MOVIE REVIEW - Into The Storm

Summer time means big budget action thrillers. Sometimes with no real reason for being made, and that brings us to Into The Storm.

ITS is the story of some really nice people who live in tornado alley who are trying to survive a horrific weather day in the middle of tornado season.  It also focuses on a small team of storm chasers who are risking life and limb to try to document as close as they can, the most dangerous storms they can find.  These two groups will somehow come together and create some high drama, and try to survive as one, on this terrible day.

That's about as deep as our story really goes.  What this really is, is a special effects fest that are quite good at times, and really silly at others.  Out characters are thin, predictable, and are they same ones you see in most movies like this. There are certainly no Oscar winning performances here, but we get through it.  The star of this movie is, the special effects, as they do the best they can to take you deep inside a huge thunderstorm.

But, try as they might this cannot really be taken seriously as there is just too much silliness.  Our characters make one horrible decision after another, always seemingly making matters worse.  The storm somehow becomes the "worst that has ever been", because a young meteorologist says so.  And in rural seemingly Oklahoma in  a dinky farm town, and entire fleet of 747's is lifted off the ground from the airport as the tornado hits.   What an entire fleet, and and airport full of 747's is doing in small town USA is beyond comprehension.  Hello??

And being honest, there are a few more problems like this where the emphasis is placed squarely on the ability to make a movie based on what you CAN do, as opposed to what you SHOULD do.  Much of this does not add up, and is simply an excuse to make a big special effects movie and not a really solid movie.  To it's credit, is is very tidy at about 90 minutes, and that's about all you can take.  You can only watch the wind blow hard for so long, then you're ready to do something else.

Into The Storm. Interesting for a while? Yes.  In the end, just average at the very best.