Christian Bale Battles Machines in Terminator Salvation (No Spoilers)
Written: May 21 '09
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Product Rating:
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| Bang For The Buck |
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Pros: Entertaining action movie overall. Good cast.
Cons: Some predictable things. Weird without Arnold.
The Bottom Line: Terminator Salvation isn't as good as it could have been, but it is an entertaining action movie overall.
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| dragonfire88's Full Review: Terminator Salvation |
The Terminator movies have become very popular and even led to a television show. The series has gone through some changes and James Cameron had nothing to do with Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines. After that movie, I heard that another movie was going to be made. I wasn't sure how that would work, but once I saw a trailer for Terminator Salvation, I decided that I wanted to see the movie.
I am only going to briefly discuss the plot of Terminator Salvation. I will only be mentioning things that are known from the trailer, so there will be no spoilers in the review. Anyone that prefers not to know anything about the plot will want to skip the next paragraph. Some things I mention in the rest of the review could be spoilers for the previous Terminator movies for anyone who hasn't seen them yet.
**Minor Plot Discussion**
In 2018, the resistance is still fighting Skynet and the machines. A mysterious man named Marcus Wright becomes involved in what is going on, first meeting Kyle Reese and later meeting John Connor. There is something very different about Marcus and John must decide if he can trust him or not.
I stayed through the credits, and there is no scene after they end.
**End of Minor Plot Discussion**
Terminator Salvation is different for a Terminator movie. The first three movies and even the television show have taken place in more current times and have had Terminators and sometimes people traveling back in time for various reasons. Skynet kept sending Terminators back in time to eliminate John before he could become the leader of the resistance. Skynet first tried to kill his mother Sarah before he was born, and then tried to kill him at a few other times in his life by sending Terminators back in time. Skynet still wants John dead, but the movie isn't focused on a Terminator trying to hunt him down. That does add something different to the movie, but other things are still predictable.
All but a short scene of Terminator Salvation takes place in 2018, several years after Judgment Day and it is focused on the fight against Skynet and the machines. This is the first time more than just a brief glimpse of the future has been included in one of the movies. Certain things that have been mentioned before, like the hunter killer flying robots, are shown several times. A T-800 model is shown right after it was created, which was interesting to see. John actually faces a T-800 in a fight for the first time as well after having to battle the T-1000 and T-X in his past. The inside of a Skynet facility, including where the machines are built, is shown for the first time as well. Even though it is clear that a war between humans and the machines is going on, the future didn't look as bleak as it has in the few short scenes shown in the previous movies.
The plot for Terminator Salvation has several things going on without it being that complicated. The focus jumps between Marcus and John while also giving some attention to the young Kyle Reese. The future isn't exactly like how it had been described in the previous movies, but it still fits with what has been established in the previous movies in my opinion. Since Sarah and John managed to change certain things in the past that did impact the future, so it makes sense that things are somewhat different. John does have the picture of his mother that Kyle eventually gets. John also had the tapes that she made for him and he listens to them a few times when he is trying to decide certain things. John is very concerned with Kyle's safety because he will eventually travel back in time to protect Sarah. I do like the connection back to some of the previous events. I don't think anything that happened ended up being mentioned in the television show, but I have missed some episodes of the second season, so I could be wrong about that. Some things are resolved by the end of the movie while also leaving things open for potential future movies. I've already heard that the producers want to do two more movies.
There is a lot of action throughout Terminator Salvation. The first scene set in 2018 involves the resistance attacking one of Skylab's research facilities. There are explosions and a lot of shooting going on. As the movie progress, there are several confrontations between the machines of Skynet and resistance members. The action scenes are entertaining and done well overall. The violence is rather tame for a Terminator movie. Some of the machines are using automatic weapons to fire hundreds of rounds, yet the humans are rarely hit. When someone is injured, there is very little blood shown, especially in a few instances. Now I don't think that a movie has to be full of graphic violence to be good, but there is just something wrong about a Terminator movie being rated PG-13.
All kinds of machines made by Skynet are shown in Terminator Salvation. I know that the hunter killer flying machines have been mentioned before and even shown once or twice before. In this movie, they are seen flying around a lot and I think they look the same. Many earlier versions of Terminators, I think they were the T-600 model - are shown. Some sort of robotic motorcycles turn up in a few scenes and are really cool. I don't remember hearing about them before, or the huge machine involved in one attack. It is interesting to see more of the machines, and Skynet. The special effects looked good to me and worked for the movie without dominating what was going on.
