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So despite being the biggest Twister fan, I have never read the original screenplay by Michael Crichton and Anne-Marie Martin (they were married) before. So I’m going to tweet an ongoing thread with my observations, which I might collect in a blog post later. #TwisterScript
1/x https://twitter.com/lovepirate77/status/1313192264420614145">https://twitter.com/lovepirat...
1/x https://twitter.com/lovepirate77/status/1313192264420614145">https://twitter.com/lovepirat...
The script opens with a far shorter intro featuring young Jo, though not clearly specified as her. No Tobey, hardly any conversation, just hiding in the storm cellar as the house is destroyed. #TwisterScript
2/x
2/x
Bill and Melissa are introduced as much more into each other, and there’s a cute bit where they rehearse what he’s going to say to Jo before they get there. #TwisterScript
3/x
3/x
Hardly any definition is given to Jo’s team of storm chasers. Collectively described as “young grad students in their 20’s,” only Dusty has much to say at all, and even he lacks any personality so far. We’ll see if that changes as things go along. #TwisterScript
4/x
4/x
Jo is way angrier in this version. Like, she’s straight up an ass to not Brian (Jeremy Davies) about the grass in the auto focus, yelling and cursing at him. #TwisterScript
5/x
5/x
Lots of information dropping early. Jo interrupts signing papers to go to lunch to get to know Melissa. Her job comes up right away and she says she and Bill want to start a family right away. Jo replies, “I’m glad you’re going to give him all the things I never could.”
6/x
6/x
They introduce Dorothy, and name drop Jonas early, who in this version used to be Jo and Bill’s boss. Fujita scale comes up too. Lots of info dump without any action yet. #TwisterScript
7/x
7/x
Oh, Jo’s last name is Wilder in this version. (Her maiden name in the movie was Thornton but she took Bill’s last name when they got married.) #TwisterScript
8/x
8/x
Wow, Jo is SUPER manipulative in this version. She intentionally drives over a piece of junk with Bill and Melissa in her truck and gets a flat, she tunes her radio to Jonas’s channel and pretends to call Dusty to help knowing Jonas will show up. #TwisterScript
9/x
9/x
As a side note to Jo’s character, the book has an intro from Crichton about how the script came to be. His wife formed the broad idea but they couldn’t figure out a story to go with the tornadoes. Eventually came up with a love triangle as the driving story. #TwisterScript
10/x
10/x
Obviously, the love triangle exists in the movie, but the film is about much more than that, and it’s clear from the beginning that it’s about Jo and Bill’s relationship and Jo’s trauma, with the triangle not being much of a threat to them. (But Melissa did nothing wrong.)
11/x
11/x
Jonas is described as “bearded and tough,” 40 years old, with “military bearing.” He times his guys as they change the tire for Jo, and really shits on Bill for his failures to get Dorothy to work. His description of DOT3’s tech is exactly in the film, though. #TwisterScript
12/x
12/x
The stakes are set up for the audience because the teams are competing for a big NSF grant to develop the new early warning system. Whoever gets their package to fly first wins. #TwisterScript
13/x
13/x
Jo wants to build on the existing system to get the new warnings out faster with only 6 months of development. Jonas would take 6 years and would work out billions of dollars for his corporate sponsors in gov’t contracts for the new system no matter who dies in the meantime.
14/x
14/x
Billy keeps saying no to Jo, despite her more direct maneuvering and manipulation of him. Seems like there’s a lot more bad blood between the two, rather than love an affection soured by incompatibility and obsession like in the movie. #TwisterScript
15/x
15/x
But oddly she’s really supportive up front about him being a weatherman (in Phoenix) and they haven’t made a big deal about it yet. #TwisterScript
16/x
16/x
That’s as far as I got today. Lots of info dump with no action so far. I’ll continue this thread as I go if anyone finds it interesting and loves Twister as much as I do. #TwisterScript
17/x
17/x
