Disaster movies often have a difficult task merging human drama with grand spectacle. Into the Storm is no exception to the rule. The movie certainly delivers a few great visuals and impressive special effects. It’s just too bad that while the epic-sized storm impresses, audiences are given little reason to care about any of the individuals attempting to survive it.
The story follows a varied group of people in a small town hours before a storm of epic proportions hits. As expected, they include a team of storm chasers (including The Walking Dead cast member Sarah Wayne Callies). The meteorologists are desperate to capture the event on camera – if they fail, their funding will be cut. Also in it for the money are a pair of country yokels hoping to gain a bigger youtube following with an “up close” video of the storm. Additionally, there’s a teen directed to videotape a high school graduation ceremony for his stiff and gruff dad, Gary (Richard Armitage). Instead of doing so, the lovesick kid deserts his parent to help the girl he has a crush on shoot an environmental documentary at an abandoned factory.
This may already sound dopey on the written page, but onscreen it’s far dopier. These are hardly interesting or dramatic motivations for the characters to be where they are or for viewers to become involved in their plight. And the wince-inducing, groan-worthy dialogue does little to make it any more convincing. Frankly, the first thirty minutes are painful as the one-note characters are introduced in the broadest of strokes.
The found-footage style used to capture much of the action emphasizes the awkward dialogue and forced staging, making the story even less convincing. And there are other reason why this is a disconcerting narrative approach. It’s suggested that viewers are watching a documentary (and the denouement seemingly confirms this), but the camera views shift from first person found footage to typical narrative omnipresent angles at random moments. A character in grave danger even makes a confession directly into the lens at audiences – however, he doesn’t even have his camera with him at the time – it is later found at a different area of the site. One wonders why the event was shot in this manner and it becomes a jarring distraction throughout as the point-of-view jumps back and forth.
Not that this matters a great deal – none of characters introduced are engaging. The only one that audiences might be able to relate to is Gary. At least he has a specific reason for staying in the center of the chaos. But as viewers you’re never particularly concerned for anyone’s fate. It is always well-telegraphed when someone is about to be sucked into the centrifugal spinning force, often before the tornado has even landed.
The one thing the movie does have going for it are some clever visuals and impressive effects. It is at times stunning to see these natural forces spinning down streets and taking down structures. Admittedly, the computer effects truly convey how powerful these weather patterns are. At one point, there’s a great image of a vehicle being sent into the twister and spun upwards to the calm peaceful air above. It’s one of the few unique and memorable scenes within the movie.
Yet all too often there’s no emotional impact to these sequences. At one point, there is a cut-away sequence of an airport and its many planes being pulled from the runway and into the sky where they are thrust together. It looks fantastic, but unfortunately the event has nothing to do with the story or characters in the movie. If anything, it only begs the question of how a such small, rural town ended up with an enormous airport?
This all may seem fussy. However, when the human story isn’t engaging, the mind has plenty of time to wander and question the logic of it all. One truly feels sorry for the actors who no doubt went through a lot of physical strain acting in front of wind fans and being pelted with water. For all its bluster, the human drama of Into the Storm only results in unintentional chuckles. Those with a for taste for cheese may get a laugh or two from this effort, but all others should heed the weather warnings and stay away.