Into the Storm
1/4
Starring: Richard Armitrage, Matt Walsh, Sarah Wayne Callies, Nathan Kress, Max Deacon, Alicia Debnam Carey, Kyle Davis, Jon Reep
Rated PG-13 for Sequences of Intense Destruction and Peril, and Language including Some Sexual References
Now here is an ugly movie. "Into the Storm" is a cynical exercise in soulless and ridiculously over-the-top special effects and manipulation so overblown that it becomes offensive. It's 90 minutes of loud, expensive trash.
The film takes place in an unnamed small town in Anywhere, USA. Gary (Armitrage) is the vice principal for the local high school, where his two sons Donnie (Deacon) and Trey (Kress) attend. He wants them to interview the townspeople for a time capsule. Donnie sees a chance to talk to Kaitlyn (Carey), whom he likes. At Trey's encouraging, Donnie swoops in on the stressed out Kaitlyn, which has the unintentional effect of leaving Trey to film the graduation ceremony alone. But a storm is brewing, and Gary thinks the ceremony should be rescheduled, but the principal isn't having it. Also involved are a couple of storm-chasers led by hard-ass Pete (Walsh) and mother Allison (Callies), and two "Jackass" wannabes named Donk (Davis) and Reevis (Reep). Needless to say that a legendary storm hits and all of these stories converge.
It's damn near impossible to make a movie watchable when only two of the characters, Gary and Allison, are worthy of our sympathy (or at least understanding). Sadly, they're surrounded by idiots who are boring (that's just about everyone) or so irritating that I was wishing the tornado would suck them up and throw them away (the two rednecks).
A lot of the film is filmed in a pseudo-documentary approach. Done right, it can be effective filmmaking ("Cloverfield," "District 9," "The Blair Witch Project," etc.). But lately, it's turned into a cheap gimmick, and that's what happens here. It's a sleazy ploy to gain our sympathy for the characters who would be unbelievably boring otherwise. It doesn't work. The dialogue by John Swetnam sounds scripted and director Steven Quale hasn't got a clue as to how to do this sort of thing right.
But what really made me mad is not the story, which is trite and dumb, nor the laughably extreme special effects. No, what made me mad is the syrupy manipulation and sermonizing that the film does, and the exploitation of the film's would-be tragedy. All of the moments that should be powerful and/or suspenseful are so ham-handed that I wanted to throw my popcorn at the screen. A "last words" recording is stupid and cloying rather than sad. And when a main character dies heroically, we follow his character right up until his death. It's things like that which permeate the film. The "gung-ho" patriotism and hopeful speechifying is so phony and obligatory. Each and every thing that happens in this movie feels so calculated and rehearsed.
There are some intense moments in this film. I will give it that. But they're wrapped in such an artificial and ugly film that they made me feel dirty and angry. The film doesn't care about any of its characters. It's a cynical and lazy cash grab.
For those of you who are less than 20 years old, there is another tornado movie that attempts the same thing with much better success. It's called "Twister," with Bill Paxton and Helen Hunt. It's everything that "Into the Storm" should be, but isn't. It's fun, exciting and suspenseful. The characters, while not necessarily three-dimensional, are appealing enough that it becomes a pleasure to spend time with them. The plot is just as ridiculous, but the movie is entertaining enough that you won't care. Rent that one instead of paying ten bucks to see this disaster of a disaster movie.
Starring: Richard Armitrage, Matt Walsh, Sarah Wayne Callies, Nathan Kress, Max Deacon, Alicia Debnam Carey, Kyle Davis, Jon Reep
Rated PG-13 for Sequences of Intense Destruction and Peril, and Language including Some Sexual References
Now here is an ugly movie. "Into the Storm" is a cynical exercise in soulless and ridiculously over-the-top special effects and manipulation so overblown that it becomes offensive. It's 90 minutes of loud, expensive trash.
The film takes place in an unnamed small town in Anywhere, USA. Gary (Armitrage) is the vice principal for the local high school, where his two sons Donnie (Deacon) and Trey (Kress) attend. He wants them to interview the townspeople for a time capsule. Donnie sees a chance to talk to Kaitlyn (Carey), whom he likes. At Trey's encouraging, Donnie swoops in on the stressed out Kaitlyn, which has the unintentional effect of leaving Trey to film the graduation ceremony alone. But a storm is brewing, and Gary thinks the ceremony should be rescheduled, but the principal isn't having it. Also involved are a couple of storm-chasers led by hard-ass Pete (Walsh) and mother Allison (Callies), and two "Jackass" wannabes named Donk (Davis) and Reevis (Reep). Needless to say that a legendary storm hits and all of these stories converge.
It's damn near impossible to make a movie watchable when only two of the characters, Gary and Allison, are worthy of our sympathy (or at least understanding). Sadly, they're surrounded by idiots who are boring (that's just about everyone) or so irritating that I was wishing the tornado would suck them up and throw them away (the two rednecks).
A lot of the film is filmed in a pseudo-documentary approach. Done right, it can be effective filmmaking ("Cloverfield," "District 9," "The Blair Witch Project," etc.). But lately, it's turned into a cheap gimmick, and that's what happens here. It's a sleazy ploy to gain our sympathy for the characters who would be unbelievably boring otherwise. It doesn't work. The dialogue by John Swetnam sounds scripted and director Steven Quale hasn't got a clue as to how to do this sort of thing right.
But what really made me mad is not the story, which is trite and dumb, nor the laughably extreme special effects. No, what made me mad is the syrupy manipulation and sermonizing that the film does, and the exploitation of the film's would-be tragedy. All of the moments that should be powerful and/or suspenseful are so ham-handed that I wanted to throw my popcorn at the screen. A "last words" recording is stupid and cloying rather than sad. And when a main character dies heroically, we follow his character right up until his death. It's things like that which permeate the film. The "gung-ho" patriotism and hopeful speechifying is so phony and obligatory. Each and every thing that happens in this movie feels so calculated and rehearsed.
There are some intense moments in this film. I will give it that. But they're wrapped in such an artificial and ugly film that they made me feel dirty and angry. The film doesn't care about any of its characters. It's a cynical and lazy cash grab.
For those of you who are less than 20 years old, there is another tornado movie that attempts the same thing with much better success. It's called "Twister," with Bill Paxton and Helen Hunt. It's everything that "Into the Storm" should be, but isn't. It's fun, exciting and suspenseful. The characters, while not necessarily three-dimensional, are appealing enough that it becomes a pleasure to spend time with them. The plot is just as ridiculous, but the movie is entertaining enough that you won't care. Rent that one instead of paying ten bucks to see this disaster of a disaster movie.
Comments
Post a Comment