I'm not sure how long the war between humans and Skynet had been going on when John is first shown in 2018. Skynet becoming self aware and launching the attack is briefly mentioned, though the date it happened isn't given in this movie. I can't remember when it was supposed to happen. The resistance seems larger than I expected and fairly well organized, though some members make some questionable decisions. A few of the members do things that don't seem that smart, especially since they have been fighting for a while and know what Skynet is capable of. At times, Skynet is shown to notice small things, like a radio playing, and other times Skynet somehow doesn't pick up other things that should be more noticeable. At one point, two characters have a somewhat large fire blazing outside at night, something that it seems the hunter killers should have spotted. The resistance somehow has jets and helicopters to use, yet the machines don't notice when they are used most of the time. It seems a bit odd to me that Skynet would notice radios playing, but not pay attention to fighter jets and helicopters. At one point, something happens at night that seems like it should have given away the location of a resistance base, yet it didn't.
There really isn't much in the way of character development in Terminator Salvation. John is shown as an adult and he is dedicated to defeating Skynet. He has some issues with the command of the resistance. It is nice to see more about his life as an adult. It is even shown how he gets the scar on his face. Christian Bale is fine in the part, though I think he is much better in Batman Begins and The Dark Knight. Kate, who was first introduced in the third movie, is back and working with the resistance. She had been a vet originally, and now she works as a doctor. It is clear that she and John have an important relationship, but not a lot of time is spent on it. They are really just shown having a few conversations. Bryce Dallas Howard is fine in the part.
Kyle, the hero of the first movie, is finally shown again, though he is much younger. It is a little odd to see him as a teenager while knowing what he will go on to do. He has managed to survive mostly on his own and is already showing some of the knowledge he will need later in life. Anton Yelchin handles the part, which is completely different from his part in Star Trek, really well. Star is a little girl that Kyle is looking out for. She doesn't do much, though she does help to establish Kyle's need to protect others.
Marcus Wright is a mysterious man who becomes involved in the fight. He first meets Kyle and then later meets John and other members of the resistance. Marcus doesn't seem to realize where he is or what is going on for a long time. Most of the questions surrounding him are answered by the end of the movie. I still think there is one or two questions related to him not answered. Sam Worthington did a good job with the part. Dr. Serena Kogan is only briefly shown, but she ends up being very important. Helena Bonham Carter did well with the small part.
Blair Williams is a member of the resistance working with John. She does have some conflicts with some of the other resistance members. She really isn't developed and just seems to be around as the token sexy woman. Moon Bloodgood isn't anything special in the part. Barnes is another resistance member who is very loyal to John. Several other members of the resistance are around without really doing much. Michael Ironside turns up in a few scenes as one of the generals.
When the T-800 is shown for the first time, it has skin and looks like the T-800s from the previous movies. Roland Kickinger was a double on set for Arnold Schwarzenegger. Some kind of computer effects were used to give the T-800 Arnold's face, so he does sort of make a small appearance in the movie. It isn't the same though and it is just weird for Arnold not to be a Terminator. It was also weird that when the T-800 is shown, it is made clear that it is naked, but strategic fog and camera angles prevent anything that would be considered nudity from being shown.
Main Cast
Christian Bale - John Conner
Moon Bloodgood - Blair Williams
Helena Bonham Carter - Dr. Serena Kogan
Bryce Dallas Howard - Kate
Sam Worthington - Marcus Wright
Anton Yelchin - Kyle Reese
McG - Director
Terminator Salvation is different because it shows John as an adult fighting in the war against Skynet. The movie is entertaining overall, though a few things are predictable. It is weird to see a Terminator movie without Arnold playing a main role. Fans of the previous movies may find something to like about this one. I enjoyed the movie overall, but it isn't as good as it could have been.
I would have rated this one three and a half stars if I had the option. Since I don't, I decided to round up to four stars.
Terminator Reviews
The Terminator ~ Terminator 2: Judgment Day ~ Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines ~ Terminator - The Sarah Connor Chronicles: The Complete First Season ~
Recommended:
Yes
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