Into the Storm (2014 film)

Last updated

Into the Storm
Into the Storm 2014 film.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed by Steven Quale
Written byJohn Swetnam
Produced by Todd Garner
Starring
CinematographyBrian Pearson
Edited byEric A. Sears
Music by Brian Tyler
Production
companies
Distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures [1]
Release date
  • August 8, 2014 (2014-08-08)(United States)
Running time
89 minutes [2]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$50 million [3]
Box office$161.5 million [4]

Into the Storm is a 2014 American found footage disaster film directed by Steven Quale, written by John Swetnam, and starring Richard Armitage, Sarah Wayne Callies, Matt Walsh, Alycia Debnam-Carey, and Arlen Escarpeta. It is a meteorological disaster film about a rash of tornadoes striking the fictional town of Silverton, Oklahoma.

Contents

The film was released by Warner Bros. Pictures on August 8, 2014. The film grossed $161.5 million against the $50 million budget, and received mixed reviews; while it was praised for its special effects, the film was criticized for its scriptwriting and casting.

Plot

In the town of Silverton, Oklahoma, the local high school senior class prepares for graduation. The high school's vice-principal, Gary Fuller, has asked his two sons, Trey and Donnie, to record messages from the seniors for a time capsule to be opened in 25 years. Elsewhere, Pete, a veteran storm chaser, has been attempting to intercept and film tornadoes using a Tornado Intercept Vehicle nicknamed Titus, but has come up short all year long. Upon learning of a major line of developing storms, the chasers decide to head for Silverton in hopes of filming tornadoes. After arriving in Silverton, the team discovers that the cell they had been chasing has dissipated, but the Silverton cell abruptly strengthens, resulting in a hailstorm and tornado. As the team films, the funnel shifts course and heads for the high school.

At the high school, the weather suddenly sours. The students are marshaled into the school building. In the aftermath of the tornado, shaken students emerge from the damaged building to view the destruction, while Gary sets out to rescue his eldest son Donnie, who had gone to an abandoned paper mill to help his friend Kaitlyn with a project; both were subsequently trapped when the tornado brought the building down on them.

As Pete's storm chase team stops in a small part of town, a tornado takes shape just as Gary and Trey arrive, destroying several buildings. Before the tornado dissipates Gary must save Pete's meteorologist, Allison Stone. Then, Pete's team agree to help Gary get to the paper mill. While en route, another round of tornadoes form and encircle Pete's team, in the process destroying a residential neighborhood and a car lot. An explosion turns one of the tornadoes into a firenado, which Jacob the cameraman tries to film, only to be caught up in the storm and killed. This causes friction in the team, as Pete's concern seems to be more on collecting data than ensuring his team's safety, until Daryl admits that he pressured Jacob into filming, causing his death. After recovering their vehicles, Allison leaves with Gary to continue their trip to the paper mill.

At the mill, a water pipe abruptly breaks and begins to flood the hole in which Donnie and Kaitlyn are trapped. Injured and at risk of drowning, the two record messages for their loved ones, then prepare for the worst. At the last minute, Gary and Allison arrive and successfully free them.

In the skies above Silverton, a convergence of two large tornadoes results in a colossal EF-5 tornado that threatens to level the town. The town's citizens have taken shelter at the school, but Pete's team determines that the school's storm shelter will be inadequate. Unable to alert the school's staff with mobile devices, Pete's team rushes to the school. While citizens rush to board school buses, Pete and his team follow the storm, but the last school bus and a handful of cars are cut off from the retreat due to a downed transmission tower.

The storm chasers and school refugees take cover in a storm drain at a construction site, but a truck from the airport that the tornado struck damages one of the storm grates, compromising the shelter. In an attempt to save lives, Pete hands over his research hard drives to Gary, then sacrifices himself by leaving the shelter to move Titus down to the storm grate, to use the vehicle to anchor the storm grate to the concrete face and has the others tie its towline to the crashed truck for support. Titus's equipment proves unable to anchor the vehicle to the ground, and the tornado picks up the vehicle. From the camera turret aboard Titus, Pete observes the funnel of the tornado as the vehicle is lifted above the clouds, fulfilling his dream, before then crashing to the ground, killing him and wrecking Titus. Shortly thereafter, the EF-5 tornado dissipates.

In the aftermath of the tornado outbreak, the townspeople begin to clean up and rebuild. As Gary's sons complete their time capsule film, many of those they interview express newfound appreciations for their lives. Allison praises Pete's sacrifice and dedication to science. The last footage shows two local daredevils Donk and Reevis, who appeared earlier during the movie, who were sucked up by the tornado, have survived the storm.

