Post this on my FB page yesterday, but I'll save you the extra click and let it ride here for ya.
Last night, I went and did my second viewing of 'Twisters' with a handful of weather nerd friends here in northern Colorado in IMAX. I usually try not to form a big opinion on a flick til I see it a couple times cause I feel like I always miss something in the first viewing. That said, many have asked my thoughts on the movie, so I will share those with you...
SPOILERS AHEAD, DO NOT READ IF YOU HAVEN'T SEEN AND YOU DON'T WANT IT SPOILED (The tornado did it)...
First of all, my connection to the OG 'Twister'. When it came out in 1996, I was already well on my path to wanting to be a storm chaser. That passion spawned out of the 1991 Andover tornado and subsequent specials on the event that introduced me to the concept of storm chasing (via Warren Faidley). So when it came out, I went to see it because it was a movie about a subject I was already very interested in. The movie didn't do anything for me in terms of inspire me or point me in any specific direction, it was just a tornado movie I wanted to see. It's legacy within our community is undeniable, and even today, I find myself quoting many of its memorable lines. The characters inspired an entire generation, and nothing will compare to the original. This movie, while I enjoyed very much, lacked a lot of the charm of the original, and like any legacy "sequel", I don't think you'll ever capture the true essence of the original.
That said, I enjoyed the hell out of this movie. There's a lot of good things mixed in with a few head-scratchers. It's Hollywood, you have to go in expecting that. Fortunately, I don't invest a ton of brain-power into movies, I like to be entertained, like to turn my brain off, and in the end, have a good time. But when its a movie covering subject-matter you're very familiar with, it's hard to let all of it go.
I'll start with the bad, cause overall there isn't a ton. The science, while rooting in reality, is certainly very exaggerated. But being there is a Sci-Fi element to it, it is to be expected. There were also several acts of recklessness depicted where cars are running vehicles off the road, driving through fields, etc. Certainly not an image to be condoned within the chase community, and it was depicted in the movie for more jollys than it should've been. I'd also argue the number of times chasers successfully drove INTO tornadoes. It can be argued getting hit by a tornado is not easy, especially as easy as they depicted it in the movie. And a throw-away line mentioning invincible glass would've gone a long way as it was hard to look passed the number of vehicles that drove away virtually unscathed after being hit by tornadoes. Again, this being portrayed as easy-going as it was could certainly lend the wrong idea to newbies that may find inspiration in this flick. Many chasers also noted the LACK of other chasers on tornadoes, and that was on display here. It's seldom where a team or two are the ONLY ones on a tornado, so that definitely felt a little wrong to me haha Trust me when I saw that's INCREDIBLY rare, particularly on what the movie showed as a well-forecasted event in advance, meaning there would be a LOT more chasers on a given tornado, so ya know, a nit-pick. And the mixing of giant oil rigs flying through the air while other things nearby stood still, how people got sucked up into tornadoes, all that was a little more Hollywood than real. Hard to look passed the mixed strengths of the tornadoes, but it adds to the scenes, I guess. Oh, DO NOT PARK UNDER OVERPASSES. I'm not sure I liked that the movie did the scene this way, but at least it didn't end with everyone walking away unscathed. Still, we fight that battle to no end this day with people doing that, and unfortunately, regardless of the consequences in the scene, or the line "its the worst place to be", the image of people doing it will probably result in people doing that cause "they saw it in the movie".
Now to the more positive... CGI has gone a long way since 'Twister', and it was on display in earnest for this movie. I loved the tornado scenes, they looked and felt much more real. I particularly loved one of the middle scenes where Kate and Javi were driving backwards away from a tornado. That scene in particular was one of my favorites. The tornadoes looked more real, not just in the CGI, but in the storm environment they were portrayed in, meaning it looked more realistic as a whole. There were a few moments where it didn't look as real, but overall, I was very impressed. The tornado scenes were very intense, I enjoyed them all, and thought overall they were very well done.
