Storms Of 2005- A Review
Reproduced from the wx-talk list:
Hello all,
Well, after hearing what people were saying about this DVD, and the cause it
was going to...I had to get it. "The Storms of 2005" (available online at
http://stormsof2005.org and in the Oklahoma City/Norman area, see website
for details) was, I admit, something that I wasn't too excited about at
first. I mean, it's going to be good, tornadoes can't be bad, right?
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But, I had bet that the production quality would not be the greatest, there
weren't many chaseable days this year (OK, it largely stunk, let's put that
card on the table, outside of the hurricanes) and I couldn't imagine that
the split screens and other special effects showing where chasers were as
they were filming it could be done well without heading into a professional
studio.
Boy, could I have not been more wrong. From the opening sequence to the credits, you're in for a 5-ticket ride. Each segment is introduced by a
weather discussion showing relevant surface and upper air maps from the
morning and late afternoon. Then, you are in the driver's seat with a
professional storm chaser as your narrator and guide. No bad or
family-unfriendly audio here, no tasteless, insensitive shots, no boring
segments. Each one captures your interest from the beginning. And, despite the fact that the video was done by several video producers/storm chasers, each one maintains a high-quality production level with a consistent format, yet with enough leeway to break it when appropriate for special shots and/or graphics.
As the video begins, your appetite is whetted with early season weak
tornadoes in March. Then, all hail breaks loose (and tornadoes) in April.
Used when needed, the split-screen, time-synced tornado shots from multiple angles with a graphic radar overlay and markers showing each chaser's location is phenomenal! The satellite, radar and surface graphics from NCAR display well when used to highlight points of interest.
I literally cringed when I saw the May 12 video segment. I mean, I've heard all about it, and I knew it was coming. Watching the gorgeous tornado cross over the power poles/lines to the chaser's only escape route out, and watching as one of the chasers pans over to the west to view the oncoming Armageddon fury of hail, you know that anyone north of that tornado is doomed. A video of one chaser who pulls up to the downed power poles and lines covering the road can easily see "freedom" just a few hundred feet away. Then, after a few seconds of nothing real exciting happening, you see a huge white ball of ice explode in front of the car. The rest is history. Many chasers lost windshields and even cars from the onslaught of hail up to softball size and larger. "Hail nets"? They're great for golfballs and baseballs (sized hail), but beyond that...oh my. The screams, yells and terror is both fascinating and painful to watch. Nobody in that crowd is a millionaire, and they're losing their cars as a second awesome-looking tornado roars nearby. You quickly don't care about it, though (trust me!), as the barrage of hail does its damage to the frightened armada of chasers. This segment made me never even think about punching a core ever again!
The next 4 segments are from tornado days in June...specifically, June 4, 5, 9, 12. I had to be at a graduation on June 4th, and I KNOW, I KNOW I would have been there to see the big one. This segment just made my heart sink, but I'm glad those who were there got that one, and the video was excellent! And again, on the other 3 days, bravo. Nice split-screen shots and radar (reflectivity and velocity)...very well done.
OK, enough of the kid's play. It's time for the Katrina segment. This
video's proceeds go largely to the Red Cross (and is mostly tax-deductible
as a result). I had hoped this part of the video would be done especially
carefully, sensitively, and professionally. When Martin Lisius' voice broke
onto my speakers, I knew I had nothing to worry about.
Martin is a professional film maker and videographer. And, he also happened to chase Katrina. You know, I think the video quality on my stuff looks good with my Sony Digital 8 camera. But to my surprise, Martin doesn't use a cheaper "field camera" to shoot this historic storm. I don't know what he used, but it is shot in TRUE widescreen (16:9 aspect ratio) and it also appears to be shot in high definition! Now, DVD's can't handle that, so Martin has to "letterbox" his video to fit it on the screen. No matter---the video quality is extremely crisp, higher than what TV news crews shoot with standard 4:3 aspect ratio cameras, and it looks terrific.
After Gary Woodall's excellent introduction, we get Martin's angle as he heads from Mobile westward towards Mississippi. He meets the storm surge head-on. Martin is a very good storyteller; the irony of the "Celebrate Mobile!" sign is not lost on me. But then he heads to slightly higher ground as the storm surge rolls in. Two things from his video blew me away (no pun intended). The first: his amazing video of the fire department rescue boat, going around, IN THE HURRICANE, looking for those trapped in cars now being submerged by the storm surge. Throw out the definition of bravery and stick this segment in the video dictionary, folks. Then, how in the WORLD did he get the tight shot of the waves lapping up on the stop sign with not a drop of water on the lens, nor a hint of shaking, shot from a good distance away, in the hurricane winds? Wow. Wow!
But there's more gems in this video segment, too. We see the storm surge coming ashore and washing right over a camera. Hollywood couldn't match that. A roof being torn off at close range, the top of a parking garage coming off and flying past chasers on the way down...a few expletives had to be bleeped out here, but when you see the video from multiple angles, it's obvious why they almost needed a diaper change!
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Jim Leonard's stuff is great, and talk about "valet parking" at a hotel as cars float up to the building. I bet they didn't tip the valet parking drivers! ;-)
I have only given out one 5 star rating for videos, but this one is close.
"Storms of 2005" gets 4.5 stars out of five from me. Even if you have been chasing for 30 years and were at these events, you still need to get this video. Professionally done, enhancements and effects done well with good narration, and excellent quality, largely tripoded digital video make this a stocking-stuffer, no question about it. I wanted to hop in the car and go chase a storm! The producers and videographers put their heart and soul into this production, and it shows. Even better, the profits are largely going to people who desperately need help from the events that were seen in the DVD.
(Enthusiastically pounds fist on table) Well done, gentlemen. Well done!!!