- DeChambeau says PGA's Ryder Cup decision 'just the start'
- Alcaraz defeated on Laver Cup debut
- Postecoglou embraces 'struggle' to make Spurs a success
- Nice hand 'ashamed' Saint-Etienne 8-0 Ligue 1 mauling
- Boeing CEO says ending strike 'a top priority'
- Harris slams Trump for hypocrisy on abortion as US starts voting
- Academy to host first overseas ceremony to honor young filmmakers
- No doctor necessary: US okays nasal spray flu vaccine for self-use
- Former delivery man Baldwin leads star names at PGA Championship
- Trump shooting: Secret Service admits complacency
- Can an ambitious Milei make Argentina an AI giant?
- Haiti, its suffering growing, in 'race against time': UN expert
- Ibrahim Aqil, the Hezbollah elite unit commander wanted by the US
- Chinese forward Cui signs NBA contract with Brooklyn Nets
- US Fed dissenter calls for 'measured' pace of rate cuts
- Guardiola tells players to lead change over workload as Kompany demands cap on games
- Norway limits wild salmon fishing as stocks hit new lows
- Top Hezbollah commander killed in Israeli strike on Beirut
- Rotterdam fatal knife attacker suspected of 'terrorist motive'
- First early votes cast in knife-edge US presidential election
- Top-ranked Swiatek out of Beijing due to 'personal matters'
- Hard-right Reform UK looks to the future after vote success
- Embiid agrees to NBA contract extension with 76ers
- Joshua aims to complete road to redemption in Dubois bout
- World champion Bagnaia sets pace with lap record at Misano
- Biden says 'working' to get people back to homes on Israel-Lebanon border
- Pope criticises Argentina's crackdown on protesters
- Court limits screenings of videos in France mass rape case
- Gurbaz century takes Afghanistan to 311-4 in 2nd ODI
- Central banks face 'difficult balancing act': IMF chief
- Guardiola tells players to lead change over workload fears
- Paris Olympics sports equipment moves to new homes
- 'Happy' Kinghorn relishing life at Toulouse
- Norris sets Singapore pace as Verstappen only 15th
- Germany to bid to host women's Euro 2029
- Portugal brings deadly forest fires under control
- Postecoglou defends Solanke after slow start to Spurs career
- US nuclear plant Three Mile Island to reopen to power Microsoft
- Arteta urges Arsenal to take next step in Man City showdown
- Stock markets fall after Fed-fuelled rally
- Poland charges Russian over attack on Navalny ally: prosecutors
- Man City have rest 'advantage' in Arsenal showdown: Guardiola
- Maresca has 'no doubt' in Jackson as Chelsea's number nine
- EU chief announces 35 bn euro loan plan for Ukraine before winter
- From TikTok to Hollywood, the irresistible rise of Italy's Khaby Lame
- Verstappen punished for swearing in Singapore press conference
- Sri Lanka lead by 202 in first New Zealand Test
- Brook 'not too fussed' by England's batting in heavy Australia loss
- India's Ashwin 'happy' to embrace pressure
- A modern 'Trojan Horse': two days of mayhem in Lebanon
'Twisters' director swaps arthouse for '90s blockbuster reboot
"Twisters," Hollywood's latest attempt to reboot nostalgic blockbusters for modern audiences, might seem an unlikely next career step for director Lee Isaac Chung.
His previous film, "Minari," was a sweet, quiet, semi-autobiographical tale of Korean immigrants struggling to adapt to life in rural 1980s Arkansas.
It earned the US director arthouse acclaim, and two Oscar nominations.
But even if it drew on nostalgia for the Deep South, it was a long way from "Twister" -- the big, brash 1996 blockbuster that terrified audiences with devastating Oklahoma tornadoes, brought to life with nascent computer-generated effects.
Even so, giant Hollywood studio Universal tapped Chung for "Twisters," out in US theaters on Friday -- and he jumped at the opportunity.
"I was really wanting to make a movie like this for quite a long time," he told AFP at the film's Los Angeles premiere last week.
"In my mind, it was never a stretch."
Part of that appeal was the chance to play with the latest computer-generated visual effects, known in the industry as VFX.
The film employed the talents of George Lucas's Industrial Light and Magic, to generate "really epic" effects, said Chung.
"In terms of VFX, there's just so much more that can be done to the environment around a tornado," he said.
"In that first film, you just see the tornado itself. But really what makes a tornado powerful is the effect that it has on nature and the surroundings."
"Twisters" has not escaped controversy.
The LA premiere was interrupted by animal rights activists, protesting the film's use of live animals for a rodeo scene.
But so far, the gamble looks to be paying off.
The film, made for around $200 million and distributed overseas by fellow Hollywood titan Warner Bros, is reportedly on track to make around $50 million on its first weekend in North American theaters alone.
It stars Daisy Edgar-Jones ("Normal People") as a meteorologist forced to team up with a daredevil storm chaser, played by Glen Powell ("Top Gun: Maverick").
"I think that the first movie was a spectacle. It was beautiful and big," said their co-star Paul Scheer.
"This movie has got heart, humor, comedy. It actually takes the blueprint and plusses it up."
Ferreira--PC