Back in college, everybody recognized that science-department whiz kid Kate Carter had a natural, instinctive gift for reading storm patterns. While others slaved over thermal readouts and predictive graphs, she could just feel the breeze, study a distant cloud bank, sense pressure changes and know what was about to happen.
In fact, while at college she worked diligently to figure out how to use those skills to control and dissipate the destructive forces of nature. But while vying for a massive grant to boost her work, something went terribly wrong. During a field experiment, four members of her student crew—including the man she loved—were killed by a massive EF5 tornado that they stumbled into.
Kate led them into that danger. And as far as she’s concerned, the blame for their deaths lies with her still. So now, years later, the emotionally wounded Kate has left her storm-chasing days behind and settled into a staid position with the National Weather Service.
That’s when Javi, the only other surviving team member from that college disaster, takes a shot at pulling Kate back into the storm-hunter world to test a groundbreaking new tornado-tracking system. The tech is the latest and most advanced. It could be the key to saving thousands of lives. And this year happens to sport the perfect confluence of weather patterns that will frequently have tornados roaring down the plains of Oklahoma.
Kate hates the idea of stepping into the path of killer storms again. But she does want to save lives. So she reluctantly agrees to give Javi a week of her time.
This go ‘round, however, there are more than just storms blowing through the wind-swept fields of grain in Tornado Alley.
Indeed, Kate soon crosses paths with a charming but completely reckless social media influencer named Tyler Owens. He has a chiseled prettiness and million-watt smirk that Kate instantly dismisses. But it’s his YouTube hijinks that really earn her scorn. Not to mention the fact that this storm chaser calls himself “The Tornado Wrangler!” Ugh.
Tyler, on the other hand, is intrigued by Kate. She’s definitely attractive. And her storm-whisperer skills are impressive. I mean, he’s got a British reporter embedded with his group, and Kate’s incredible ability to predict storm patterns might lead to some solid press coverage. But the fact that she is doing her best to ignore him, kinda seals the deal for Tyler. He’s going to stay on her trail.
As the storm season grows in screaming, town-destroying ways, the two teams go about their very different objectives while shadowing each other’s movements.
Who knows where things might go as turbulent weather fronts swirl together in potentially destructive whirlwinds. It could lead to the heights of meteorologic science or … a little tempest called love.
Right from the start, we see that Kate is primarily concerned with controlling the deadliness of storms and hopefully helping people who might be affected by them. For instance, in the midst of the research with Javi, a twister blows away some valuable equipment. Javi wants to follow the equipment while its GPS systems are still working, but Kate demands they put everything else aside and help people in potential danger.
At first it appears that Tyler doesn’t care about anything but his YouTube income and T-shirt sales. But we discover that he and his crew are actually using a large share of their social media income to support and feed tornado victims. And Kate comes to realize that Tyler is much more than his YouTube persona.
Kate and Tyler’s crew all put themselves repeatedly in dangerous situations to protect others in the heat of devastating storms. Kate even drives into the heart of a massive twister in the hope of saving a small town, knowing full well that it will likely kill her.
In that same light, we repeatedly see characters protecting family and friends. Kate’s previous boyfriend does that, for instance, shielding her and verbally calming her before being swept away by turbulent winds himself. And we see a mom make the exact same choices to protect and calm her terrified daughter.
Kate and Tyler also talk about how certain fears in life can sometimes govern our choices. Tyler notes that fear can be good. It protects us. But we can’t let those anxieties immobilize us. “You don’t face your fears, you ride them,” he says in reference to the fears he felt when he worked the rodeo. And he encourages Kate to step beyond the paralyzing trauma of her past.
Both Kate and Tyler talk to their respective crews about the unknown mysteries of what causes a tornado to form and grow into a massive, destructive force. “It’s part science, part religion,” Tyler notes.
Someone says, “Thank God” during a tense and dangerous moment.
We don’t get to see Kate’s boyfriend for very long, but they kiss in the first scene. And after he’s killed, it’s suggested that the two were intimate: Kate wakes to look over at the empty side of her bed.
