5. Twister (1996)
Jan de Bont originally made his name in Hollywood as the director of photography on films such as Die Hard. His success at helming Speed quickly led to him taking the helm of another suspenseful action flick though, one which was again script doctored by Joss Whedon. Twister followed the literal and emotional turmoil of soon to be divorced storm chasers Jo and Bill Harding as they attempt to try out their experimental new equipment, and Bill's fiancee Melissa is dragged along for the ride. Much like its characters, the reception of the film similarly went through something of a rough ride of its own. Just two years previously, the writer of the film, Michael Crichton, became the only person to simultaneously have a no. 1 charting film (Jurassic Park), TV series (ER),
and book (Disclosure). Quite why such a writer would need a script doctor to follow them is arguably questionable, but after Whedon's tweaks Twister went on to win a Golden Raspberry award (commonly known as a Razzie) for "Worst Screenplay Grossing Over $100 Million". The upshot of this of course, is that it made over $100 Million at the box office, and was in fact the second highest grossing film of the year, behind Independence Day. As the razzie award would suggest, it wasn't the most artistic of films, but was a popular blockbuster of the disaster genre. Impressive CGI effects brought the twisters to life, even if actress Jami Gertz did receive multiple "Worst Actress" nominations. It can occasionally be found on when channel hopping on TV, and was also the first Hollywood film to be released on DVD.
Whedon Hallmark: The gathering around Aunt Meg's dinner table again conforms to Whedon's idea of families being made of the friends you choose. The closest comparison would be families sharing Christmas Dinner together they are that familiar with each other, and though Melissa is welcomed her status as outsider is obvious.