Terminator Salvation (2009)
God I love summer, and in 2009, tis the season to reboot! Sometimes this is good, sometimes it’s bad, and sometimes I just want to hurl. Regardless, one must always approach the summer action blockbuster with caution, at least for your expectations (your wallet is obviously a lost cause). This is especially important when being faced with so many franchises, where there are more sequels than Nickelback flaws. While the season got off to a rough start with X-Men Origins: Wolverine (2009), things certainly picked up with Star Trek (2009). This, of course, now brings us to Terminator Salvation (2009), the 4th installment of the classic franchise and the first to star Batman but be more or less void of Arnie. Naturally, such a notion would cause hesitation, but the more skeptical you are, the more you will probably enjoy it and be pleasantly surprised. The movie is a non-stop thrill ride featuring excellent special effects layered upon carefully crafted action sequences. It goes for the gut and achieves, but just keep in mind that it only goes for the gut, not the mind. While you may have reservations about its function in the franchise, it certainly retains and transfers the momentum of the summer’s action blockbuster entertainment value.
Continuing on the timeline established in the original movies, Terminator Salvation finds John Connor (Batman) in 2018, leading the human resistance against the ruthless machines of Skynet, post-Judgment Day. Despite having a leading-the-human-resistance-in-the-future-book-on-tape courtesy of his mother Sarah Connor (archival Linda Hamilton, providing at least a smidge of continuity), John soon discovers that something’s different. This is confirmed with the emergence of enigmatic Marcus Wright (an excellent Sam Worthington who tries very hard to hide his Australian accent), a terminator by design, but equipped with a human heart and soul from his former human self. John then spends the rest of the movie figuring out what to make of Marcus, and parleying that into an attack on Skynet to secure Kyle Reese (Anton Yelchin, sans Russian accent) John’s would-be-maybe-dad-in-the-past-but-in-future-form-undad. This basically equates to a sludge-fest ride of metallic mayhem, and the movie wears it well.
Now, I will be the first to admit that the director made me skeptical; I mean, we can certainly all thank the Brothers Strause for giving directors with bad names a bad name – they managed to destroy two beautiful birds with one bomb in AVPR: Aliens vs Predator - Requiem (2007). Despite his shortcomings, director McG managed to lay it down on this one, and that almost deserves a medal. While Terminator Salvation ultimately falls short of the achievement of Star Trek, it is far superior to Wolverine, primarily in the effects department. McG certainly spared no expense in the CGI, as it is almost flawless. In addition, the film’s cinematography boasts a creative quality usually reserved for the more critical fare, which is impressive since Batman almost killed the DP. Basically, the action and special effects work, what doesn’t work is the story. Not only have gophers been through the plot, but the characters are mismanaged and/or underdeveloped. Bryce Dallas Howard is severely underused as John’s wife Kate Connor, and Common just seems plain confused as resistance fighter Barnes. Batman only really gives his intense face for the entire movie, making it difficult to see what’s so dynamic about the supposed humanity that’s at stake. And while Sam Worthington’s Marcus sees the greatest character attention, it’s ultimately disappointing because it doesn’t feel like Worthington was given the chance to truly flush out his character. Several story elements feel unnecessary, which is unfortunate since most of the plot is manufactured to connect action scenes. Scenarios such as the HQ bureaucracy give the audience painful reminders of the Matrix sequels, but without the metaphysical meat behind it. The philosophical subtext that gave James Cameron’s Terminator movies that extra edge is mostly absent here, but it’s probably better that McG didn’t try, we can’t forget that he’s responsible for the recent Charlie’s Angels movies. Surprisingly, however, the PG-13 rating didn’t really detract from the viewing experience, but I could always use a little more blood and guts!
All in all, Terminator Salvation is part four of a franchise that should have ended at two, and like Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003), this feels ultimately unnecessary. However, as its own action movie it succeeds, providing the summer worthy entertainment that will help us through these tough times. In the end, Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991) will always be the definitive film, and things feel weird without Aaanaaald in paaaowwaaa; but once again, it’s enjoyable, and Batman gives us quite the ride!
Continuing on the timeline established in the original movies, Terminator Salvation finds John Connor (Batman) in 2018, leading the human resistance against the ruthless machines of Skynet, post-Judgment Day. Despite having a leading-the-human-resistance-in-the-future-book-on-tape courtesy of his mother Sarah Connor (archival Linda Hamilton, providing at least a smidge of continuity), John soon discovers that something’s different. This is confirmed with the emergence of enigmatic Marcus Wright (an excellent Sam Worthington who tries very hard to hide his Australian accent), a terminator by design, but equipped with a human heart and soul from his former human self. John then spends the rest of the movie figuring out what to make of Marcus, and parleying that into an attack on Skynet to secure Kyle Reese (Anton Yelchin, sans Russian accent) John’s would-be-maybe-dad-in-the-past-but-in-future-form-undad. This basically equates to a sludge-fest ride of metallic mayhem, and the movie wears it well.
Now, I will be the first to admit that the director made me skeptical; I mean, we can certainly all thank the Brothers Strause for giving directors with bad names a bad name – they managed to destroy two beautiful birds with one bomb in AVPR: Aliens vs Predator - Requiem (2007). Despite his shortcomings, director McG managed to lay it down on this one, and that almost deserves a medal. While Terminator Salvation ultimately falls short of the achievement of Star Trek, it is far superior to Wolverine, primarily in the effects department. McG certainly spared no expense in the CGI, as it is almost flawless. In addition, the film’s cinematography boasts a creative quality usually reserved for the more critical fare, which is impressive since Batman almost killed the DP. Basically, the action and special effects work, what doesn’t work is the story. Not only have gophers been through the plot, but the characters are mismanaged and/or underdeveloped. Bryce Dallas Howard is severely underused as John’s wife Kate Connor, and Common just seems plain confused as resistance fighter Barnes. Batman only really gives his intense face for the entire movie, making it difficult to see what’s so dynamic about the supposed humanity that’s at stake. And while Sam Worthington’s Marcus sees the greatest character attention, it’s ultimately disappointing because it doesn’t feel like Worthington was given the chance to truly flush out his character. Several story elements feel unnecessary, which is unfortunate since most of the plot is manufactured to connect action scenes. Scenarios such as the HQ bureaucracy give the audience painful reminders of the Matrix sequels, but without the metaphysical meat behind it. The philosophical subtext that gave James Cameron’s Terminator movies that extra edge is mostly absent here, but it’s probably better that McG didn’t try, we can’t forget that he’s responsible for the recent Charlie’s Angels movies. Surprisingly, however, the PG-13 rating didn’t really detract from the viewing experience, but I could always use a little more blood and guts!
All in all, Terminator Salvation is part four of a franchise that should have ended at two, and like Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003), this feels ultimately unnecessary. However, as its own action movie it succeeds, providing the summer worthy entertainment that will help us through these tough times. In the end, Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991) will always be the definitive film, and things feel weird without Aaanaaald in paaaowwaaa; but once again, it’s enjoyable, and Batman gives us quite the ride!
3/5
McS
Nice review. For once, I think we agree.
ReplyDeleteIndeed, for once...
ReplyDelete