Tornado
IFC Films | Release Date: May 30, 2025 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
57
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 17 Critic Reviews
Positive:
8
Mixed:
8
Negative:
1

Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
90
IGNHanna FlintMay 29, 2025
With a blistering score and a darkly comic undercurrent, Tornado is a timeless revenge thriller filled with hurt and heart. Read full review
80
The New York TimesGlenn KennyMay 29, 2025
The movie quickly establishes itself as a revenge narrative, and each bad guy goes down in a way designed to suit the viewer’s justified bloodlust. Read full review
75
The A.V. ClubAndrew CrumpMay 29, 2025
It’s more that the specific combination of jidaigeki period piece, highland character study, and frontier justice that’s new, making Tornado a harrowing, blustery, violent amalgamation of an idiosyncratic spirit. Read full review
70
Screen DailyNikki BaughanMay 29, 2025
Scottish director John Maclean’s ambitious second feature is an intriguing blend of Western and samurai actioner — always close bedfellows — which makes the most of its untamed setting. Read full review
67
Austin ChronicleRichard WhittakerMay 29, 2025
Tornado is an undeniable success as a slow-burn, blood-soaked historical tragedy, both mournful and amoral, but it’s also a quietly fascinating exploration of identity and reinvention. Read full review
67
IndieWireJosh Slater-WilliamsMay 29, 2025
Despite considerable thrills throughout, Maclean’s writing makes it seem as though his characters never actually existed in their world before the film started. Read full review
67
Paste MagazineJim VorelMay 29, 2025
It’s arguably led astray by an imperative to swing in the direction of pulpier (and sellable) revenge story, backloading its genre goods so deeply that when they finally arrive late in the game, they derail the more contemplative mood that has been established. Tornado is left stranded between tones, set adrift without a rudder. Read full review
63
RogerEbert.comSimon AbramsMay 30, 2025
Your enjoyment of “Tornado” depends on how much you want to root for thinly drawn characters who don’t look strong enough to carry an entire movie. They can and they can’t, depending on how patient you’re feeling. Read full review
60
Screen RantNadir SamaraJul 10, 2025
The film does a serviceable job of creating a revenge story, but leaves some meat on the bone in terms of narrative and visuals. Scenes come to a standstill and make a very short movie drag in places it shouldn’t. That being said, the final showdown makes it all worth it. Read full review
60
EmpireBarry LevittJun 17, 2025
Deftly balancing multiple genres, Tornado’s occasional pacing issues are propelled by Jed Kurzel’s ferocious score, Robbie Ryan’s haunting cinematography, and standout performances from Kōki and Tim Roth. Read full review
60
The Irish TimesTara BradyJun 12, 2025
Tornado will frustrate the giblets out of anyone seeking narrative momentum or emotional catharsis. But viewers willing to sit with its stark silences and oppressive atmospherics can look forward to a singular, if rarely easy, watch. Read full review
60
The GuardianPeter BradshawMay 29, 2025
The pure strangeness of the movie commands attention and there is a charismatic lead performance by Japanese actor-musician Mitsuki Kimura, or Kôki. Read full review
50
Little White LiesDavid JenkinsJun 9, 2025
It’s laudable that Maclean wants to breathe new life into unabashed “B” material, but unfortunately the idiosyncratic touches have usurped rather than bolstered what should be robust, time-honoured noir framework, and we’re left with a film which leaves only a superficial impression and little sense of purpose. Read full review
50
Slant MagazineAlexander MooneyMay 27, 2025
Tornado’s winking theatricality, thematic fixations with myth and avarice, and pared-down plotting add up to a heady concoction, but it’s more conducive to reflection than engagement. Read full review
40
The TimesKevin MaherJun 12, 2025
There’s very little narrative sense here and even less psychological realism. Read full review
40
The TelegraphTim RobeyJun 12, 2025
If production problems didn’t thwart Maclean and crew from making a proper fist of all this, the editing took its eye off the ball. Read full review
25
The PlaylistWarren CantrellJun 1, 2025
Pleasant enough to look at but impossible to care about, this movie isn’t bad because it fails at what it sets out to do, but because of the most evil of all reasons: it never figures out its reason to be at all. Read full review
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