It seems most everybody enjoys tornado movies. After all, tornado movies typically are good thrillers where the ‘bad guy’ is a powerful force of nature that strikes both awe and fear into us at the same time.
In fact, you could say that tornado movies usually involve a major ‘plot twist’ (OK, maybe that wasn’t the best joke).
But, seriously, what are some movies that star at least one tornado?
5 Great Tornado Movies
So what are some good tornado movies?
Well, keep in mind that the list of tornado movies is relatively small to begin with.
After all, most thrillers involve villains are played by human actors — not meteorological terrors (or computer-generated special effects meant to look like tornadoes!)
So, sit back, relax, and take some time to enjoy the 5 films listed below:
- The Wizard Of Oz (1939) Who can forget the tornado that dropped Dorothy’s house on the Wicked Witch of the East? Tornado Movie Fun Fact: The tornado in The Wizard Of Oz is actually a 35-foot-long muslin sock!
- Twister (1996) The major player in this movie is a violent tornado that destroys a town and bewilders the mystifies the scientists trying to explore more about tornadoes with the use of special data-gathering instruments.
- Storm Chasers: Revenge Of The Twisters (1998) This made-for-TV-movie follows the career ups and downs of a storm chaser, whose storm-chasing husband had been killed on the job, sent to investigate extreme weather conditions.
- Night Of The Twisters (1996) A Nebraska town is ravaged by a storm dropping furious tornadoes in this movie that profiles the plight and travails of a family.
- Tornado! (1996) This made-for-TV-movie shows one man’s efforts to develop a machine that can predict tornado development. Encounters with tornadoes occurs throughout the film.
Are The Tornadoes In Movies Realistic?
You’re probably wondering if the tornadoes you see spinning out of control in the movies are really anything like the tornadoes you hear about in the news.
Well, yes and no. Perhaps the most realistic thing about the tornadoes in films like Twister is that strong tornadoes (like the F-4s and F-5s measured on the Enhanced Fujita Scale) can really cause widespread devastation. In fact, some tornadoes have nearly leveled whole towns.
However, there are many exaggerations in the way some Hollywood tornadoes are portrayed. While tornado outbreaks can yield the development of several tornadoes at a time, mutant-style outbreaks of 500-mile-per-hour tornadoes wiping large cities off the map are unheard of.
Be wary of any film showing scientists making heroic passes through tornadoes while driving cars or trucks. This is not only dangerous, it’s virtually impossible that anybody could drive a vehicle through (or very near) a serious tornado and live to tell the tale.
Tornadoes have been known to pick up cars, trucks, and even trains as easily as a child picks up a toy. Once air-born, vehicles are thrown around and smashed into buildings, trees, or the ground.
…But Can Tornadoes Pick Up Houses And Kill Witches?
Tornadoes may be able to kill witches (and other people in their way), but I’d be careful about taking trips in houses picked up by tornadoes. Yes, whole buildings (small ones anyway) have been thrown into the air and carried about, but they usually crash down in pieces.
However, you might be interested to know that a tornado once picked up a locomotive and then placed it down in the opposite direction on a nearby track!
I'm a weather geek from Florida who's been studying meteorology and watching weather patterns for years! I enjoy sharing little-known facts and fun stuff about the weather. I especially like sharing interesting details about weather events and conditions that can affect you… and how to prepare for Mother Nature's ever-changing weather patterns.