Cast

ArmitageBAFTAs2010.jpg
Sarah Wayne Callies Comic-Con 4, 2012.jpg
Richard Armitage (left) and Sarah Wayne Callies (right), who play the lead roles in the film

Production

Oakland University's building, where some shots were filmed. Meadowbrook Hall.JPG
Oakland University's building, where some shots were filmed.

On October 28, 2011, Deadline reported that New Line Cinema bought the "found footage" natural disaster spec script written by John Swetnam, and that Todd Garner would be producing the film through his Broken Road Productions company. Garner came up with the idea for the script. [12] On January 5, 2012 it was announced that director Steve Quale would direct the then-untitled "Found-Footage" Tornado thriller. [13]

On April 24, 2012, Variety reported that New Line had given the green light for their next film project, about an EF6 tornado (although the current EF5 category has no upper limit), and that the film was in development and set to begin shooting on July 9 in Detroit. [14] On August 23, 2012, the untitled "Category Six" Tornado project film got the title Black Sky, and was filming in Detroit. [15] On September 24, 2013, New Line retitled the film to Into the Storm and set the release date to August 8, 2014. [16]

Casting

An open casting call was held on May 19, 2012 in Pontiac, Michigan. [17] On May 24, Alycia Debnam-Carey signed up to play a female lead. [9] On June 1, New Line added Arlen Escarpeta to the project. [11] On June 22, Sarah Wayne Callies signed up to play Allison Stone. [6] On July 2, New Line cast Nathan Kress, who portrayed a brother finding his sibling. [10] On July 11, 2012, Richard Armitage signed up to portray Gary Fuller, a widowed father who tries to rescue his son from the tornadoes. Shooting was set to begin on July 23 in Detroit. [5] On July 13, Max Deacon joined the film's cast to play Donnie, an introverted teen with a crush on his high school's prettiest girl. [8] Comedian Matt Walsh joined the cast of the film on August 1, 2012 to play the character of Pete. [7]

Filming

Principal photography began in July 2012 in Detroit. [18] On August 13, 2012, shooting moved to Rochester, Michigan, two weeks after filming wrapped in Detroit. [19] It was also filmed in Oakland Charter Township, Oakview Middle School and Oakland University. [20]

Music

The film's music was scored by Brian Tyler. The soundtrack of the film was released on August 5, 2014. [21]

Visual effects

The visual effects are provided by Digital Domain, Moving Picture Company, Cinesite, Method Studios, Prime Focus World, Scanline VFX and The Third Floor, Inc. and Supervised by Jay Barton, Guillaume Rocheron, Simon Stanley-Clamp, Nordin Rahhali, Bruce Woloshyn, Randy Goux, Chad Wiebe, Shawn Hull and Tracy L. Kettler with help from Hydraulx and Rhythm and Hues Studios. [22]

Release

On September 24, 2013, Warner Bros. Pictures set the film to be released on August 8, 2014. [16] The film was released on Digital HD on October 28, 2014, and on DVD and Blu-ray on November 18, 2014 by Warner Home Video.

Box office

Into the Storm grossed $47.6 million in the US and $113.9 million in other territories for a total of $161.5 million, against a production budget of $50 million. [23]

Critical response

On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes the film has an approval rating of 21% based on 160 reviews and an average rating of 4.28/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "Clumsily scripted and populated with forgettable characters, Into the Storm has little to offer beyond its admittedly thrilling special effects." [24] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 44 out of 100, based on 32 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews". [25]

Variety's Scott Foundas called the film "(a) feature-length VFX demo reel that makes one pine for the glory days of Jan de Bont". [26] Scott Mendelson of Forbes reviewed the film and commented that the film is visually dazzling and mostly successful in updating the disaster film for the YouTube age. He said, "The special effects work is basically flawless, and you absolutely get what you arguably came to see. You want big-screen images of insanely large-scale tornadoes and big-scale devastation and disaster carnage? Into the Storm gives you plenty of rock-solid disaster porn." [27]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">El Reno, Oklahoma</span> City in Oklahoma, United States

El Reno is a city in and the county seat of Canadian County, Oklahoma, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city population was 16,989, marking a change of 1.55% from 16,729, recorded in the 2010 census. The city was begun shortly after the 1889 land rush and named for the nearby Fort Reno. It is located in Central Oklahoma, about 25 miles (40 km) west of downtown Oklahoma City.

