Extras are sparse but serviceable. First up is a commentary by Jan De Bont and the special effects supervisor. 2 documentaries are included, one an HBO First look cheesy making of that runs about 12 minutes. The second one runs about 10 minutes and looks at how the storm where brought to life (with computers...can you believe it?). Also tossed on is a Van Halen music video and the trailer. I'm sure more extras where excised in favor of the DTS track and home theater fans will certainly be happy with the outcome. (***)
If you can't swallow that a car can drive straight through a rolled over house in the road without a scratch, then this is not your movie. If you simply want the visceral thrill of a drive in theater being ripped apart, tanker trucks being thrown through the air, flying cows, and psuedo science, this movie will be a classic in your book. Oh, and if audio is your strong point, welcome home.
Originally posted at Breaking Windows.
Article comments
1 - RJ Elliott
Good review. Twister got a lot of bad press for being nothing more than a computer-generated special-effects flick, but so what? The public votes with its pocketbook, and Twister made gobs of money. It's fun to watch, and that's all that a movie of this genre should aim for.
2 - Chris Kent
I have been a big fan of Twister for a long time. Many of my friends, with excellent taste mind you, have asked me repeatedly - "Why Chris Why!!!!!" I tell them simply, "It's a damn good film."
What I like about this film, and what went unnoticed by many critics (though one important critic accurately called this one of the 10 best films of the year), was the human drama was as important, if not moreso, than the tornado chasing itself. This is a very, very well-acted film, and the talented Helen Hunt and Bill Paxton give excellent performances. They are not your normal bullshit, wise-cracking, smug stars in this type of fare. Even Phillip Semour Hoffman, early in his career, does a fine turn as the eccentric slacker stormchaser ("Move on!! Loser!!!).....
The scene where they go to the Aunt's house and eat fried eggs, mashed potatoes and steak is hilarious. The dialogue is above average, the musical score excellent, and the editing crisp.
My only complaint about this film, which I have seen 10-15 times, is that it makes tornado chasing fun. Tornadoes are horrible and dangerous, as I learned first-hand when I followed an F5 down the highway in 1997 that eventually killed 28 souls (mostly children) in Jarrell, Texas.
While one has about as good of a chance of seeing a tornado as getting struck by lightning, please understand tornadoes are not like they are portrayed in Twister. Tornadoes skin cows alive, rip people to pieces and suck houses to unknown places leaving nothing but a bare foundations and mud where surburban cement roads used to be. Bodies are rarely discovered. If you get the rare unlucky chance to see a tornado, get the fuck away as fast as you can. Unless, of course, one has a fantasy of being ripped to pieces and buried in a trash bag.
That being said, I still love this film, and think it to be one of the most underrated summer blockbusters of all time........nice work!