TWISTERS – The Red Right Hand Movie Reviews [Matthew Stogdon]

Starring
Daisy Edgar-Jones
Glen Powell
Anthony Ramos

After losing three of her best friends while hunting down tornadoes, Kate Cooper [Edgar-Jones] is drawn back to her home state of Oklahoma to reignite the dream of deploying a chemical agent that can dispel a tornado; thereby saving countless lives and property damage. Reuniting with college friend Javi [Ramos], Kate finds herself not only in bed with a less-than-altruistic benefactor, but also up against social media influencer and self-proclaimed tornado wrangler, Tyler Owens [Powell].

Coming out of the cinema, it was evident to me that this was going to be the most clear-cut 3/5 review I’ve had to write in a very long time. Twisters sets out to capture the pacing, fun, and scale of a 90s blockbuster and achieves exactly that. For some, maybe a little too well. From the comedy, to the opening tragedy, the trash dialogue, plain folk vs corporate lackeys, destructive spectacle, the thundering yeehaw score, even as far as using a glass of water and sauce pots to explain the triangulation tech; everything here feels familiar and oddly comforting. As such, the creators are sort of following the Jurassic World model by showcasing a structure, tone and tried-and-tested spectacle that should succeed with younger audience members who didn’t experience Twister the first time around.

For those with keen eyes, you’ll quickly notice this movie is stacked with a cast of actors who are about to be huge. In addition to the leads we’ve got small roles for Sasha Lane, Daryl McCormack, Katy O’Brian and David Corenswet. But let’s focus on Kate and Tyler. As I said before, this film is structured on 90s tropes and a strong part of that is a core rivals-to-lovers relationship. On the one hand we have Edgar-Jones as Kate the tornado whisperer, who could be remarkably bland but thanks to Chung’s guidance, is actually quite nuanced and living with a great deal of guilt and emotional responsibility to save the environment – something a lot of younger viewers will immediately empathise with. And then there’s Glen Powell, and thank God that man is charming enough to sell Tyler because he’s a frantically insufferable character. A walking cliche big personality cowboy who just so happens to be a meteorologist.. but he’s also a grounded guy trying to make a difference? That’s a lot to convey without being obnoxious as hell.

While the production design is fantastic – with the CGI and practical effects merging well and complementing each other – and the sound does some spectacular heavy lifting to elevate the fear and scale, the movie is far from perfect. And almost every flaw comes down to one key aspect. See, leaning into all these 90s tropes means everything follows a strict and predictable course – meaning it’s a very safe release, narratively speaking, with very few surprises. If you think you know what you’re getting yourself in for, you’re probably right. With a few minimal plot prompts, you’ll easily be able to map out the entire story. And for some viewers, that’ll be a rip-roaring time and there won’t be any complaints. But it’ll also mean it’s fairly forgettable and simply sink into the background.

Ultimately, Twisters is 100% what you would expect: a straightforward kinda dumb, fun summer release. In a sense, that’s a bit of a waste of Chung’s talents after the powerhouse that was Minari but he tries to inject enough personal quandaries and dilemma without sacrificing the intended vibe. Of course, that means you have to contend with things like Kate waking from a nightmare with her ex whispering his final words before being swept away in a tornado, alongside some truly hilarious marketing dialogue. Namely when the townsfolk take shelter in a cinema, Javi screams, “This theatre isn’t built to withstand what’s coming!” And if that isn’t the most 90s summer movie trailer line, I honestly don’t know what is. So, go to the cinema, watch the film, eat your popcorn, have fun with the destruction and peril, but don’t expect this one to have any lasting impact.

Release Date:
19 July 2024

The Scene To Look Out For:
As one might expect, there are a few techno-babble scenes that try to streamline a mass amount of scientific understanding into digestible dialogue. One of note is a time-lapse explanation of how a tornado actually forms. Naturally, this is a cool visual and gives us a bit of a heads-up of what we should be looking for but it also keenly acknowledges that we have no idea exactly what causes tornados to form, we simply monitor the signs. Which is probably the most interesting insight in amongst the science-fiction heavy “release the chemicals into the tornado to dissolve it” premise.

Notable Characters:
As stated, this is a stacked cast giving earnest performances. Yes, we have plenty of Independence Day style “don’t judge these regular folk just ’cause they don’t have money and big city learnin'” tones but it oddly works. One of the more amusing inclusions is Harry Hadden-Paton as the nerdy British reporter. He’s a microcosm of what the film is trying to achieve. Just.. really blunt arcs. The man arrives to document Tyler’s story but realises Kate is the real story. Only to then put his camera down and help the people. To step back and be part of the story, rather than simply document it. Which is hilariously trite but executed surprisingly well with a wry smile.

Highlighted Quote:
“I pushed it too far and for what? Some childish dream that I could make a difference?”

In A Few Words:
“Twisters achieves everything it sets out to but doesn’t bring much more to the table other than what was accomplished before.”

Total Score: 3/5

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