Get ready folks, Hollywood’s latest spectacle, “Twisters,” is making waves and earning rave reviews. This storm-chasing sequel has not only impressed critics but also elevated Glen Powell’s career this summer.
Boasting a commendable 84 percent “Fresh” rating on Rotten Tomatoes, the film appears to be captivating audiences with its depiction of unparalleled storms wreaking havoc in the American heartland, complete with an array of meteorological jargon.
But here’s the kicker – despite the flood of weather-related terminology, “Twisters” is notably silent on one controversial issue: climate change.
You’d think that given the current hysteria surrounding climate change, they’d at least drop a hint or two about it. After all, scientists are still trying to figure out how climate change could be impacting tornadoes. There’s speculation about shifting tornado patterns, an increase in simultaneous tornado occurrences, and even tornadoes appearing outside the traditional Tornado Alley.
The American Red Cross even weighed in, telling ABC News that they’re dealing with almost double the number of significant disasters compared to ten years ago due to the so-called “climate crisis.”
In a 2024 movie about an unprecedented tornado outbreak, it seems like an excellent opportunity to inject some climate change melodrama. Imagine Daisy Edgar-Jones, looking disheveled, studying Doppler radar data and citing a sophisticated statistic like, “The Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society projected a 6.6 percent nationwide increase in supercell thunderstorms by the end of the century due to global warming – but nothing like this!” Instant credibility for your summer blockbuster.
But director Lee Isaac Chung had a different vision. According to Chung, even a casual mention like that would be tantamount to hammering conservative moviegoers with Al Gore’s “An Inconvenient Truth.” Chung told CNN, “I just wanted to make sure that with the movie, we don’t ever feel like it is putting forward any message. I just don’t feel like films are meant to be message-oriented.”
In one scene, Maura Tierney’s character comments on the increasing frequency of storms and floods, but – shocker – there’s no reference to climate change. Chung maintains, “I think what we are doing is showing the reality of what’s happening on the ground … we don’t shy away from saying that things are changing.”
He adds, “I wanted to make sure that we are never creating a feeling that we’re preaching a message because that’s certainly not what I think cinema should be about. I think it should be a reflection of the world.”
Or perhaps it’s a reflection of a studio playing it safe in a divided world, aiming for a summer hit without stirring up controversy. Regardless, “Twisters” is on track for a projected $72 million opening after raking in $10.7 million in previews. And that, my friends, is how Hollywood spins a story.
Source: Red Right Patriot
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