Tom Cruise’s latest blockbuster, Top Gun: Maverick, arrived in movie theatres this week with impeccable geopolitical timing. President Joe Biden met leaders from Australia, Japan and India in Tokyo on Tuesday, having earlier visited South Korea. The US president aimed to reassure partners about his nation’s commitment to their region, even as US attention is drawn ever more towards a bloody and lengthening war in Ukraine.
What better moment, therefore, for a display of vulgar American soft power to roll into global multiplexes, offering a clear vision of the longevity and vitality of US military prowess?
