Film Review - Twisters (12A)

 You don't face your fears. You ride 'em.

Was there ever a more '90s film than Twister? The 1996 summer spectacular ushered in a new generation of CGI-enhanced disaster movies, none of which quite matched its blend of fun characters, environmental mayhem, and patently daft, seat-of-the-pants action. Well, twenty-eight years have passed (sorry to break the news, y'all) and it's time to revisit the Twister universe - if not it's characters, most certainly its spirit. 

(The 1996 crew.)

There's no direct reference in Twisters to the characters played by Bill Paxton, Helen Hunt et al, just all manner of visual ones. This is without doubt the same storytelling universe. Daisy Edgar-Jones plays Kate, a college-grad and one-time stormchaser, who ceased her pursuit of bad-weather systems after she tangled with the wrong tornado. Now she's lured back into that world by old pal Javi (Anthony Ramos) in the name of using science to tame twisters before they devastate further Deep South communities. Her methods are challenged by self-styled 'tornado wrangler' and YouTuber Tyler (Glen Powell) and his fellow mavericks, right as storm season descends on Oklahoma. It's going to get a wee bit windy.

The question that occurs with such a film release is Why now, after all this time? In answer, comes a groundswell of affection for the original from the movie geek regions of the internet. Twister mightn't have been a great film, but it's one that inspires a whole lot of fondness from a generation of cinema-goers. Its pluralised spiritual sequel makes the smart move of not breaking what didn't need fixing. Twisters takes the awesome spectacle and warm character dynamics of 1996 and adds just enough of its own meteorological spin to make the whole enterprise worthwhile. In some aspects it's arguably better.

The unlikely-seeming director is Lee Isaac Chung, best known for 2020 migrant story Minari. He takes the beautiful visuals and intimate character details of that Oscar-nominated indy film and applies them here, providing significantly more beauty and heart than you might reasonably expect this popcorn sequel to have. There's also a near-seamless combining of computerised and practical effects, including scenes of post-tornado devastation that might come straight from the news. (One subplot alludes to the economics of what might be termed the disaster industry, even if it doesn't attack that subject with real teeth.) And the Oklahoma setting is underscored throughout by a rocking-good country soundtrack. This film really knows where it's taking place.

Powering the story along with wind machines and great production is an extended cast who really sell the thrills and the jeopardy. Daisy Edgar-Jones (Normal People, Where the Crawdads Sing) earths the story emotionally as the trauma-wrangling, heroic Kate, while Glen Powell lassos multiple scenes as Stetson-topped glory-hunter Tyler, a guy you'd probably hate if he wasn't so damn charming. They're backed up by a band of lively, ragtag support, including a trepidatious British reporter from a hilariously specific part of London who's along for the wild ride.

Ultimately, Twisters is the kind of unifying experience that the contemporary box-office needs. It's an outlandish story written with a smartness and played with a conviction that undercut its most ludicrous elements, making the audience care whether or not its characters make it to the end without being spun off into oblivion. As a throwback to 90s disaster flicks it succeeds, capturing the awe and the terror, while amping things up with some 2024 rising-star power. It's quality B-movie entertainment, so grip those big-screen arm rests and enjoy.

Memorable Moment: What's playing at the movie theatre? A ruddy great windstorm!

Ed's Verdict: 8/10. Not just a nostalgia-fest, although there's plenty of that. Twisters is what summer blockbusters are supposed to be - big fun, and not nearly as dumb as you might expect!