress white's and get out here, we gotta set up this scene and Charlie's shooting another scene right now". So I did, and then became his Stand-In from there.Got to meet some of the great actors like Lloyd Bridges & Ephraim Zimbalist Jr. before they both passed on, Charlie Sheen (of course) and John Cryer. I picked John up in my old yellow Cadillac Sedan one day while he was walking across the set in the rain. Told him to sit in the back "Limo" style! All were very nice to me, and very humble.Back at Bill's (Badalato - EXP) house while he is cooking pasta for me and his son Billy (Aerial) I look on the table and there is a small leather bound photo album with the smallest gold letters that say "Top Gun". I look through it and there are all these Polaroids of the cast and crew in goofy poses on the set of Top Gun. Nothing big, nothing fancy, just your "typical" photo album sitting on the coffee table! Such great and humble Men and Women, from Bill, Billy, Doc, Richard, Lloyd, Charlie, John, Christie and Valeria et al. In fact, Billy had me shoot a spoof of Bill's (nonexistent) "Ego" where the cast all played along in the video. Went to Lloyd Bridges home and shot a very dramatic clip of Lloyd talking about Bill and his devotion to family (meaning also his "Film Family"). Charlie joked (in his clip) that Bill was so uptight and difficult to work with and that Bill (who is bald) had "hair" at the start of the picture! All great people! And I got to flirt with Valeria while we were eating a couple of times since I spoke a little Italian :-) Phil Bautista, Austin TX

Directed by Jim AbramsStarring Charlie Sheen, Valeria Golerino and Lloyd BridgesGeneral:Overall: I understand that comedy is subjective and I am fine with that. People will find this movie funny and I accept that. I won't accept poor acting, stupid story and horrible effects. Don't give me that rubbish 'It's a parody' because great parodies have competent stories and acting. I laughed ONCE during this film. That's not good. People will find this funny and I can understand that but I believe that comedies should, or at least attempt to, include comedy/offence that everyone can enjoy. Parodies like 'Scary Movie' feature toilet humour, references, cringe comedy - it reaches a wide variety of humour and understands that its not supposed to just appeal to one specific demographic. I could comment on the cinematography, or even the genuinely bad acting but that would be redundant because the comedy is the only point I need to make. If you like this, then fine but don't scream in my face that it's comedic genius and should be given a spot on the Greatest Films of All Time list because no comedy should. In summary, this movie will appeal a specific demographic(which I can't decide who that demographic is) and maybe children but aside from that I can't recommend it.The type of people who will like this movie will be fans of stupid, cartoony comedy that's essentially 'Tom and Jerry' meets 'Looney Toons' with a vague splash 'Top Gun' sprinkled in there. Wouldn't Recommend!Detailed:None of the actors in this film do good jobs. I realise that it can be hard to judge acting with comedy(especially in spoofs) but I just don't see any effort or charm that any of them posses. It's a stupid and boring plot followed by a stupid and boring ending. Honestly, the cinematography was fine in the movie. It was competently shot and wasn't too poorly edited either.The costume and set design were fine. The effects were truly, truly awful and just looked fake. This movie was just so boring and so unfunny that it actually made me question what people will accept as art or comedy.I found ONE joke in the movie funny and, to be fair, that was a very funny joke. I'm not gonna say it wasn't but aside from that one joke, the rest of the film was so bland for me that I just couldn't enjoy any of it.2/10Wouldn't Recommend

Here's the basic formula for dissecting this film: If "Airplane" spoofed a single film (in this case "Top Gun") instead of an entire genre (disaster films), you'd get "Hot Shots".For a basic plot summary, "Hot Shots" basically spoofs the movie "Top Gun" with any and all types of sight gags included. Charlie Sheen, Valeria Golino, Cary Elwes, and Lloyd Bridges provide the starring roles, and are all hilarious in every scene they carry.For some people, this type of humor is childish and won't elicit much more than a simple chuckle. For others (myself included), though, the sight gags and hilarious physical comedy will have you in tears of laughter. The chemistry between Sheen and Golino is incredible, Elwes is at his maniacal best, while Bridges basically steals the show as the hilarious old general who always seems to save the day in the end.This is a film that is kind of hard to explain in print. You really just need to sit down and watch it to determine if it is the right kind of comedy for you. You'll know within the first few minutes.

Hot Shots is a fun movie to watch, but funny, NO. For me, the gags just kept misfiring, or falling on their arse. Essentially, this is a parody off of Top Gun, with a more likable hero and gifted pilot, Topper Harley-love the name, played by Sheen Jnr in an adequate performance. He's called back into action, on a mission, where he's set to take a fall, by some dirty dudes, one taking a huge fall at the end of the film off the tarmac, but of course, good conquers over evil. Topper falls for the sexy young navy doctor/cabaret singer (the delicious, Golino).Cryer, another Two And A Half Men favorite, plays a navy pilot with not the best eyes, demoted to aerial patrol. Faces to him seem bigger and more intrusive. Not to say, this film isn't without warranting a viewing. I still quite like it, regardless, mainly cause of seeing Sheen in this kind of role, back when he was doing many films. Cary Elwes plays, like a warring, begrudging, pilot of Topper's, like Goose to his Maverick. Even the King is dredged up to a Tom Jones number. This movie to me, still quite a fascinating view if you can grasp, what I mean, but laughter wise, the gags kept on missing. Another Two And A Half Men co star, Ryan Stiles, stars as the memorable Mailman, who plane went down. He flew with Topper's father, considered the best pilot in the game, but Hot Shots certainly isn't the best in the Flying High creator's books. Sorry.