<i>Twister</i> (1996 film) American film by Jan de Bont

Twister is a 1996 American disaster film directed by Jan de Bont, and written by Michael Crichton and Anne-Marie Martin. It was produced by Crichton, Kathleen Kennedy, and Ian Bryce, with Steven Spielberg, Walter Parkes, Laurie MacDonald, and Gerald R. Molen serving as executive producers. The film stars an ensemble cast that includes Helen Hunt, Bill Paxton, Jami Gertz, and Cary Elwes. It follows a group of storm chasers trying to deploy a tornado research device during a severe outbreak in Oklahoma.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tropical Storm Allison</span> Atlantic tropical storm in 2001

Tropical Storm Allison was a tropical cyclone that devastated southeast Texas in June 2001. An arguable example of the "brown ocean effect", Allison lasted unusually long for a June storm, remaining tropical and subtropical for 16 days, most of which was when the storm was over land dumping torrential rainfall. The storm developed from a tropical wave in the northern Gulf of Mexico on June 4, 2001, and struck the upper Texas coast shortly thereafter. It drifted northward through the state, turned back to the south, and re-entered the Gulf of Mexico. The storm continued to the east-northeast, made landfall on Louisiana, then moved across the southeast United States and Mid-Atlantic. Allison was the first storm since Tropical Storm Frances in 1998 to strike the northern Texas coastline.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Omaha Storm Chasers</span> Minor League Baseball team in Papillion, Nebraska

The Omaha Storm Chasers are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Kansas City Royals. They are located in Papillion, Nebraska, a suburb southwest of Omaha, and play their home games at Werner Park, which opened in 2011. The team previously played at Johnny Rosenblatt Stadium from 1969 to 2010.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Matt Walsh (comedian)</span> American comedian and actor (born 1964)

Matthew Paul Walsh is an American comedian and actor. He is best known for his role as Mike McLintock in Veep for which he received two Primetime Emmy Award nominations. He is a founding member of the Upright Citizens Brigade sketch comedy troupe, with which he co-starred in its original television series and the 2015 reboot. He also previously starred in short-lived comedy programs such as Dog Bites Man and Players, and was a correspondent on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. He has also appeared in films such as Road Trip (2000), Bad Santa (2003), School for Scoundrels (2006), Role Models (2008), The Hangover (2009), and The Do-Over (2016).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Richard Armitage (actor)</span> English actor

Richard Crispin Armitage is an English actor and author. He received recognition in the UK with his first leading role as John Thornton in the British television programme North & South (2004). His role as dwarf king and leader Thorin Oakenshield in Peter Jackson's film trilogy adaptation of The Hobbit brought him international recognition.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">George Kourounis</span> Canadian storm chaser (born 1970)

George Kourounis, is a Greek-Canadian adventurer and storm chaser who specializes in documenting extreme weather and worldwide natural disasters. He presents the television series Angry Planet.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tornadoes of 2004</span>

This page documents notable tornadoes and tornado outbreaks worldwide in 2004. Strong and destructive tornadoes form most frequently in the United States, Bangladesh, and Eastern India, but they can occur almost anywhere under the right conditions. Tornadoes also develop occasionally in southern Canada during the Northern Hemisphere's summer and somewhat regularly at other times of the year across Europe, Asia, and Australia. Tornadic events are often accompanied with other forms of severe weather, including strong thunderstorms, strong winds, and hail.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tornado Intercept Vehicle</span> Vehicle used to film a tornado

The Tornado Intercept Vehicle 1 and Tornado Intercept Vehicle 2 are vehicles used to film with an IMAX camera from very close to or within a tornado. They were designed by film director Sean Casey. Both TIVs have "intercepted" numerous tornadoes, including the June 12, 2005, Jayton, Texas tornado, the June 5, 2009, Goshen County, Wyoming tornado, and the strongest intercept, made by TIV 2, the May 27, 2013, Lebanon, Kansas tornado.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Madison Davenport</span> American actress

Madison Davenport is an American actress, best known for her role as Beatrice in It's What's Inside and as Kate Fuller in From Dusk till Dawn: The Series. She also appeared in Kit Kittredge: An American Girl as Kit's friend Ruthie Smithens.

