Review of Tornado Warning

I just saw the film last nite on PAX, and I had heard that it was shot very quickly and under very trying circumstances. I thought the casting was excellent. Gerald McRaney as scientist Jake Arledge who comes up with the predictor invention was very credible. Thea Gill was very good too as the newspaper reporter and estranged daughter Dee. But Joan Van Ark stole the show for me as the Mayor of the town where the tornado is predicted to hit. She was understated in her early scenes, then hilariously over the top toward the end. Extremely entertaining. The film's plot was surprisingly mature for a family film, and happily lacked condescending or maudlin "family" moments. The dynamic of the strained relationship between father and daughter was straight forward and direct. When the two join together to fight nature's fury, Dee still expresses doubts about her father's abilities, but ultimately decides to help him because of her faith in him. David Milburn plays TV news competitor Curt Reid, who runs a "Stormchaser" tour putting tourists directly in harm's way (while receiving a nice embroidered jacket) was over the top and a hoot to watch. As a villain he was rooted in his vanity and his drive for ratings and fame, not out to sabotage Dee and Jake which was a refreshing turn for these kind of movies where the villain can be so loathingly obvious. Steve Braun as the shy but intelligent assistant to Jake was believable and what else- a gosh darn good-looking teen boy for the boy band set. Although the visual effects were spartan, the scenes' shift of focus on the characters' dilemma and reaction made it a very entertaining movie for me. I loved Joan Van Ark's Mayor Dottie in the last third of the film. I have also read in a chat room that David Milburn has shot a hilarious and over the top infomercial for the "Stormchasers" tour complete with testimonials from kids and parents who had taken the tour and loved "seeing barns get blown away while we ate gourmet meals in our climate controlled van". I read (it's probably a rumor, but I hope it's true) that the producers thought it was too over the top for the US, but is being inserted in the Japanese version.

Another reason to buy the Japanese DVD import (nothing too over the top for the land of "Godzilla")! I also read the version will also contain additional news reports from Curt Reid as well. He was a hoot to watch. For a cast of only eight, chasing across midwest prairies in search of tornadoes, I found the film to a nice diversion and very entertaining for the whole family.