Movies / Movie Reviews

Terminator Salvation

By Andy Frisk
May 21, 2009 - 00:35

Terminator Salvation delivers what the long term fans of the franchise have been wanting to see, with some cool nods to the previous films and a great surprise appearance.

T-600

Set in 2018, in the relatively early stages of the war against Skynet, The Resistance, who leave their mark on safe territories with a double helix DNA symbol, is battling Skynet. While not quite yet in desperate straits, the future isn't exactly what prophesied leader John Connor expected, as the presence of a new cyborg throws everything that he knows into question. The best advice that his mother can give him, via the tapes she made for him, is to "follow your heart", as "Skynet is ruthless and unpredictable."

Ruthless is definitely the case where Skynet is concerned. Hunter Killers and the T-600's, the model developed by Skynet that was in heavy use before the onset of the T-800's, scour the post apocalyptic cities and plains of the nuclear ravaged world, either terminating humans on site or corralling them for collection and "research" at Skynet headquarters in the remains of San Francisco, which is rapidly being rebuilt as machine city central.

As the action rises, Connor must make the decision to follow his heart at least twice, when logic dictates that he should just pull the trigger. Its a good thing that he does as he remembers, wisely, that "there is no fate but what we make."

Connor in the T-800 factory.

Bale and Worthington turn in class A performances, even though Bale has less to work with here than he did in The Dark Knight. There isn't much in the way of moral quandaries, but plenty in the way of making the crucial decision to "think like the machines" or follow "what separates us from the machines" – the human heart. As far as heavy dialogue, you'll have to look elsewhere, but for heartfelt sentiment about the nature of man you'll get the message loud and clear.

"You and me. We've been at war since before I was born."

The true performance that overshadows all others in the film is Worthington's turn as Marcus Wright, a death row prisoner turned cyborg with heart yet no knowledge of his transformation, but in full possession of another vital human characteristic, free will. Worthington, who has tackled Shakespeare before in director Geoffery Wright's 2007 version of Macbeth (which was an interesting but violent adaptation which focused more on action than words) doesn't have much grandiose language or lines to deliver here, but his facial expressions and his mastery of the ever elusive quality of the emotional connection with the audience manage to convey all his thoughts and conflicting emotions clearly. This truly might be his breakout role, and its a fine one to break out with.

Cybernetics revealed.

The rest of the cast turn in excellent performances with the material they are given and Moon Bloodgood brings some sex appeal to the film. Bryce Dallas Howard, a fine actress, is confined to pretty much standing by her man, but does have a serious role to play as the main doctor/surgeon in Connor's unit. Anton Yelchin, fresh off his great performance in Star Trek as Checkov turns in a solid performance as Kyle Reese, a teenager scraping out an existence with Star, his young shell shocked companion he has taken to protecting, but who demonstrates she can hold her own when the chips are down. Yelchin is all youthful exuberance with maturity beyond his years, but we are reminded just how much he has missed out on the life of a normal teenager he will never experience, when a repaired Jeep that Marcus brings to life blares Alice in Chains' Rooster from its somehow-still-functioning speakers and he responds with "What's that!"

Yelchin as the teenaged Kyle Reese

Some of the most interesting performances in the film come from the digital characters we are introduced to including the T-600's, the Harvesters, Aqua-Terminators and Moto-Terminators. There's also a great performance by a T-800 as well. Helena Bohnam Carter makes an appearance that is a little more than a cameo but significantly less of a role than Leonard Nimoy delivered in Star Trek. The special effects by Industrial Light and Magic are flawless and convincing. It is the sound editing that will most likely be the only Oscar nod this film will receive but a deserving one if there's justice in Hollywood. Skynet's killing machines are made even more terrifying by the oppressive and frightening sounds they make as the whir, stomp and grind their way through the remnants of human kind. The sound the machines make are in many ways more scary than than their physical appearance.

New machines: Harvester, Moto-Terminator, Aqua-Terminator and the old faithful: Hunter Killers

Overall, Terminator Salvation, while not as intricate as The Dark Knight or as deep as Watchmen, is a great action flick with a very live and beating heart (get the point that this organ has importance significance in the film yet?) that delivers loads of action, some serious drama and an overall great time. Plus, we FINALLY get all the best action, sequences, feel and spirit of the previous films (well, not so much from Terminator Rise of the Machines, which is a good thing) set in the future world of the war. Terminator Salvation is definitely one of the best of the franchise and, if reports are correct and this is first of a new trilogy of films, it might not be the last of the best.

Rating: 9 /10

Last Updated: August 31, 2023 - 08:12