The year is 2018 and the day of judgement has passed. John Connor (a growly Christian Bale) is a member of the resistance: prophet and future savior to some, troublesome crank and authority-botherer to others.
The machines have the upper hand, mankind is teetering on the brink of extinction. They aren’t out to exterminate humans however, but harvest them for some unspecified purpose.
Into this scenario steps Marcus Wright (new Hollywood leading man of choice Sam Worthington), a man we know is more than just flesh and blood from the prologue. But what he is and what part he will play in mankind’s survival is unclear. The war has begun…
A breathtaking, exhilarating summer blockbuster, Terminator Salvation really should have been titled Terminator Revolution. This would better describe the events on-screen and would better describe the new McG-led regime.
You see, despite utilising the core characters and ideas that comprise the Terminator universe, this instalment could be transposed and used for any future-shock themed flick. Salvation is less a cyberculture-influenced, survivalist chase film, more a hybrid between the post-apocalyptic Mad Max 2 and the man vs machines styling of Transformers.
Despite this slight (and somewhat expected) movie-tone movement though, there is much to celebrate. The look of the film is spot on, the ravaged land of the future beautifully captured through washed-out, silver-hued cinematography. The action scenes are perfectly realised, not too shaky and never outstaying their welcome. The sound effects also rattle the eardrums, as they should in a movie of this summer sort.
In what is perhaps arguably this film’s key role, Sam Worthington is perfectly good, pulling off the simmering macho intensity the role requires with aplomb. Of course Bale as Connor is great and, crucially, not too Batman in his portrayal of T’s Christ-like figure John Connor. The best of the leading men bunch is, however, Anton Yelchin as Kyle Reese, who is truly something else. What a one-two sci-fi punch he has this summer with Salvation and Star Trek. Should anyone question his acting ability, they need only watch these two wildly differing performances back to back.
That said, the female characters don’t stand up to The Terminator/James Cameron standard of strong female role models. Bryce Dallas Howard’s Mrs Connor is pregnant and therefore mostly sidelined, and the stunningly attractive Moon Bloodgood as resistance fighter Blair Williams is little more than a token female warrior, and a poorly judged plot advancement device. It’s a shame this issue has been overlooked from way back in scripting stage.
Then there’s the abysmal score by Danny Elfman. The opening credit music is something Sam Raimi probably rejected for Spider-Man. It only gets good when those familiar “dum-dum, dum-dum-dum” beats briefly make an appearance.
McG’s actual direction also leaves something to be desired. It’s not bad, it’s just that there’s no particular style to speak of, with him mostly trying to out-Bay Michael Bay. He makes a decent stab of it, it must be said, but no one does big action quite like Bay.
So positives and negatives in abundance, making for a mixed bag of a viewing experience. This is going to be one of those divisive films, especially with the now-standard voracious fan following.
Of course, the real burning question is: has McG terminated the T-franchise once and for all? The answer to that is a resounding no, there’s certainly enough evidence and quality in Salvation to warrant another flick, even under macca’s megaphone if need be.
[etRating value=“ 3”]
The machines have the upper hand, mankind is teetering on the brink of extinction. They aren’t out to exterminate humans however, but harvest them for some unspecified purpose.
Into this scenario steps Marcus Wright (new Hollywood leading man of choice Sam Worthington), a man we know is more than just flesh and blood from the prologue. But what he is and what part he will play in mankind’s survival is unclear. The war has begun…
A breathtaking, exhilarating summer blockbuster, Terminator Salvation really should have been titled Terminator Revolution. This would better describe the events on-screen and would better describe the new McG-led regime.
You see, despite utilising the core characters and ideas that comprise the Terminator universe, this instalment could be transposed and used for any future-shock themed flick. Salvation is less a cyberculture-influenced, survivalist chase film, more a hybrid between the post-apocalyptic Mad Max 2 and the man vs machines styling of Transformers.
Despite this slight (and somewhat expected) movie-tone movement though, there is much to celebrate. The look of the film is spot on, the ravaged land of the future beautifully captured through washed-out, silver-hued cinematography. The action scenes are perfectly realised, not too shaky and never outstaying their welcome. The sound effects also rattle the eardrums, as they should in a movie of this summer sort.
In what is perhaps arguably this film’s key role, Sam Worthington is perfectly good, pulling off the simmering macho intensity the role requires with aplomb. Of course Bale as Connor is great and, crucially, not too Batman in his portrayal of T’s Christ-like figure John Connor. The best of the leading men bunch is, however, Anton Yelchin as Kyle Reese, who is truly something else. What a one-two sci-fi punch he has this summer with Salvation and Star Trek. Should anyone question his acting ability, they need only watch these two wildly differing performances back to back.
That said, the female characters don’t stand up to The Terminator/James Cameron standard of strong female role models. Bryce Dallas Howard’s Mrs Connor is pregnant and therefore mostly sidelined, and the stunningly attractive Moon Bloodgood as resistance fighter Blair Williams is little more than a token female warrior, and a poorly judged plot advancement device. It’s a shame this issue has been overlooked from way back in scripting stage.
Then there’s the abysmal score by Danny Elfman. The opening credit music is something Sam Raimi probably rejected for Spider-Man. It only gets good when those familiar “dum-dum, dum-dum-dum” beats briefly make an appearance.
McG’s actual direction also leaves something to be desired. It’s not bad, it’s just that there’s no particular style to speak of, with him mostly trying to out-Bay Michael Bay. He makes a decent stab of it, it must be said, but no one does big action quite like Bay.
So positives and negatives in abundance, making for a mixed bag of a viewing experience. This is going to be one of those divisive films, especially with the now-standard voracious fan following.
Of course, the real burning question is: has McG terminated the T-franchise once and for all? The answer to that is a resounding no, there’s certainly enough evidence and quality in Salvation to warrant another flick, even under macca’s megaphone if need be.
[etRating value=“ 3”]
