I don't take pleasure in disliking most of the SyFy original movies, some are actually tolerable but there are others that are close to unwatchable. Space Twister is not one of the unwatchable ones, but I'd be lying if I said it was great. It doesn't look bad at all, the effects are reasonably good for SyFy, the scenery is nice and the photography is not too choppy either. The music is decent and fits the tone of the film well, while the acting is better than the bland or over-compensating acting that I have known to plague SyFy's films. Conversely, the story is very predictable, you actually have an inkling that you know what is going to happen and most of the time you're actually right and you can smell the outcome from miles off. SyFy have been known for bad science that you wonder whether they do any research at all. I have to say though while the science is really quite wacky in Space Twister and I often didn't have a clue as to what was being conveyed I admit that I did get a good laugh out of it. There are also plot holes and things that don't make sense, again typical of SyFy. The idea of the tornado feeding Brosommes discovered via an experiment and when the father figure drove the truck through the fire and what happened after that were the main offenders. There is a lack of suspense and any genuine sense of horror to what is going on as well, everything feels very generic. But the story is not the only problematic thing with Space Twister, though it is its biggest problem. I also found the dialogue very corny and the characters stereotypical and not developed enough to be all that likable. In conclusion, reasonably entertaining(mainly for the wacky science) and less cheap than anticipated but the story just didn't convince me in any way. 4/10 Bethany Cox
7 Reviews
No horribly fake CGI gargantuan monsters for a change...
paul_haakonsen19 July 2012
Warning: Spoilers
First of all I don't understand why this movie is listed as "Mega Cyclone" here on IMDb, when the title of the movie is "Space Twister", and it was even shown as "Space Twister" in the actual opening credit, even as "Space Twister" after every commercial break and SyFy Channel resuming showing it.
Moving on. For a SyFy Channel original movie, then "Space Twister" was actually surprisingly nice. There were no grotesquely mutated aberrations of nature here in the shapes of poorly CGI animated creatures bent on consuming mankind. Sure, you had space particles from Jupiter instead threatening to destroy our entire planet. But hey, it made for a nice change of pace from the many other SyFy Channel movies.
The effects in "Space Twister" were actually quite good for a SyFy Channel movie, and they far outshone the effects of many of their previous movies. I will actually go as far as to say that the effects in "Space Twister" were the best ones I've seen so far from SyFy. So thumbs up on that, as they went all out in this one.
The story, though, well... Sure it was nice to see a different type of story that didn't include abnormally large creatures preying on mankind for a change, but still particles from Jupiter that create massive electrical storms that disintegrate solid matter (and it was actually said in the movie that all of New York City and much of the area between Boston and Washington DC was entirely destroyed by the storm), it just seemed a tad out of proportion.
It was entertaining enough though, and I was thoroughly enjoying "Space Twister" despite it being predictable to the core. You know exactly what will happen and how the movie will end from the moment you are introduced to the characters. A sad fact, yes, but the movie was just that predictable. It's been seen countless times already; a small group of people save the entire world!
One question did pop into my mind when they managed to disperse the storm cloud and save the world. But wait, that cloud was only the cloud hanging over that small town in which the movie took place. What about the massive cloud that apparently managed to wipe out all of New York City and everything in between Boston and Washington DC? So that fact was just thrown into the discard pile and left to hope that the viewers didn't remember that? No, no, no, it was just jumping over where the fence was lowest.
It should also be said, though, that the cast they had put together for filling out the various roles in "Space Twister" were actually doing a great job. The acting was convincing and believable, despite working with a predictable storyline and your generic copy-paste turn of events for a disaster movie. But it was good acting performances all around.
Sure, "Space Twister" had its obvious faults, flaws and plot holes, but all in all, it did provide good entertainment and was a nice surprise from SyFy Channel. If you enjoy the copy-paste storyline disaster movie, then you will not be disappointed with "Space Twister".
SyFy Channel does manage to dish out the occasional surprise every now and then, and "Space Twister" was one of those great surprises.
