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Movie Review: Terminator Salvation, 8.25 out of 10, no spoilers
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Terminator Salvation movie poster
This review may sound a bit vague, but that is intentional. This film is very hard to review without giving away a lot of plot points, or surprises the writers kept from us while making the movie. A good early movie review (that is before many have had a chance to go out and see the film) should deliver solid information without giving away “the good stuff.” What follows is such a review. Let’s look at the Good, the Bad, and the Bottom Line.
The Good
All around the film is pretty solid. The acting is very good (with the exception of one or two “support characters”). Christian Bale continues to impress. His Independence Day style monologue sent out over the airwaves to pump up the resistance did just that (don’t worry, we still love you Bill Pullman). We heard your message John, and we are the resistance! Sam Worthington was good as well playing Marcus Wright, the machine that didn’t know it was a machine (that was in the trailer…I didn’t spoil anything). Anton Yelchin (also plays Checkov in Star Trek) played the young Kyle Reese and may have just launched his career with these two big summer movies. He did a fine job playing a civilian with little military training who learned to survive and fight in the only world he knew. Moon Bloodgood didn’t set the screen on fire, but did ok with the rather torn character she was given playing Blair Williams.
But what about the special effects? Very well done all around. The writers gave us several new models of machines and also “backdated” the terminators themselves since this movie is set in the not-so-distant future. “Battle damaged” Marcus Wright was visually excellent and a nice homage to Arnold Schwarzenegger and the original Terminator films. The large exterior shots were mostly computer generated (since they probably couldn’t get permission to nuke large cities to film the aftermath), and though this was obvious, it did not take away from the scene. The battle scenes and the various machines were also well done and looked natural in the setting of the overall film.
I also liked how the writers squeezed in a little reality into such a science fictional film. For instance, shooting things does not always make them explode. It’s nice to see this in an age when looking at a propane tank the wrong way will cause it to explode in the movies. Don’t worry, there is stilly PLENTY of blowing stuff up! Just thought some reality was refreshing.
At first, I thought the ending was a little silly. As I drove home, however, I began to think about it in depth and realized it’s actually quite genius. It shows how the human spirit is almost impossible to crush. It’s what separates the humans from the machines. The machines can program terminators and give them artificial intelligence, but they cannot give them a heart and soul. The writers showed this beautifully with the ending they came up with. The film also fit nicely into the timeline of the franchise, occurring in the future before Kyle Reese was sent back to the past to protect John Conner’s mother.
The Bad
The one character that bugged me was John’s wife, Kate Conner played by Bryce Dallas Howard. The sad thing is, it really wasn’t her fault. She is a good actress and has played her past roles well, but this character was very dry. Never once did you get the feeling these two were in love. I realize this is a future devastated by death and destruction, but if your message is “what makes humans different than machines,” then show us love. Show us emotion. Machines cannot experience love and you wrote in a character that would be perfect for it, and you showed us none. The most emotional time with this character was a slow-motion shot while she was looking out of a helicopter at John. Artistic? Yes. Did we get emotionally invested? No. You have to establish the relationship early in the film for us to get wrapped up in a moment like that.
Another, we'll say "deceiving" thing, was how Marcus Wright (Worthington) was really the central character in the film, not John Conner (Bale). Though the screen time may turn out to be fairly similar, the story was definitely focused on Wright, but the trailers and hype seemed to be focused on Conner. This isn't necessarily "bad," just simply "deceiving."
Where the movie was lacking just a tiny bit was not having that intangible “wow” factor. This was geared up to be another huge summer blockbuster and, again, advertised to the point we were reciting the trailer in our sleep. Unfortunately, movies just cannot live up to such unrealistic hype. Especially those that have an existing franchise they must honor AND try to outdo. There was nothing that screamed, “This is bad. Why did they go there?” There was also nothing that left you with a bad taste in your mouth. But, there just wasn’t anything that made you gasp and go, “Whoa!” That is what we have come to expect out of our summer smashes. Don’t get me wrong. There were some funny moments and great nods to the older films.
However, this is not that big of a deal. That is why the movie still got a good rating.
The Bottom Line
See this movie and see it in the theaters! A movie with this many special effects and large exterior shots is really best appreciated on the big screen (no, your 60” HDTV and surround sound doesn’t count…but, when it comes out on blu-ray invite me over!). Don’t think too hard about the “Wow” factor comments. Reviews are just opinions and my opinion was it didn’t have that intangible thing that blew me away. For you, it may be different, but you won’t know until you see it! I still thoroughly enjoyed this film and you should too.
For a different take check out reviews by: Denver Film Community Examiner (one small spoiler you may already know about).
Check out some other reviews:X-men Origins: Wolverine, Angels & Demons, Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian, Star Trek and Land of the Lost.
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