In 1996, the disaster blockbuster business was booming. Independence Day was king of ‘96, drawing in over $800 million at the box office and setting the new standard for disaster films. But earlier that year, Twister came roaring into the cinema, prepping audiences around the world for the summer of carnage and taking in nearly half a billion in sales worldwide, hurtling Bill Paxton (Near Dark; Weird Science) to leading man status and changing the perception of severe weather for generations.
L-R: Helen Hunt as Jo Harding and Bill Paxton as Bill Harding in TWISTER. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures. Photos not representative of the 4K UHD edition.
Written by Michael Crichton (Jurassic Park) and his then wife Anne-Marie Martin, and directed by Jan de Bont (Speed), Twister is the story of two storm chasers on the brink of divorce who have to work together to create an advanced warning system which requires them to put themselves into the path of a tornado.
The premise seems simple enough — find the tornadoes, launch, record scientific data — but what really brings this film to another level is the human side of the story and it’s one-of-a-kind stellar cast of characters.
L-R: Actor Bill Paxton, director Jan de Bont, and actor Helen Hunt on the set of TWISTER. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures. Photos not representative of the 4K UHD edition.
Bill Paxton stars as Bill Harding, the previous leader of the group who has left the chase to become a weatherman. The group is now being led by his soon-to-be ex-wife Dr. Jo Harding, played by Helen Hunt (Peggy Sue Got Married). Up to this point, Paxton had been greatly used as part of a larger ensemble, in films like Tombstone (1993) and Apollo 13 (1995), where he blends so seamlessly and pops a little. Giving him the lead in a big studio blockbuster was a big step, and he crushed it. Having it be a two-hander with Helen Hunt, another actor relatively new to leading roles, especially in film, really works to the films advantage as the large portion of action films at the time had all men in the leads. Hunt stepping up brings a refreshing female presence, and it certainly got noticed. She would go on to win her Oscar the very next year.
The glue, the anchor, the thing that makes this tick and become one of the most rewatchable films of all time is the supporting cast. When the storm chasing team is together, it feels like they’ve known each other for years. There is back-and-forth banter that is so natural and relaxed. Philip Seymour Hoffman (Punch Drunk Love; Pirate Radio) as Dusty is a standout, often providing plenty of laughs, with Alan Ruck (Young Guns II), Sean Whalen (American Pickle), Todd Field (Eyes Wide Shut), Joey Slotnick (Drive-Away Dolls), Wendle Josepher (Last Action Hero), Jeremy Davies (Justified), and Scott Thomson (Police Academy), rounding out the remaining members, all having their own “thing” they bring to the team and enough screen time to flesh it out. When you are watching, you want to be with this crew, you want to laugh with them and speed down country roads. They have an infectious energy that carries the film. Cary Elwes (Days of Thunder), Jami Gertz (The Lost Boys), and Lois Smith (The Nice Guys) also fit right in, blending into that ensemble to carry the story. I realize I just named essentially every actor in the film, but I feel it’s important to contextualize the lasting legacy this film brings, and this story would not work as well as it does without these people coming together.
Director Jan de Bont came to the project fresh off his success of Speed (1994), his feature film debut no less, but no stranger to action films. Having begun his career as a cinematographer, de Bont worked on Die Hard (1988), The Hunt for Red October (1990), and Basic Instinct (1992). He was no stranger to high profile productions and had a distinct artistic voice that he developed. de Bont worked hand-in-hand with the visual effects team to really bring these tornadoes he had in his mind to life, bringing on famed Industrial Light and Magic (ILM) to make those as close to reality as possible. One thing that worked to their advantage was shooting on location in Oklahoma; getting those establishing shots, the wide-open plains, and capturing the severe weather helped make the intense depictions more tangible.
The film was nominated for two Academy Awards: Best Sound and Best Visual Effects. The sound and visuals are paramount for this film to work. Jan de Bont and his team gave each tornado its own unique personality, from being violent and unpredictable, to playful twin water spouts, or a mile-wide monster. As each one is being chased down, there is a building excitement at what we are about to witness. There’s the road trip feel, where at each destination the chasing team “captures” another tornado, almost like Ghostbusters. Each experience has them grappling with personal demons and serves to move the narrative along, the personal stories grounding the film and keeping it from straying too far from its purpose. Sure, they might drive a truck through a house that has been blown away, but for every indulgent “blockbusterism”, there’s a human story beat that brings it back down to reality.