Characters... again, this group will never hold a candle to the OGs, and these characters felt very toned down compared to the original, but I enjoyed them, even the sub-characters were okay for me. But I had a weird connection with Kate and Javi. The survivor's guilt that was a thread through the movie is something I very much relate to, even as my experience that day was no where near as dramatic. None-the-less, it's something I've carried with me all these years, which made me a little more connected to them beyond anyone in the original movie. I enjoyed the dynamic between them all, and Kate and Tyler had good chemistry which made me care about them both. Again, I don't think anyone will hold these characters nearly as high as anyone from the OG 'Twister', but they definitely held up very well and I enjoyed them.
The plot felt very rehashed from the original, but it ran the movie well. One of the major things I wanted this movie to do better than 'Twister' was make it more believable. No aunt Meg pit stops in the middle of a chase day, the flow was more believable as a chaser (tornadoes in the day, breaks at night). The rodeo scene was a bit off as no chaser worth their grain of salt would get caught off-guard like that, particularly on the higher end setup this movie was depicting this event to be. It made for a fantastic sequence, but again, probably not how that would go down. I really enjoyed the middle act barn sequences, I don't know why, but it took me back to my childhood a bit. Just enjoyed the serene of that scene and I thought it worked. Another thing I desperately wanted them to do better was the goal. In 'Twister', it always drove me nuts that the goal was to deploy their instrument into a tornado, yet they were hit THREE times before it actually worked (the pop cans added on did not change that three prior impacts that they didn't get their sensors deployed). I just never got passed that in the original. I liked that they did this one better, that they'd get hit and do their thing right, even if it didn't work like it was suppose to. I did think the end was a little hokie with her 'taming' the tornado, but I liked that they left it vague enough to not say for sure whether it worked. I certainly like the idea of a sequel, and while I'm not sure how you'd take it up a notch in a true sequel, I am invested enough to say I'd be one of the first in line for one.
On the subject of the El Reno scene... certainly that hit a chord. While it didn't lessen the experience for me, I am certainly left wondering why they chose to do that. I didn't feel as if it really payed homage to the guys, and perhaps I missed something subtle, but it felt more like they chose it cause El Reno would definitely be the most impactful tornado event in terms of storm chasing, hands down, and they probably asked "what's the biggest tornado for chasing" and El Reno would've been the unanimous answer. The 2013 tornado itself wasn't known for destroying a town or something, but its impact on storm chasing and the community is levels beyond any tornado event experienced in storm chasing, and god-willing, we'll never see such a tragedy again. But I would've liked to have been privy on that conservation. Perhaps a nod to the guys would've been warranted. But in the end, it didn't take anything away from the experience, but it was reason to pause and reflect for sure.
Lastly, it was cool to see the background characters as many I know personally. While it was mostly their vehicles (gas station and hotel scenes), there were a few glimpses of familiar faces. I'll have to do a frame-by-frame when it comes out on home media, but that was a charming addition to the movie knowing I had friends involved. Also the 'TWINS' scene looked oddly familiar... I can't quite put my finger on it, though...
Overall, I thought this movie was better than it had any right to be. I enjoyed the hell out of it, particularly on the second viewing as I was able to leave behind a lot of the brain stuff I brought into the first viewing. While I imagine this will inspire many to look into chasing, the activity is already so much more mainstream than it was with the original 'Twister'. I just don't foresee this having as long a lasting effect like the original did. I do hope that despite the Hollywood science portrayed in this movie, that it does inspire a new generation of weather peeps. I know Tim would love to see young minds come up with wild solutions to weather mysteries, and I think this movie definitely lends to that. I'll be curious as the years go on to see the legacy this movie has. It won't be anything like the original, but I imagine this will gear up a few brains. Will it clog the roads with a bunch of new chasers? Eh, maybe... but I think the exposure of chasing over the last decade will probably cover up a lot of 'Twisters' era chasers and I'm not sure it'll be a noticeable change. While it had its nods to the original, if you have never seen the OG 'Twister', you wouldn't miss anything vital. As a stand-alone tornado flick, it's great. Just try not to compare it to the OG.
Overall rating: 8/10...
, they're meteorologists, Damien Lodes, Emily Sutton, and Mike Morgan on the tv in the movie. 
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