Twister (1996)

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Following in the tradition of Irwin Allen disaster movies like The Towering Inferno and The Poseidon Adventure comes this tornadic thrill ride from director Jan de Bont (Speed). Helen Hunt (As Good As It Gets) and Bill Paxton (Frailty) star as estranged scientists who fall back in love with each other while chasing tornadoes during an especially stormy couple of days in Oklahoma. Their goal is to launch a series of sensors into one of the funnel clouds that will help them better understand the dangerous weather phenomenon, which will in turn help save lives. On a more basic level, Twister is really just a chance to see a bunch of tornadoes up close and personal.

Twister could have been a more grounded, dramatic disaster movie like The Impossible, but it’s not — so why judge it as one? As a thrill ride, Twister finds its own verisimilitude and delivers on its promise, the kind of movie that takes resounding advantage of visual effects and sound design. Even when tornadoes aren’t on screen, De Bont and editor Michael Kahn keep the energy going, as we follow a very enthusiastic group of thrill-seeking storm chasers into danger. The filmmakers know, however, that special effects alone are never enough. That’s where Hunt and Paxton come in. These are two of the most affable, charismatic actors of their time and they make it all too easy to want to join their adventure and overlook the film’s many, many contrivances and indulgences made in the name of ‘thrill ride’ moviemaking.

Jami Gertz, Lois Smith, and Philip Seymour Hoffman make the most of their supporting roles. Mark Mancina delivers an exciting score, and Jack N. Green’s cinematography — full of many sweeping helicopter shots following the storm-chasing caravan — is also a stand-out. With Cary Elwes, Alan Ruck, and Jeremy Davies.

Oscar Nominations: Best Sound, Visual Effects