Moving on. For a SyFy Channel original movie, then "Space Twister" was actually surprisingly nice. There were no grotesquely mutated aberrations of nature here in the shapes of poorly CGI animated creatures bent on consuming mankind. Sure, you had space particles from Jupiter instead threatening to destroy our entire planet. But hey, it made for a nice change of pace from the many other SyFy Channel movies.
The effects in "Space Twister" were actually quite good for a SyFy Channel movie, and they far outshone the effects of many of their previous movies. I will actually go as far as to say that the effects in "Space Twister" were the best ones I've seen so far from SyFy. So thumbs up on that, as they went all out in this one.
The story, though, well... Sure it was nice to see a different type of story that didn't include abnormally large creatures preying on mankind for a change, but still particles from Jupiter that create massive electrical storms that disintegrate solid matter (and it was actually said in the movie that all of New York City and much of the area between Boston and Washington DC was entirely destroyed by the storm), it just seemed a tad out of proportion.
It was entertaining enough though, and I was thoroughly enjoying "Space Twister" despite it being predictable to the core. You know exactly what will happen and how the movie will end from the moment you are introduced to the characters. A sad fact, yes, but the movie was just that predictable. It's been seen countless times already; a small group of people save the entire world!
One question did pop into my mind when they managed to disperse the storm cloud and save the world. But wait, that cloud was only the cloud hanging over that small town in which the movie took place. What about the massive cloud that apparently managed to wipe out all of New York City and everything in between Boston and Washington DC? So that fact was just thrown into the discard pile and left to hope that the viewers didn't remember that? No, no, no, it was just jumping over where the fence was lowest.
It should also be said, though, that the cast they had put together for filling out the various roles in "Space Twister" were actually doing a great job. The acting was convincing and believable, despite working with a predictable storyline and your generic copy-paste turn of events for a disaster movie. But it was good acting performances all around.
Sure, "Space Twister" had its obvious faults, flaws and plot holes, but all in all, it did provide good entertainment and was a nice surprise from SyFy Channel. If you enjoy the copy-paste storyline disaster movie, then you will not be disappointed with "Space Twister".
SyFy Channel does manage to dish out the occasional surprise every now and then, and "Space Twister" was one of those great surprises.
What the Heck?
gavin694222 July 2013
A high school science project inadvertently causes a storm that destroys New York, Boston, Washington and the small town of Heartfield. Can they stop it?
Another reviewer called this film "total nonsense" and I want to echo that sentiment. Yes, such things as X bosons exist. Well, at least hypothetically. But they have nothing to do with Jupiter and probably could not be discovered or harnessed by high school students. And, anyway, how does Jupiter's red spot end up on earth?
I did like that from the very beginning, many major American cities are destroyed. Not because I want to see American cities destroyed, but because it puts the plot in a strange position -- it does not allow the protagonists to save the world "in the nick of time". That time has already passed... so even if they succeed, what happens then?
For some reason it took SyFy two years to go from television to DVD on this one... and then the name was changed (it is now "Super Storm" and not "Mega Cyclone"). Although it has a few familiar faces (such as Mitch Pileggi) and some rising stars (Jon Mack), it really is not one that many people will be seeking out...
Another reviewer called this film "total nonsense" and I want to echo that sentiment. Yes, such things as X bosons exist. Well, at least hypothetically. But they have nothing to do with Jupiter and probably could not be discovered or harnessed by high school students. And, anyway, how does Jupiter's red spot end up on earth?
I did like that from the very beginning, many major American cities are destroyed. Not because I want to see American cities destroyed, but because it puts the plot in a strange position -- it does not allow the protagonists to save the world "in the nick of time". That time has already passed... so even if they succeed, what happens then?
For some reason it took SyFy two years to go from television to DVD on this one... and then the name was changed (it is now "Super Storm" and not "Mega Cyclone"). Although it has a few familiar faces (such as Mitch Pileggi) and some rising stars (Jon Mack), it really is not one that many people will be seeking out...
