Movie Review: Twisters (2024)

Genre: Disaster Thriller  

Director: Lee Isaac Chung  

Starring: Daisy Edgar-Jones, Glen Powell  

Running Time: 122 minutes  

Synopsis: As a college student, Kate Carter (Daisy Edgar-Jones) lost three good friends when her tornado-taming science project ended in tragedy. Five years later, fellow survivor Javi (Anthony Ramos) convinces Kate to return to tornado chasing, this time equipped with military grade equipment to better measure and predict the twisters' behaviour. With multiple storms brewing in Oklahoma's tornado alley, Kate and Javi tangle with a maverick crew led by brash YouTuber Tyler Owens (Glen Powell), who chases tornadoes for clicks.

What Works Well: In this reimagining of the 1996 original, the special effects are spectacular, and Kate's backstory, while obvious, carries an impact. Daisy Edgar-Jones and Glen Powell have the necessary charisma and confidence to stare down mother nature's appetite for destruction, while the wide open Oklahoma plains and muddy roads create a suitable backdrop for multiple episodes of high-speed, high-carnage mayhem.

What Does Not Work As Well: Kate's instinctive gift of predicting the weather is overplayed, while the scientific and corruption aspects are flash-fried and quickly dismissed in the rush to the next twisty highlight. The running time is too long, and repetition breeds familiarity as Kate finds herself in one too many twisters.

Conclusion: Devoid of much logic, but still a twisting, shouting, blast.

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Movie Review: Where The Crawdads Sing (2022)

Genre: Mystery Drama Romance  

Director: Olivia Newman  

Starring: Daisy Edgar-Jones, David Strathairn, Taylor John Smith, Harris Dickinson  

Running Time: 125 minutes  

Synopsis: In North Carolina of 1969, Chase Andrews (Harris Dickinson) is found dead in an expansive marsh area. Kya Clark (Daisy Edgar-Jones), a social recluse who has lived alone in the marsh since childhood, is arrested and charged with murder. Lawyer Tom Milton (David Strathairn) comes out of retirement to defend her, and as the trial proceeds, Kya's backstory is revealed. Her family was torn apart by an abusive father, she raised herself and became an expert in marsh ecosystems, then as a teenager, she experienced romances with Tate Walker (Taylor John Smith) and then Chase, before his death.

What Works Well: The adaptation of Delia Owens' bestselling book uses a mysterious death as a framing device to explore themes of abandonment, resilience, abuse, romance, and justice. The duality of outcasts as objects of derision and fascination resides within Kya, both Tate and Chase attracted to her unique attributes but for different reasons. Director Olivia Newman includes just the right amount of captivating natural scenery, and is comfortable with a traditional storytelling structure where the courtroom scenes and flashbacks work together to reveal Kya's often heartbreaking experiences.

What Does Not Work As Well: Some of the story's foundational blocks are wobbly. For a young unschooled woman confined to the marsh her entire life, Kya is often a picture of radiant health, good grooming, and refined behaviour. The murder charge against her is built on the flimsiest of evidence, and given the relatively long duration, the final act speed races through numerous events but stubbornly refuses to show the pivotal moment in Kya's life.

Conclusion: Elegant and picturesque, but spongy when convenient.



All Ace Black Movie Blog reviews are here.