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Movies aren’t always accurate. Moments are heightened to keep audiences interested, and endings often become unrealistic to keep audiences satisfied.Twisters, one of the summer’s biggest blockbusters, is a good example of that, as it tries to be more scientific than science fiction but falls short in a few areas.
The film, which is now streaming onPeacock, follows a group of scientists in Oklahoma as they try to improve the technology used to monitor tornadoes, simultaneously gaining more information to help them figure out how to prevent tornadoes.Glen Powellleads a group of storm-chasing influencers, who interact frequently with the scientists, teaching them the importance of also helping those that have already been affected by the storms. ThroughoutTwisters, the characters use scientific terms, and real-life meteorologists took notice, pointing out any inaccuracies.
What Twisters Gets Wrong
InaForbesarticle, Marshall Shepherd watchesTwistersand critiques its scientific accuracy. As the Director of the University of Georgia’s Atmospheric Sciences Program and a longtime meteorologist, he has the qualifications to identify what’s wrong inTwisters.
Shepherd’s main concern withTwistersis part of its biggest plot line. In the film, some of the scientists theorize that they could cause a tornado to collapse if they can remove the moist air from it. At first their plan is to simply absorb the moisture, but they soon realize it’s much more effective to turn the moist air into rain. By the end of the film, the main characters have developed a chemical formula that they release into a powerful tornado, successfully destroying the tornado.
However, Shepherd has a problem with this. He explains that this process, called “cloud seeding,” has been used in real life, with people putting ice crystals into the tornado clouds to start the formation of rain. This process is not as reliable in practiceas seen in the movie, and Shepherd writes,“While many agencies and countries employ cloud seeding, past and current scientific studies find results to be inconclusive … the scientist in me definitely had to suspend disbelief.”
Shepherd also has some issues with how the characters protect themselves from oncoming tornadoes. There are many tornadoes throughout the movie, and sometimes the characters just need to wait them out. In the film’s prologue, some characters are chasing a tornado that becomes dangerous, and they hide under an overpass. Shepherd writes that “overpasses are dangerous because they are places where wind speeds may be higher due to height and funneling of air (and debris) through the narrow passage under the bridge.“The film’s scientists have fairly limited options of places to hide, but it’s a bad example of safety for anyone who might be sheltering from a tornado in real life.
What Twisters Gets Right
Despite finding a few inaccuracies, Marshall Shepherd had plenty of good things to say aboutTwisters.A lot of Shepherd’s compliments for the movie revolve around the terms the film uses to identify and describe tornadoes. Characters talk about looking for wind shear, lifting mechanisms, and instability, which are all real criteria meteorologists assess to find tornadoes.
Shepherd was also interested in the inclusion of phased array radar in the film, which he says is a newer technology. Some of the characters inTwisterswork for a company that uses these radars. Unlike the standard radars used to track storms, phased array radars stay in fixed locations, giving the detection faster response times.
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The Enhanced Fujita Scale is another meteorologist term in the film that caught Shepherd’s attention.Shepherd explains that other scales typically track the winds of storms, but the Enhanced Fujita Scale rates a storm based on damage done. This scale has a pivotal connection to the film’s emotional moments, as the film takes time to focus on thepeople hurt by the tornadoesrather than just showing nonstop storm-chasing.
Shepherd has praise for more than just the scientific aspects as well.All the weather terms and accuracies don’t matter quite as much as the human element. “Weather should not be for sport, and human lives should be valued first,” he writes. “The film certainly raised the stakes on that point, and I applaud them.”
Accurate or Not, Twisters Is Thrilling
Twistershas a lot to make people excited. It’s a gripping movie filled with fun character personalities and moments that remind the audience of humanity’s compassion.
Just like the originalTwister,Twistershas a large cast of terrific actors. Glen Powell,who charmed audiencesinTop Gun: MaverickandAnyone But You, is the main attraction, but Daisy Edgar-Jones and Anthony Ramos also play prominent parts with intriguing character development. A few up-and-coming actors round out the supporting cast, including Brandon Perea (Nope), Katy O’Brian (Love Lies Bleeding), and Kiernan Shipka (Longlegs). David Corenswet also appears as a scientist, a year before he makes his debut as the new Superman.
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Twistersalso falls into multiple genre categories, making it possible for most people to enjoy at least one aspect.The storm chase sequences are filled with action, Brandon Perea and other actors deliver plenty of comedy, and a love story between Glen Powell and Daisy Edgar-Jones provides romance.
If all those aren’t enough to make a viewer feel good, then maybe the movie’s heart and soul will. The end of the film deals less with the dangerous tornado chases and takes time to show the main characters helping residents find safety in the middle of a storm.Twistersis now available to watch on Peacock.
