When was the last time a documentary you saw was also in the running for best action movie of the year? This subgenre of documentaries I fully endorse, especially if they’re as exciting as Never Stop Chasing was. In fact, I would like actual action movie directors to spend any amount of time with the storm chasers in this movie to see what real badasses look like.
I’m pretty sure Glen Powell built his Twisters character off of Reed Timmer. Since birth basically, the born to be Oklahoman has been fascinated with thunderstorms and tornadoes. So much so, that he turned it into his entire livelihood. Dominator is his brand, and he’s found his gang of men almost as crazy as he is: chaser savant Connor McCrorey, tech whizMike Scantlin, and TikTok/camera experts Edgar O’Neal and Matt Spatol. As people drive frantically to avoid tornadoes, Ken Cole captures this frenetic 5 as they try to wrangle each and every tornado they get a chance to, capturing as much data, and footage, as possible in the process.
As happy as I am Johnny Knoxville found his people, even he would bow down at how relieved Team Dominator was to find each other. It could be propaganda, but the easy camaraderie Cole captures shows these boys are kindred spirits, born to play their roles on the team. Reed’s the fearless leader, pushing the team further and further, while people like Michael adapt to his wishes, and people like Connor are necessary voices of reason that have earned Reed’s trust. We see roughly a 13 year period of their chasing, with the cameras quietly capturing how each has evolved over time, and not just physically. The toll of this dangerous work has left real scars: former partners like Tim Samara and Joel Taylor have since left this mortal coil, really affecting swagger incarnate Reed to even reveal a little vulnerability. Connor tells this unforgettable story about some of his participation about 2/3 of the way through that will have you quietly tearing up even though you least expected it. These guys aren’t exactly reservoirs of emotional understanding, but Ken Cole gives us enough insights to invest the audience into why the chasers should matter to us.
More importantly, that’s some necessary downtime from what we witness onscreen. I can’t remember the last time a movie made me cover my mouth or gasp as much as Never Stop Chasing did. We’re in the car with these brave psychos, watching tornadoes form and TRYING to get in their way to witness their power. Cole intercuts Reed’s camera footage with news reports clearly using his videos, proving how real these images are. It’s jaw dropping stuff, set to a propulsive score that had my blood pumping and eyeballs as wide open as possible as I witness the raw majesty, power, and terror of mother nature at her worst. No words need to be spoken for these sequences to work, but a random “holy shit” or “oh my god” from people who DO this for living? That certainly reinforces how I was feeling in that car with Team Domination completely terrified of what might be coming next.
Reed Timmer is never going to stop chasing until his body refuses to let him do so. Or he dies from a chase. While that might be sad, fret not y’all. Timmer is living the life he was born to lead, and I imagine would be honored to give himself to the great passion of his life. Unrelated, but Connor, can we be friends? I saw that Gobias shirt you were wearing: I can’t wait to her your stories and how funny they must be.