Twister
One of the most memorable film watching experiences I’ve ever had was when my mother and I went to the Fox Theatre for the Atlanta premiere of Jan De Bont’s “Twister.” The seats were not the best (we were under the balcony), but the sound system let out such remarkable rumbles during each tornado encounter in the film that it’s still my favorite time watching a film at the Fabulous Fox Theatre. We also watched the film in theatres a shit ton of times during the summer of 1996, which is one of my favorite movie summers ever. De Bont’s thriller started it off in stunning fashion.
Jan De Bont’s first two films hold up fantastically well. “Speed” is a simple action thrill ride directed with clarity and energy. For “Twister,” which was produced by Amblin and written by Michael Crichton and his wife, Anne-Marie Martin, he takes that same cinematic aesthetic into the realm of big-budget blockbuster filmmaking, and it’s as clear-eyed and riveting a film that has ever been made in that manner. Unlike, say, Michael Bay, there’s a focused eye for establishing geography and location in De Bont’s set pieces (at least in “Speed” and “Twister”) that is impressive for a cinematographer-turned-director. De Bont isn’t looking to make a stylish film, but one we get immersed in for a couple of hours. Thankfully, he has actors that help draw us in to rather single-minded characters.
The film centers of two storm chasers- one determined to develop an early-warning system so that people don’t have to face a tragedy like she did as a child (Helen Hunt’s Jo), one who’s reluctantly back to the hunt so he can get his divorce papers signed (Bill Paxton’s Bill)- who find themselves chasing tornadoes together again with their gang of misfit scientists and thrill-seekers (including the excellent Phillip Seymour Hoffman, Alan Ruck and Jeremy Davies) as they try to deliver a system of sensors into the heart of a tornado to try and collect expansive data on tornadoes before a slick team led by Cary Elwes’s slimy Jonas. That’s all there is to the story, and that’s all there has to be. The script by Crichton and Martin isn’t overly deep or sophisticated, but it’s effective in landing the beats it needs to, in setting up a love triangle that includes Bill’s fiance (Melissa, played by Jami Gertz, who’s a bit obnoxious in the film’s one misstep), and leads us to the inevitable point where Bill and Jo are destined to get back together, and see Dorothy (their sensor system) fly into the eye of a storm. The rest is up to De Bont and his visual effects team to make us feel like this is all for something.
The tornadoes in “Twister” could have been incomprehensible, ugly visual effects that would look painfully dated now, but the effects team and De Bont clearly did their homework, because these not only hold up extremely well, but have power and force, and are visualized in a way that is not messy to look at. Cinematographer Jack N. Green keeps his camera movie, and the frame clear, while De Bont and editor Michael Kahn cut the action in a way that is always comprehensible, and shows off the impressive visuals. This might be one of the most legitimately terrifying action movies ever- every time a twister comes up, some new challenge arises for Bill and Jo and the team, and sometimes, we’re as scared as the characters in the film. De Bont learned all the right lessons from Executive Producer Steven Spielberg’s “Jaws” and “Jurassic Park” in building these scenes, including one at a drive-in playing “The Shining” that always gets me.
This is always a pleasure to rewatch. It’s a great summer movie, in that it delivers thrills and excitement, as well as characters we are interested in. It nails the spectacle and the technical side, and it has humor and moments of terror. “Twister” kind of has it all. And it’ll remain one of my favorite summer movies for as long as this time of escapist fare exists.
