Twisters Hits Rotten Tomatoes With Shocking Score For Fans
Fans of the original 1996 disaster film Twister were wary when a sequel, titled Twisters, was announced. But it seems like those worries can be put to rest, as the critic reviews are not only saying the film is a worthy follow-up to the original but an improvement. Right now, the critic Rotten Tomatoes score for the sequel is sitting at 79 percent, which is quite a bit higher than the 63 percent held by the original.
Critics Love Twisters
While Twisters will have to wait for audiences to weigh in, this critic score is certainly promising, especially when you start diving into the reviews. Jordan Hoffman of Entertainment Weekly said the film is “just about as good as a summer movie gets,” while William Bibbiani of TheWrap said it “miraculously stands out against the modern blockbuster landscape,” adding, “It’s the rare legacy sequel done right.”
Robbie Collin of the Daily Telegraph echoed Bibbiani’s sentiments, saying, “A film many might have written off as a faintly desperate revival of an aging blockbuster brand is in fact the most wholehearted, warm-blooded, meticulously crafted good time at the movies since Top Gun: Maverick.”
Bigger Than The Original
Collin’s comparison to Top Gun: Maverick is apt, as the screenplay for Twisters is based on a story by Joseph Kosinski, who directed 2022’s massively successful Top Gun sequel. Muck like Top Gun: Maverick, Twisters also has modern cinema on its side, with even the negative reviews of the film admiring the top-notch special effects on display.
While the original film had ground-breaking special effects that nabbed it an Academy Award nomination, it seems like the follow-up appropriately ups the ante.
Chasing Clout
Twisters is directed by Lee Isaac Chung from a screenplay by Mark L. Smith and stars Daisy Edgar-Jones as Kate Cooper, a former storm chaser who decides to take a desk job studying storm patterns after a traumatic tornado encounter. However, her friend Javi (Anthony Ramos) manages to get her back in the field with the promise of testing a new tracking system. In the fields of Oklahoma, they run into social-media storm-chasing influencer Tyler Owens (Glen Powell) and soon find themselves trying to survive as numerous storm systems converge on the landscape.
On Pace To Pass The Original
Along with Edgar-Jones, Ramos, and Powell, Twisters stars Brandon Perea, Maura Tierney, Harry Hadden-Paton, Sasha Lane, Daryl McCormack, Kiernan Shipka, Nik Dodani, David Corenswet, Tunde Adebimpe, Katy O’Brian, Paul Scheer, and James Paxton, son of original Twister star Bill Paxton.
The original film also starred Helen Hunt and Cary Elwes and ended up being a massive hit, with $495 million worldwide at the box office. Although the original may have had relatively mixed reviews, it had an undeniable legacy, especially in the meteorological and storm-chasing communities.
Twisters Touches Down Soon
After Twister, meteorological majors rose by 10 percent, and The University of Oklahoma, which worked with the production team, saw their program double. After Bill Paxton’s death, hundreds of storm chasers spelled out his initials across the country using the Spotter network, saying that Twister inspired them to pursue their careers. It remains to be seen if Twisters ends up having a similar legacy, but at the very least, it sounds like it’ll be a good time at the movies.
Audience reviews are sure to roll in for the film as soon as it is released. It’ll be interesting to see if the audiences agree with the critics and if Twisters ends up outshining its predecessor. We don’t have to wait long to find out, as the film hits theaters next week starting July 17.
