2020-2029, Film Review

Twisters (2024)

Posted on July 20, 2024August 25, 2024 by Martin: Through the Silver Screen

**© Warner Bros, Universal and Amblin Entertainment**

Twisters – Film Review

Cast: Daisy Edgar-Jones, Glen Powell, Anthony Ramos, Brandon Perea, Maura Tierney, Sasha Lane, Daryl McCormack, David Corenswet, Harry Hadden-Paton

Director: Lee Isaac Chung

Synopsis: Years after a personal tragedy, a meteorologist is drawn back into the world of storm-chasing by an old friend…

Review: Mother Nature can be a very beautiful thing, but she also be extremely frightening and deadly if she wants to be. There is no shortage of natural disasters to unleash on anything and anyone who finds themselves in the path of these deadly occurrences. Yet despite the threat these events pose, there is something that is inescapably compelling, and in some cases, inspiring about watching them unfold on the big screen. 1996’s Twister, despite being plagued by a troubled production of adverse weather conditions, is to this day, one of the best examples of a disaster movie, and led to a rise in the number of students who looked to study meteorology. The forecast at the time would surely have predicted a high probability of a sequel. It has taken nearly 30 years to arrive, but it is here, to blow your socks off.

Kate Carter (Edgar-Jones) is a meteorologist living in New York City. Five years earlier, while chasing a tornado with a team to carry out research on how to reduce the storm’s intensity in Oklahoma, tragedy strikes which leaves most of her friends and fellow storm chasers dead, with the only survivor being Javi (Ramos). Such a traumatic experience has taken its toll on Kate, she initially rebuffs an offer from Javi to get back into the world of storm-chasing. However, upon seeing the damaging impact the storms are having and the potential to save countless lives, Kate joins up with Javi and a new team in Oklahoma. When they arrive, they encounter Tyler “Tornado Wrangler” Owens (Powell) a fellow meteorologist, who also happens to vlog his storm-chasing adventures with his eclectic team.

It will not come as news to anyone that tornados can be immensely dangerous, with the most extreme storms capable of reaching wind speeds of more than 300 miles per hour and can stay on the ground for more than 100 kilometres. These perils are devastatingly realised in an extremely tense opening scene in which director Lee Isaac Chung really makes the audience feel the intensity of these storms and how one wrong move can be catastrophic. The script by Mark L. Smith, which serves as a stand-alone sequel to Jan De Bont’s classic, shares no mutual characters and no connective gusts of wind. However, in a world with the threat of extreme weather events becoming more and more common, the screenplay makes the wise choice to not tinker with what made the 1996 film so successful. It merely brings it into the 21st century, with all the technological advancements that have happened, to enable those who would be brave/crazy enough to venture into the heart of a storm all in the name of scientific research, or for just the sheer thrill of it because: “if you feel it, chase it!”.

As the meteorologist in the eye of these storms, Daisy Edgar-Jones is terrific as Kate. Her talent for storm-chasing is immediately evident and she brings an abundance of enthusiasm for it. You get the sense that after stepping away from it for several years, she is eager to make up for the lost time. In what has been a remarkable rise for him over the last few years, Powell is also on terrific form as Tyler. He very much exudes that charisma and bravado that was on display in Top Gun: Maverick, who is at first solely in the business of storm-chasing for internet fame and daredevil. Though initially on rival storm-chasing teams, the duo begin to work together when the very real threat of these storms stands to cause catastrophic damage across the region. Such is their palpable chemistry, that it blows the rest of the supporting cast to the sidelines, aside from Anthony Ramos’s Javi who finds himself torn between the friendship he has for Kate, and the investor of his company, who may or may not be involved with some rather shady business practices.

After directing the heart-warming and soulful Minari, Twisters is perhaps not the next film many would have forecast Chung to be as his follow-up feature. Combined with the immaculate direction of the storm-chasing sequences, as he showed with his tender debut feature about one immigrant family’s pursuit of the American Dream, Chung brings real humanity to the film as the relief efforts to help the people rebuild their lives, homes, and businesses are given the necessary attention. It’s all well and good chasing a tornado to get the blood pumping, but the film never loses sight of the devasting impact these storms have on the people whose livelihoods are in their path. Unless you are the daredevil sort, storm-chasing is an adventure you probably won’t want to be seeking out any time soon, but it will provide you with a blustery good time at the cinema and who knows, maybe inspire a whole new generation’s interest in meteorology? Lightning could most certainly strike twice.

Following in the path of one of the best disaster films might have been a daunting task, but with the charisma of its cast and thrilling and intense storm-chase sequences, Twisters is a thrilling blast of spectacle and struggle against the perils of Mother Nature.