Space tornadoes, sounds good, but in the end is almost lackluster
marshalphipps11 May 2017
Warning: Spoilers
I find this film to be absurd because of the subject matter involved, mainly the whole high schoolers trying to save the world from space tornadoes with a science project. Yes, while X bosons exist, at least in theory, they have nothing to do with Jupiter. How does Jupiter's Great Red Spot end up on Earth? We're never given an answer to that. The film is vague and it leaves you with more questions than answers, something else I've noticed throughout the film is how the space tornadoes were roaring, if it was meant to make the tornadoes more aggressive and threatening it did little to do so.
The thing that hurts the film the most is a possible plot hole. If the Great Red Spot was to disappear and somehow find its way to Earth wouldn't the planet be enveloped almost immediately rather than slowly be affected since the Great Red Spot is larger than Earth?
The movie was renamed three times, first Super Storm, then Mega Cyclone, and finally Space Twister, why was it renamed so many times?
The only good things I can say about this movie is that the destruction scenes were good, there was a big improvement on special effects, and there were some familiar faces presented like Mitch Pileggi and Alex Zahara.
After watching the film multiple times I still don't feel completely satisfied due to unanswered questions presented and flimsy plot. The things that kept me watching is the destruction and the ludicrous plot that tries to make sense of itself but falters in the end.
The thing that hurts the film the most is a possible plot hole. If the Great Red Spot was to disappear and somehow find its way to Earth wouldn't the planet be enveloped almost immediately rather than slowly be affected since the Great Red Spot is larger than Earth?
The movie was renamed three times, first Super Storm, then Mega Cyclone, and finally Space Twister, why was it renamed so many times?
The only good things I can say about this movie is that the destruction scenes were good, there was a big improvement on special effects, and there were some familiar faces presented like Mitch Pileggi and Alex Zahara.
After watching the film multiple times I still don't feel completely satisfied due to unanswered questions presented and flimsy plot. The things that kept me watching is the destruction and the ludicrous plot that tries to make sense of itself but falters in the end.
A new record .... spot on prediction in less than 1 minute
Beachbum201828 May 2020
I'm going to call Guinness Records to see if I can get a new record for the shortest time from the start of a movie to predicting how bad it's going to be!
To be fair I'm not that smart, the movie is simply terrible.... the overlaid electric discharges did it for me!
There are numerous better things to be doing in life, like sleep, eating, walking the dog, going for a drive, visit the library or museum, visit relatives in the cemetery, paint the fence, cut the grass, study for exams, watch the news, do a crossword puzzle, etc, etc.
Not so good
gianmarcoronconi5 July 2023
Film that is obviously made and structured to be a normal Z-series disaster movie without too many pretensions and therefore must be taken exactly for what it is, I'm not saying it's a good film or even that this film is valid but in reality it should judged more mildly than how this film was judged. The film as a plot is very trivial and the acting is very amateurish not to mention of course the special effects which to say that they are tremendous is an understatement and these things all added together still generate an entertaining and not boring film for this in my opinion the film should be judged exactly as it is and therefore not too harshly.
Generic SyFy nonsense from Canada
Leofwine_draca12 January 2017
Warning: Spoilers
I caught this typical slice of SyFy Channel nonsense under the title of SUPER STORM, which I guess is just as generic a title as MEGA CYCLONE. And generic is certainly the word here: this is exactly the same as all of the other cheapo SyFy disaster flicks, chock full as it is of bad science, random characters and relationships that we're supposed to care about, and some very poor CGI effects that look worse than in a video game.
The plot is barely worth mentioning and features an artificially-created storm wreaking havoc and the high school students who have to figure out a way to stop it. Yep, it's really that ridiculous, and a total waste of time for anyone looking for decent entertainment. This one was shot in Canada, quickly becoming a byword for Z-grade productions, and features CGI that's even worse than usual. The cast is dreadful too, aside from rugged old timer Mitch Pileggi, who still has "it" years after SHOCKER and THE X-FILES.
The plot is barely worth mentioning and features an artificially-created storm wreaking havoc and the high school students who have to figure out a way to stop it. Yep, it's really that ridiculous, and a total waste of time for anyone looking for decent entertainment. This one was shot in Canada, quickly becoming a byword for Z-grade productions, and features CGI that's even worse than usual. The cast is dreadful too, aside from rugged old timer Mitch Pileggi, who still has "it" years after SHOCKER and THE X-FILES.
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