CATCH THIS!: FLIGHT OF FANCY
Kenny Loggins! Val Kilmer! Buff dudes playing volleyball! And an oddly unconvincing love scene with Tom Cruise and Kelly McGillis! There’s only one way to bring back that lovin’ feeling for 1986, and that’s the bigger-than-ever IMAX 3-D re-release of “Top Gun” hitting theaters (the Kips Bay, the 34th Street and the Empire) today — through Wednesday — to hype the Feb. 19 Blu-ray release. The Reagan-era flyboy epic/Navy recruiting commercial starring Cruise as Maverick and Kilmer as rival fighter-pilot trainee Iceman was the biggest hit of its year and brought us such cultural touchstones as Berlin’s “Take My Breath Away,” macho bomber jackets and the deathless line, “I feel the need, the need for speed!” But the reissue comes with a tinge of sadness over testosterone-pumping director Tony Scott, Ridley’s brother,who took his own life last summer.
— Kyle Smith
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CHECK IT OUT!: UP WITH GRAVITY
It’s hard to know which way is up with “Leo.” The one-man show, starring William Bonnet, uses the French acrobat’s skills and video magic to defy gravity.
Bonnet plays the Chaplinesque everyman of the title, whose environment has been tilted — the floor and the ceiling are now walls.
A veteran of circus training and a brief stint with the Cirque du Soleil, this is the 28-year-old’s first one-man show and US debut.
In a charming French accent, Bonnet explains he is using the tour here to improve his English. But in a show that lets his body do the talking, he says, “I can be understood by everyone!”
“Leo” runs tomorrow at 7 p.m. at FIAF, Florence Gould Hall, 55 E. 59th St.; 212-355-6160, fiaf.org. Tickets are $40, $15 for 12 and under.
— Leigh Witchel
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LISTEN UP!: PASSION’S PITFALL
You may not be familiar with the name, but you probably have heard Passion Pit’s music. The Massachusetts indie-pop outfit hasn’t had any radio hits, but a strong online presence and the use of their song “Take a Walk” in a Taco Bell commercial has seen them become big enough to headline Madison Square Garden, where they play tonight. “Some bands think of advertising placements as selling out, but that’s a very outdated approach,” explains singer Michael Angelakos. It’s a rise that seemed even more unlikely last summer when the band canceled a tour following the release of second album “Gossamer” to allow Angelakos, 25, time to get treatment for his mental health. The singer was diagnosed with bi-polar disorder at 18 and is still considered a suicide risk. “Touring is against medical advice, but we take care of each other,” he says. “We’re a very tight-knit unit.” 8 p.m., Matt & Kim open; tickets, $42.50 and up. Seventh Avenue at 32nd Street; 212-463-6741; thegarden.com.
— Hardeep Phull
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CELEBRATE!: EXTREMELY LOUD & INCREDIBLY FUN
The Year of the Snake is slithering in with a bang. Or some 500,000 bangs, to be a bit more precise. That’s number of firecrackers — give or take — set to go off Sunday at Sara Delano Roosevelt Park to usher in the Lunar New Year. Noisemaking fireworks will also be launched to add to the cacophony, along with a special snakelike design of firecrackers.
“It will be louder than Yankee Stadium after a Derek Jeter home run,” says Steven Tin, executive director of the Better Chinatown Society, which is throwing the celebration.
But why so much noise?
“It’s an old tradition with people using firecrackers to scare away evil spirits and bring good luck in the new year,” says Tin.
A cultural festival accompanying the noon firecracker ceremony will feature traditional dragon and lion dancing, singing, arts and crafts, food and more. Free, 11 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at Grand and Forsyth streets; betterchinatown.com.
— B.H.
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