The use of sound brings the terror right off the bat when the film starts and the title gets ripped away. The unique and eerie sounds the tornadoes make really help emphasize the danger and fear. When a tornado is shown on screen, composer Mark Mancina (Bad Boys) brings the awe with deep strings and a chorus of otherworldly voices. The sound effects of the tornadoes wreaking havoc, tearing apart buildings, throwing cars and tractors, and making nails rattle in their place, threatening to rip away your safety — all these things combine to bring an unforgettable experience of movie magic. It just works.
It also works on another level, horror. Think of the tornadoes like a supernatural stalker in a slasher, like Michael Myers. Helen Hunt’s character lost her father to a tornado. She even feels like it specifically came after her, and now she’s hunting it down. She is the final girl. The various tornadoes at times are hard to find and seem to have a predatory nature to them. The best example is at the drive-in theater while Jack Nicholson is breaking down the door with his axe in The Shining (1980) and the tornado, under the cover of night, is coming directly towards Hunt and her team. They have to figure out how to take down the evil villain and, in this case, their method of releasing the sensors isn’t working, but after a moment of inspiration, they then have a renewed purpose and go after the storm that almost killer her Aunt Meg (Lois Smith) in Wakita. The reason it works on this level is because the filmmakers have put malevolent intent on the tornadoes, almost giving them each a mind of its own. It then becomes something to be battled and conquered. This film became somewhat of a gateway drug for me into the world of horror films and slashers due to the underlying themes.
The new 4K transfer, overseen by de Bont himself, is surprisingly one of the better transfers I’ve seen. Part of the legacy of this film is that it was the first theatrical film to be put out on DVD. That was in 1997; since then, there are been a few re-releases and a middling at best VC-1 transfer in 2008 for the Blu-ray and HD-DVD. That video coding was rushed and was barely an improvement to the DVD. This overhaul has been a long time coming. With the upcoming Twisters (2024), now is the perfect time. Every scene is crisp and clear. There are a few moments were the visual effects stand out and the black is a bit fuzzy, but those are few. The Dolby Atmos sound mix is such a compliment to the visuals that, if you have a large enough television, this rivals a theatrical experience. Overall, this is a collector’s dream and a worthy upgrade essential for any film library.
L-R: Helen Hunt as Jo Harding and Bill Paxton as Bill Harding in TWISTER. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures. Photos not representative of the 4K UHD edition.
The staying power is the fear. It’s not the kind of fear that a film like Jaws (1975) brought where you were afraid to go to the local swimming pool or developed a misplaced fear directed at sharks. Growing up in the Midwest, I had a very healthy fear of tornadoes, particularly because they are hard to predict. This film gave me, and many others, a curiosity and fascination for severe weather: the number of meteorological majors jumped 10% and at the University of Oklahoma enrollment in their program doubled from 225 to 450. While the science being portrayed may not be 100% accurate, there is a reverence towards nature and tornadoes, as well as a focus on the science behind studying them. A reverent fear, and a reverence for victims of these storms, is prevalent all through Twister. Yes, it can be terrifying, but as Dusty says, “It’s the wonder of nature baby!”
L-R: Bill Paxton as Bill Harding and Helen Hunt as Jo Harding in TWISTER. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures. Photos not representative of the 4K UHD edition.
Extras for Twister are all from previous releases, save for a brand new 15-minute special feature with Jan de Bont talking about the film’s legacy and this new transfer, which her oversaw and even added some coloring to a few scenes that just wasn’t available at the time of initial release.
Twister 4K UHD Special Features:
- *NEW* The Legacy of Twister – Taken by the Wind
- Chasing the Storm: Twister Revisited
- Anatomy of a Twister
- The Making of Twister
- Van Halen Music Video – Humans Being
- Commentary by director Jan de Bont and visual effects supervisor Stefen Fangmeier
Available on 4K UHD Blu-ray and digital July 9th, 2024.
For more information, head to the official Warner Bros. Pictures Twister webpage.
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Categories: Films To Watch, Home Release, Recommendation
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