In 1996, only one film outperformed Twister at the box office: Independence Day. That’s how popular this tornado-chasing movie was. The 1990s saw a surge in disaster flicks, with at least one released each year, satisfying audiences’ appetites for big budgets and even bigger destruction.
From Deep Impact (a personal favourite of mine) to Dante’s Peak (another top-tier option for fans), the decade was filled with blockbusters that delivered on their promise. Twister too was a standout, catapulting its leads, Bill Paxton and Helen Hunt, into Hollywood stardom.
Did it need a sequel? Probably not. But 28 years later, we have Twisters. The plural promises even more tornado-chasing excitement. But does it deliver?
Kate Cooper (Daisy Edgar-Jones), haunted by a past tornado encounter, is drawn back to the open plains by her friend, Javi (Anthony Ramos), to test a groundbreaking new tracking system. She soon meets Tyler Owens (Glen Powell), a charming but reckless social media star who thrives on sharing his storm-chasing adventures. As storm season intensifies, Kate, Tyler, and their competing teams find themselves fighting for their lives as multiple systems converge over central Oklahoma.
More of a reboot than a sequel, Twisters retains much of the style of its 90s predecessor. However, director Lee Isaac Chung (Minari) opts not to deliver the warm nostalgia seen in movies like Jurassic World and Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Whether this is a wise choice is subjective.
One thing is certain: Twisters is well-plotted (if you overlook the questionable science at its core). It offers more backstory than usual for the genre, and a mid-way reveal, though predictable, attempts to show a more mature approach by writer Joseph Kosinski.
The cast is strong but has big shoes to fill. Glen Powell’s Tyler Owens stands out, continuing his rise to Hollywood A-lister, while Daisy Edgar-Jones feels somewhat miscast as storm chaser and weather expert Kate. Her role feels reminiscent of Final Destination, with distant stares like she’s experiencing a premonition. To add to this, the shift from country music to orchestral score during these moments is an odd choice that doesn’t quite fit.
The supporting characters don’t leave as strong an impression as those in the original film, which boasted talents like Philip Seymour Hoffman.
The visual effects have seen a noticeable upgrade in the nearly three-decade wait for Twisters, but the tornadoes themselves lack the menace of the original. Twister’s tornadoes felt dangerous, almost with their own personality. Here, despite fire tornadoes and “TWINS, WE’VE GOT TWINS”, they lack the sense of terror achieved by director Jan De Bont in 1996.
That said, the action sequences are still thrilling. A superbly filmed rodeo festival scene about halfway through the film has characters dodging debris as a huge funnel cloud looms ominously in the dark. It’s gripping stuff, and the camera remains planted with the cast, a nice touch.
Overall, Twisters is great fun and delivers what you’d expect from a disaster movie. It may be about 20 minutes too long, but with a strong cast, well-filmed action, and decent special effects, you’ll get your money’s worth at the cinema.