Storm spotting is a form of weather spotting in which observers watch for the approach of severe weather, monitor its development and progression, and actively relay their findings to local authorities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arlen Escarpeta</span> Belizean-American actor

Arlen Alexander Escarpeta is a Belizean-born American actor. He is best known for his roles in the films Friday the 13th, Brotherhood, Final Destination 5, Into the Storm (2014), and most notably, his portrayal of Bobby Brown in the 2015 film Whitney.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tornadoes of 1995</span>

This page documents the tornadoes and tornado outbreaks of 1995, primarily in the United States. Most tornadoes form in the U.S., although some events may take place internationally. Tornado statistics for older years like this often appear significantly lower than modern years due to fewer reports or confirmed tornadoes, but by the 1990s, tornado statistics were coming closer to the numbers seen today.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2011 Joplin tornado</span> Destructive EF5 tornado in Missouri

The 2011 Joplin tornado was a large and devastating multiple-vortex tornado that struck Joplin, Missouri, United States, on the evening of Sunday, May 22, 2011. Part of a larger late-May tornado outbreak, the EF5 tornado began just west of Joplin and intensified very quickly, reaching a maximum width of nearly one mile (1.6 km) during its path through the southern part of the city. The tornado tracked eastward through Joplin, and then continued across Interstate 44 into rural portions of Jasper and Newton counties, weakening before it dissipated.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2013 El Reno tornado</span> Widest and second-strongest tornado ever recorded

The 2013 El Reno tornado was an extremely large, powerful, and erratic tornado that occurred over rural areas of Central Oklahoma during the early evening of Friday, May 31, 2013. This rain-wrapped, multiple-vortex tornado was the widest tornado ever recorded and was part of a larger weather system that produced dozens of tornadoes over the preceding days. The tornado initially touched down at 6:03 p.m. Central Daylight Time (2303 UTC) about 8.3 miles (13.4 km) west-southwest of El Reno, rapidly growing in size and becoming more violent as it tracked through central portions of Canadian County. Remaining over mostly open terrain, the tornado did not impact many structures; however, measurements from mobile weather radars revealed extreme winds in excess of 313 mph (504 km/h) within the vortex. These are among the highest observed wind speeds on Earth, just slightly lower than the wind speeds of the 1999 Bridge Creek–Moore tornado. As it crossed U.S. 81, it had grown to a record-breaking width of 2.6 miles (4.2 km), beating the previous width record set in 2004. Turning northeastward, the tornado soon weakened. Upon crossing Interstate 40, the tornado dissipated around 6:43 p.m. CDT (2343 UTC), after tracking for 16.2 miles (26.1 km), it avoided affecting the more densely populated areas near and within the Oklahoma City metropolitan area.

Next Stop Hollywood is an Australian observational documentary television series directed by Gary Doust and produced by Matchbox Pictures. It follows six ambitious Australian actors competing for roles in Los Angeles during the frenzied TV pilot season. The six-part series was screened on ABC1 in 2013.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alycia Debnam-Carey</span> Australian actress (born 1993)

Alycia Jasmin Debnam-Carey is an Australian actress. She made her film debut in 2003 in Rachel Ward's Australian short drama film Martha's New Coat, and her feature film debut in the American disaster film Into the Storm (2014). From 2014 to 2016, she portrayed Lexa on the dystopian science fiction series The 100. She co-starred as Alicia Clark on the horror drama series Fear the Walking Dead (2015–2023), and made her directorial debut with the seventh season episode "Ofelia". In 2023, Debnam-Carey co-starred as Alice Hart in the Australian drama Amazon miniseries The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart, for which she received an AACTA Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress in a Drama.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Steven Quale</span> American film director

Steven Quale is an American film director, known for Final Destination 5 and Into the Storm, as well as his earlier work as a second unit director for James Cameron on Titanic (1997) and Avatar (2009).

<i>Whitney</i> (2015 film) 2015 American TV series or program

Whitney is a 2015 American biographical film directed by Angela Bassett based on American singer Whitney Houston and her turbulent marriage to R&B artist Bobby Brown that premiered on Lifetime in North America on January 17, 2015. Whitney received mixed-to-positive reviews from critics, with DaCosta's performance as Houston and Bassett's direction being praised but Escarpeta's casting and the film's accuracy being criticized. Bassett was nominated at the Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directing – Miniseries or TV Film and at the Black Reel Awards for Outstanding Director in a Television Miniseries or Movie.

