TWISTER (1996)

TWISTER (1996)

Bill Harding (played by the late Bill Paxton) is a former tornado chaser and all this dude wants it to get his wife(Dr. Jo Harding played by Helen Hunt) to sign some divorce papers so he can marry former LOST BOYS vampire Jami Gertz (who plays Dr. Melissa Reeves in this) and live happily ever, being a weatherman…like Brick Tamland. Apparently it’s like big time tornado season in Oklahoma, so it doesn’t take long before of course, some twisters are popping up everywhere and now we’ve got a movie on our hands. Jo’s team has a new tornado measurement system they are using called D.O.R.O.T.H.Y to mirror the real life equipment that was called T.O.T.O.. To this point they haven’t gotten this thing to work so Bill being “The Extreme” might just be the ticket to success. 

At the time this movie came out we’d had some disaster weather movies, but nothing like this effects wise, had ever been done. So naturally after watching the mind –blowing previews of this thing, I think I was there the night it opened at theaters. We are given a very likable band of tornado chasers played by the likes of Philip Seymour Hoffman (as Dustin Davis, (a part once offered to Garth Brooks)), Alan Ruck (who plays “Rabbit”) and Scott Thomson (as “Preacher”) among others. This was a big deal to me, because in most movies I am at least looking for someone to root for. This movie gives you plenty of that. The protagonist is played by Cary Elwes of “THE PRINCESS BRIDE” fame. He is also the lunatic mayor in Stranger Things Season 3. His part in this movie is to beat Jo’s team to the punch using a device that is basically exactly like D.O.R.O.T.H.Y as part of a rival tornado chasing team.

While the realism might be stretched I for one never go to movies to see realistic action. In fact the closer to reality the action is, the more I dislike it. So for that I have to give it points. I love that stuff. We get spectacular effects throughout and the side story involving “Aunt Meg” brings some welcome emotional prowess to this movie. Apparently the film crew jacked up part of downtown where she lived, in the movie (Wakita, Oklahoma) to replicate the aftermath of a tornado. So the studio paid for the downtown to be rebuilt. 

One issue I did have with this damn movie was the preview which featured a huge tire coming directly at you. Now we know this was just a test to prove that CGI worked well enough to create realistic effects. The sad part was that this never ended up in the movie. Because I was waiting for it to happen, I missed a lot of the movie’s dialog and ended having to watch it a few times to fully comprehend more than just tornadoes jacking everything up. 

Outside of that, this movie would have been a 7 out of 7 for me. However because the previews come from the studio, I can’t reward this movie with that score. You want a 7 out of 7, you put that scene in the movie. Instead I am giving this one a 6 out of 7. I can’t stand false advertising that much. Do not lie to the fans. The “rest” of the effort is pretty flawless and the theater scene his haunting as heck.

 

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