A followup to the 1996 classic action movie “Twister” which my family owned on VHS, "Twisters" (yes, plural) is the latest in an endless litany of sequels and reboots to be shocked back to life for another suckle of cash.
Unfortunately, they’ve done a pretty good job with it. The hope is always that they mess it up and audiences everywhere throw fits about how the original was so much better, and maybe we’re spared "Twister 3" or "Twister: Wichita Drift" or whatever abomination they throw together next. But no, it looks like we might have to buckle up for more. Or more appropriately, get ourselves to a basement.
Here we have Glen Powell again, who is very much on home turf in this one, driving his enormous truck, strutting around in boots and plaid, paying no regard to the “g” in any word ending in “-ing.” He's been cast as the typical rom-com lead, cocky and undomesticated when we meet him, but perhaps somewhat principled under all that? Say what you will about Powell's sudden ubiquity, but he’s got a brand of charm that can appeal to different pockets of a divergent populace, and it makes sense to use him for that. This time, he’s paired up with Daisy Edgar-Jones who’s playing another naturalist with uncanny abilities after her similar role in “Where the Crawdads Sing”. Unfortunately, their onscreen romantic chemistry feels a little forced, but that's kind of okay. It’s entirely secondary to the main focus of this story: fighting tornadoes.
While the folks in "Twister" (singular) were simply trying to understand tornadoes, these nutjobs in the reboot are attempting to stop them in their tracks. Well, at least one of them is. Kate (Edgar-Jones) once had an idea, back in meteorology grad school, of how to do it, which—explained to us in the most jargon-filled language possible—involves having it suck up a ton of some kind of chemical powder. In contrast, Powell’s character seems more concerned with putting videos of him and his pals shooting fireworks into tornadoes on Youtube, and Kate’s old friend Javi (Anthony Ramos) owns a business that "gathers data" about them.
Of course, all these activities require being proximal to the most violent of storms, and that’s where this movie shines. Modern visual effects and well crafted sound design make the whipping winds feel even more terrifying than in the original. It would be wise to watch this in a theater, preferably an IMAX or even one of those insane “4D” theaters that thrash you around and mist you like grocery-store spinach.
This is not to say that the story is bad. It’s one of grief, mostly, and the hopes and dreams lost in its very long shadow. But it also features elements of growth and redemption for its supporting male characters, bumbling as they may be in comparison to Kate. Yes, there are some lines (“You don’t face your fears; you ride ‘em”) that should be stricken from the Earth, but writing is more than just dialogue, and the themes here will resonate with almost everyone on some level.
Politically, it’s pretty obvious that it’s attempting to walk the tightrope of American mass appeal: hinting at climate change without explicitly naming it, featuring several minority characters but not making them the stars, using a dorky Brit as comic relief. People will feel how they want to feel about this if they even notice at all; either it’s cowardice or it’s savvy. But someone’s made it clear that this particular movie’s job is to entertain, not to pioneer.
Speaking of pioneering, though, a thought just hit me: with advancements in self-driving cars and remotely piloted drones, a third Twister movie will make less and less sense over time: the suspense just won’t be there with unmanned vehicles driving into tornadoes to unleash their desiccative payloads. So the only thing we really have to fear is a prequel: a “Twister: Origins” or “The First Twister.” But for right now, it’s clear skies. Proceed to the theater with caution.