2020-2029, Film Review

In the Heights (2021)

Posted on June 17, 2021June 17, 2021 by Martin: Through the Silver Screen

In The Heights – Film Review

Cast: Anthony Ramos, Corey Hawkins, Leslie Grace, Melissa Barrera, Olga Merediz, Daphne Rubin-Vega, Gregory Diaz IV, Jimmy Smits

Director: Jon M. Chu

Synopsis: In the Washington Heights area of New York City, the owner of a bodega aspires to one day relocate to the Dominican Republic to fulfil a childhood dream…

Review: Whenever someone mentions the name Lin-Manuel Miranda, many will undoubtedly immediately think of his work with the hugely popular musical Hamilton. Winner of an incredible 11 Tony Awards, thanks to a release of a recording of the show on Disney+ last year, it gave those who hadn’t had the chance to see it revel in its wonderful performances and irresistibly catchy tunes. Yet, Hamilton was not Miranda’s first foray into the world of musicals. Before he enjoyed phenomenal success with his adaptation of the life of one of the founding fathers of the United States, there was In the Heights, a musical penned by Miranda about the place where he grew up. Now, in the hands of director Jon M. Chu, comes an adaption that, it will not shock you to learn, is an absolutely euphoric blast of sun-soaked joy.

For any musical, the opening number is arguably the most important one of them all, as it has the task of setting the scene and getting the audience in the mood. Through this absolute bop of an opener, we meet our protagonist Usnavi (Ramos) the owner of a bodega in the Washington Heights area of New York City. Usnavi has fond memories of his childhood and the beach bar in the Dominican Republic that was once run by his father. With the bodega, and a handful of other businesses in the area at risk of going out of business, he becomes determined to raise enough money to leave New York behind and return to the Dominican Republic to reopen his family’s bar. But over the course of one summer in this vibrant Latino community in Washington Heights, as Usnavi meets with old friends and makes some new connections, there’s every chance that this will be a special, unforgettable summer.

The opening musical number introduces us to an array of the people and their livelihoods in this particular neighbourhood in the Big Apple. From Usnavi’s cousin Sonny (Diaz) who helps him run the bodega, Abuela Claudia (Merediz), the neighbourhood’s matriarch who played an integral role in raising Usnavi, Kevin the owner of a nearby business and his daughter Nina who’s returned to the area after a year in college, her relationship with Benny (Hawkins), to finally Vanessa (Barrera) an aspiring fashion designer, who Usnavi has developed a massive crush on. For each and every single person in this neighbourhood, they are all motivated by their own “sueñitos”(little dreams).

As the film’s central character, Usnavi is immediately a very charming and likeable presence. Following on from his role in Hamilton, this is Anthony Ramos’s shot at a leading role, and he does not throw it away. He’s constantly thinking about his sueñito, to run that beach bar that was such an integral part of his life growing up. Yet he’s reminded of just how special this area of New York, and the people who make it home are to him. Chief among these people is his crush Vanessa. For her, her sueñito is to become a fashion designer, and Barrera’s performance is equally impressive and emotionally heartfelt in a terrific cast. There is not a false note to be found anywhere in any of their performances.

As one comes to expect when Lin-Manuel Miranda pens the music, the soundtrack is packed to the brim with irresistibly catchy and joyful songs that will be filling your eardrums for weeks afterwards. As well as the irresistibly catchy music, what is equally impressive is the choreography that accompanies each and every musical number. Furthermore, each song and musical number has its own unique vibe, which comes from the variety of backdrops for each song, and the excellent use of lighting and camerawork that director Jon. M. Chu utilises. The screenplay by Quiara Alegría Hudes touches on a number of very topical themes like family, identity, aspirations, and what it means to be a part of a community. Given that the original musical was written in 2005, Hudes’s screenplay has made some important changes to the plot that makes it in tandem with modern day events, such as the aspirations of the Dreamers. This crucially lends an extra weight to the stories of the people that are being brought to life on screen, because they will undoubtedly reflect many of the hopes and dreams of the people in this community.

While each and every song here are certified jams, the film is just ever slightly let down by some pacing issues in and around the middle act of the film. However, if you’re going to pick a soundtrack to be the music to your summer, you’re unlikely to find a more vibrant, soulful and downright joyous than this one. It might have taken a while for this adaptation of this musical to lift our spirits and infect our eardrums with its joyful tunes. After the difficult time that has been had by all over the last year or so, this is the perfect blast of euphoric enjoyment that we all need and deserve, and it was certainly worth the wait.