Lexa (<i>The 100</i>) Character from The CWs TV series The 100

Lexa is a fictional character from the post-apocalyptic science fiction television series The 100, portrayed by Alycia Debnam-Carey. The recurring character does not appear in the books on which the series is loosely based. The commander of the allied Grounder clans, Lexa is portrayed as a reasonable leader and strong warrior. She considers love a weakness, a view significantly impacted by the murder of her former girlfriend. Although she starts to show romantic feelings for Clarke Griffin and takes her views into consideration, Lexa puts her people first, even at the expense of Clarke's trust. Lexa's progressive leadership places her in conflict with her people, especially after changes to her coalition.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Into the Storm (2014)". AFI Catalog of Feature Films . Retrieved September 7, 2020.
  2. "INTO THE STORM (12A)". Warner Bros. British Board of Film Classification. April 3, 2014. Retrieved April 3, 2014.
  3. Giardina, Carolyn (August 1, 2014). "How 'Into the Storm' Built a Better Tornado on a Budget". The Hollywood Reporter . Archived from the original on August 2, 2014. Retrieved August 1, 2014.
  4. "Into The Storm (2014) - Box Office Mojo" . Retrieved December 27, 2015.
  5. 1 2 Rottenberg, Josh (July 11, 2012). "'Hobbit' star Richard Armitage lands major role in tornado thriller". ew.com. Retrieved January 4, 2014.
  6. 1 2 Patten, Dominic (June 22, 2012). "'Walking Dead's' Sarah Wayne Callies Joins Steve Quale Tornado Film". Deadline Hollywood . Archived from the original on January 8, 2014. Retrieved January 4, 2014.
  7. 1 2 Patten, Dominic (August 1, 2012). "'Veep's' Matt Walsh Joins Steve Quale's 'Untitled' Tornado Movie". Deadline Hollywood . Retrieved January 4, 2014.
  8. 1 2 3 McNary, Dave (July 13, 2012). "Max Deacon in New Line's tornado vortex". variety.com. Retrieved January 6, 2014.
  9. 1 2 Patten, Dominic (May 24, 2012). "Alycia Debnam-Carey Joins Steve Quale Tornado Film". Deadline Hollywood . Archived from the original on May 26, 2012. Retrieved January 4, 2014.
  10. 1 2 McNary, Dave (July 2, 2012). "Nathan Kress joins 'Category Six'". variety.com. Retrieved January 6, 2014.
  11. 1 2 McNary, Dave (June 1, 2012). "Arlen Escarpeta joins 'Category Six' cast". variety.com. Retrieved January 4, 2014.
  12. Fleming, Mike Jr. (October 28, 2011). "New Line Cinema Lands 'Category Six' Spec". Deadline Hollywood . Retrieved January 6, 2014.
  13. Billington, Alex (January 5, 2012). "'Final Destination' Director Steve Quale to Helm 'Cat 6' Tornado Movie". firstshowing.net. Retrieved January 6, 2014.
  14. "'Six' gets whirl at New Line". variety.com. April 24, 2012. Retrieved January 6, 2014.
  15. "New Line's Tornado Thriller Gets a Title". comingsoon.net. August 23, 2012. Retrieved January 6, 2014.
  16. 1 2 McClintock, Pamela (September 24, 2013). "Found-Footage Tornado Pic 'Into the Storm' to Hit Theaters August 2014". hollywoodreporter.com. Retrieved January 6, 2014.
  17. "Open Casting Call for 'Category 6′ will take place at ActorFest in Pontiac, MI this weekend". onlocationvacations.com. May 15, 2012. Archived from the original on January 5, 2014. Retrieved January 4, 2014.
  18. Xenia (August 25, 2012). "Richard Armitage Filming Black Sky". collarcitybrownstone.com. Archived from the original on August 31, 2012. Retrieved January 4, 2014.
  19. Bull, Kristin (August 11, 2012). "Tornado Movie Filming in Rochester This Week". patch.com. Retrieved January 6, 2014.
  20. Bull, Kristin (March 18, 2013). "No Release Date Yet for Tornado Movie Filmed in Oakland Township". oaklandtownship.patch.com. Retrieved January 4, 2014.
  21. "'Into the Storm' Soundtrack Details". filmmusicreporter.com. July 23, 2014. Retrieved August 1, 2014.
  22. "INTO THE STORM - The Art of VFX". www.artofvfx.com. July 23, 2014. Retrieved July 14, 2019.
  23. "Into The Storm (2014) - Box Office Mojo" . Retrieved September 30, 2014.
  24. "Into The Storm". Rotten Tomatoes . Fandango Media . Retrieved August 21, 2018.
  25. "Into the Storm reviews". Metacritic . Retrieved August 7, 2014.
  26. Foundas, Scott (August 7, 2014). "Film Review: 'Into the Storm'". Variety . Retrieved August 7, 2014.
  27. Mendelson, Scott (August 7, 2014). "Review: 'Into The Storm' Is 'Twister' For The Climate Change/You Tube Era". forbes.com. Retrieved August 7, 2014.