Kate wears a couple of formfitting tank tops. Tyler walks out in the rain in a t-shirt that clings to his body. And he gazes appreciatively at Kate when she isn’t looking.
Nearly all of the violent content of this film is in the context of the incredibly destructive forces of various tornados. And the CGI images here are completely immersive and realistic, complete with a cacophony of sound.
As twister funnels (sometimes as wide as a football field) sweep by houses, motels, rodeo arenas, and vehicles, the swirling winds completely obliterate everything in their path. In one instance, an entire oil refinery is consumed by a twister. The swirling forces create massive explosions that turn the tornado into a spinning funnel of flames.
Debris (including vehicles, trailers, wind turbines and chunks of buildings) rains down like bombs from the sky on people, vehicles, window fronts and rooftops. For instance, people in one small town run to the stoutest building they get to, a local theater, but they sit helplessly as huge chunks of debris cave in parts of the ceiling and rip away an entire wall.
Elsewhere, vehicles crash down and crush people beneath their mass. Tornadic winds weaponize litter and debris, which also hit running and screaming people, driving them to the ground and sometimes tearing slashes in their clothing and exposed flesh. (In one case, for instance, Kate staggers away from a passing storm, tattered and bloody, with a gory gash in her leg.) Some people are violently snatched up into the sky. (People cling to pipes, bolted down seats and each other in a desperate attempt to stay grounded.)
In many cases entire cars and trucks are sucked up into the storm funnels as drivers try to escape. Tyler’s truck uses large augers to drill deep into the ground and anchor itself. But even with that anchoring, the vehicle gets wrenched back and forth and ripped up by the winds in one instance. Some scenes are viewed from within a pummeled vehicle as it tumbles around and is forcefully hit with everything from other vehicles to a full chicken coop.
People are struck by panicked drivers, an unmanned trolly car and frantically charging animals. Tyler and his crew drive recklessly.
The dialogue contains six uses of the s-word along with two or three exclamations each of the words “d–n,” “h—,” and “a–.”
People say “Lord” once and take God’s name in vain twice during stressful moments.
Tyler’s teammates drink beer.
We find out that Javi’s team is being financed by a businessman who wants to use the tech to predict storms and profit on land deals made with those have lost everything in a devastating storm.
After an intense ride through a tornado, a man staggers out of a car and vomits.
Twisters demands to be seen in a big theater with the best Dolby Digital sound system possible. It’s CGI visuals are spectacular; the story is brisk, if predictable; and the action/romance leads (Daisy Edgar-Jones and Glen Powell) are both as appealing as a slice of pie on a lovely summer’s day.
This pic doesn’t get too deep or too silly. Nor does it take itself too seriously or thump its chest over any current meteorological hot topics. In fact, director Lee Isaac Chung made it clear that he purposely decided not to address climate change in the story because he didn’t want audiences to feel preached at. He just wanted a film focused on pure entertainment.
And that’s exactly what Twisters is.
That said, family moviegoers should be aware that this is not necessarily a laid-back, relaxing kind of film. (Which, of course, is also true of it’s predecessor from nearly three decades ago, 1996’s Twister.) Raging vortices of tornadic rage crumple, crush and destroy nearly everything in this pic. Buildings are obliterated, vehicles are tossed, people are sucked, screaming, up into the air, and survivors are left scraped and bloodied. (In fact, about the only things that survive these stormy onslaughts are a few well-equipped Ram trucks.)
That violence and a smattering of foul language are the biggest detractors for younger viewers.
But beyond all that, this movie is still as swooping and fun as a theme park ride. (Not to mention a massive advertisement for driving a Ram truck when the going gets rough.)
After spending more than two decades touring, directing, writing and producing for Christian theater and radio (most recently for Adventures in Odyssey, which he still contributes to), Bob joined the Plugged In staff to help us focus more heavily on video games. He is also one of our primary movie reviewers.
Our weekly newsletter will keep you in the loop on the biggest things happening in entertainment and technology. Sign up today, and we’ll send you a chapter from the new Plugged In book, Becoming a Screen-Savvy Family, that focuses on how to implement a “screentime reset” in your family!
