“If you feel it…” “CHASE IT!”, goes the Twisters call and response started by Glen Powell’s storm chaser Tyler, directed at a crowd of fellow tornado enthusiasts. It’s a fitting highlight for a movie that’s chasing a lot, specifically its original source material and the large-scale action flicks of the past like it.
Twisters follows Kate (Daisy Edgar Jones), an up-and-coming meteorologist/storm chaser/general weather scientist/wind whisperer, as she returns to her native Oklahoma and its infamous tornadoes. Originally, she is recruited for her unique forecasting instincts by old friend Javi (Anthony Ramos), working on a corporate-backed tracking project. But upon learning more about Javi’s questionable financiers and getting to know charismatic storm-chasing bad boy Tyler (Glen Powell), Kate is reminded why work with tornadoes is important: helping people in the path of destruction.
The movie is structured around several tornadoes, each larger and more insane than the last. Director Lee Isaac Chung interacts with the natural world in a compelling way, echoing the work on his smaller, but incredibly moving breakout film, 2020’s Minari. Grass sways, clouds swell, and wind whips, all in a uniquely stirring way. Powell is a standout throughout the runtime, cementing himself as a true star who the camera adores. I could’ve ran the 10 miles home after 2 hours of his hooting and hollering.
All that being said, it is far from a perfect movie. The science behind the team’s actions, trying to monitor or hypothetically stop tornadoes, is questionable at best. Plot-wise, Kate sticks around with Javi’s overtly evil partners for what feels like an excessively long time. The script couldn’t make up its mind on whether to talk about climate change or not, passing on a real conversation and opting for vague references to the concept of a changing world.
But I don’t think a movie like Twisters should be expected to fill in all these gaps perfectly. It is big and boisterous, sporting impressive effects and sound design that hits you in the chest and young actors ready to become certified Stars. And it is a legitimate effort in service of the concept, swinging for the fences instead of letting the pitch go by. What I mean by that is Twisters is taking itself seriously in all the right ways. The movie embraces its over-the-topness, an increasingly rare quality in movies today unfortunately.
It’s fitting that it’s a pseudo-remake of a 90’s movie (Twister) because absurd sincerity was much more common in that era of filmmaking. The film industry and the wider culture, online especially, have fallen deeper into a sarcasm/mocking/nitpicking habit that is proving tough to kick. Trends, jokes, and moments are all granted a single breath of sincerity before being drowned in an ocean of irony. Gen Zers online insist that they like things in a ____ way, not a ____ way (variations of the words cool and lame, respectively). And that sentiment is reflected on the big screen. A very 2024 iteration of Twisters would be Ryan Reynolds in a pickup truck doing one-liners until the credits roll. Put more simply, the modern urge is to always be in on the joke. It’s low risk, for sure, but it’s grown to be a tired mode of storytelling. Twisters knows it’s a little goofy, but it doesn’t need you to know that it knows. The movie is having its own fun, free of 2024 hyper-awareness and uniformity.
Maybe it’s silly to romanticize a time in culture that I was not around for. And I don’t want to go as far as holding this movie up as an idyllic light in Hollywood’s darkness, its fun is not that remarkable. But, I do sincerely believe Twisters and those like it are worthwhile because Movies proud to be Movies are worthwhile. We could all afford to Twist a little more. Have your fun, enjoy the spectacle, and don’t beat it down unnecessarily. If you feel it, chase it.
Charlie Boucher can be reached at [email protected].