Introduction

There are lots of films that are political metaphors (including some this year). Some are more successful than others, with the most successful probably being the Hunger Games films. However, they usually have one thing in common: they come from a coastal, left of center perspective. Twisters is different in this regard; in that it works very hard to show that Middle America isn’t the hellscape that those other films want to imply it is.

Synopsis

Twisters follows the story of Kate Cooper (Daisy Edgar-Jones), a former storm chaser who is haunted by a devastating encounter with a tornado. She is lured back to the open plains by her friend Javi (Anthony Ramos) to test a groundbreaking new tracking system. As storm season intensifies, Kate crosses paths with Tyler Owens (Glen Powell), a charming, reckless red-state social-media superstar who thrives on posting his storm-chasing adventures. Together, they face unprecedented and terrifying storm phenomena that challenge their skills and resilience. As multiple storm systems converge over central Oklahoma, Kate, Tyler, and their competing teams find themselves in a fight for their lives.

Review

The film explores themes of courage, innovation, and the human spirit’s determination to confront nature’s most formidable forces. But it also explores how maybe our political opponents aren’t what they seem. The political themes are pretty starkly contrasted. One chaser team wears blue and most of its members hail from the Ivy League with PhDs from Yale and other big-name universities. The other chasers wear red and consist of rednecks. The script goes out of its way to tell us that the members of “red” team don’t have formal educations, with the exception of Powell’s character.

The setting for the film paints a portrait of the south that a lot of Hollywood films don’t usually feature. It presents it as an idyllic place full of genuinely kind people who want to help each other. This contrasts with the villain of the film who is taking advantage of people in their time of need under the guise of serving them.

It’s interesting that the “story by” credit goes to Joseph Kosinski. Kosinski is the director of one of the most successful and widely seen films in recent years, Top Gun: Maverick. That movie is considered by many to have been so successful because it seemed to speak the same underserved audience that Twisters is going for.

Unfortunately, the attempt to allegorize our present politics falls flat because the execution is so middling. Don’t get me wrong: the action scenes are really great, and Glen Powell steals every scene he’s in. But the rest of it leaves a lot to be desired. It also doesn’t have much of a connection with the first film outside of the location and the fact they are chasing tornados.

The Bottom Line

Twisters has exhilarating disaster/action scenes. It tries to analogize the politics of our day with only middling results. Don’t expect a great script or a connection to the original and you will probably have a good time.

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