By C. Perera, JadeTimes News
Though it features charismatic actors and thrilling sequences, "Twisters" lacks a substantial plot. Like its predecessor, it predominantly consists of bland characters repeatedly driving into hazardous weather.
Twenty eight years after Jan de Bont's "Twister," Hollywood has revisited this lucrative property, yet failed to bring anything surprising to the table. As in the 1996 film, the sequel follows two rival teams of meteorologists one, a scruffy group of rock and roll loving misfits, and the other, a business minded team with corporate backing. Both teams venture dangerously close to tornadoes for research, spending much of the film driving along country roads, yelling, "Where is it? I can't see it!" as storms approach.
Each time, they find themselves caught in a storm, screaming and clinging to each other, seemingly forgetting that they chose to drive into such perilous situations.
The new film makes minor tweaks to the original formula. In "Twister," Bill Paxton's character was the savant lured back into storm chasing in "Twisters," Daisy Edgar Jones plays this role and joins the corporate team, drawn by a friend's promise of capturing "the most perfect scan of a tornado ever." There's potential for her to switch allegiances to the rebel team led by Glen Powell's character, who, despite appearing to be a superficial YouTuber, may be revealed as a brilliant scientist.
A notable plot point involves one team deciding to weaken tornadoes using absorbent material from disposable nappies. Despite these changes, the film feels like a remake of the original, lacking tributes to the first film's cast. The absence of cameos from Helen Hunt or mentions of characters played by the late Bill Paxton and Philip Seymour Hoffman feels disrespectful.
Joseph Kosinski, co writer and director of "Top Gun Maverick," contributed to "Twisters," but unlike "Maverick," this sequel doesn't honor its predecessor's legacy. Imagine "Top Gun: Maverick" without Tom Cruise’s character; that's the strangeness "Twisters" embodies.
Directed by Lee Isaac Chung, known for "Minari," "Twisters" lacks the original's charm. It doesn't feature Eddie Van Halen's iconic soundtrack or the memorable shots of flying cows. Its main flaw remains the absence of a compelling plot, relying instead on repetitive scenes of characters driving into storms.
Despite the charismatic actors and vivid, if implausible, destruction, these sequences lose their impact when overused. They serve better as opening or closing scenes, not as the film's primary content.
The film's narrative fails to provide a compelling reason for the characters' dangerous actions, leaving the audience without a reason to root for them. The dramatic music and dialogue attempt to paint the storm chasers as heroes battling evil, but ultimately, they're just researching weather.
The film briefly touches on themes of man made climate change and a villainous tycoon profiting from storm damaged land but doesn't explore these ideas meaningfully. These missed opportunities highlight the film's underwhelming nature."Twisters" isn’t a bad film, but it lacks the bravery to address the root causes of extreme weather, opting instead for superficial solutions.
