
I'm getting tired of this.
It's the same thing all over again, only this time there's no John, there's a girl instead. And the Terminator's a girl - only she's no Terminator. And there's an old woman that needs more consolidation than the new girl, even though she's pretty much a Terminator herself.
The special effects aren't perfect. They're better than average, but I get annoyed with how much there is that's fake-looking, even when there doesn't need to be. The special effects haze comes in early with the first chase, and smoke, and fire. But it does get better.
Arnold seems to get better with age too. The effects get better. The characters get stronger. The emotions get stronger. The punchlines improve with Arnold. Eventually I get teary-eyed and everything and yet... it's just the same thing all over again.
The pace is quicker, the Rev 9's all the more merciless, yet it just doesn't get better than the first two movies. They keep trying to replicate that proven recipe but keep missing that secret ingredient. But maybe it's a secret ingredient that can only be used so many times.
Maybe it's youth? Maybe originality?
Part of me really liked this one, but when it's all said and done why not just let the franchise die this time. Or stop trying to do the same thing with it every single time. The terminators keep getting stronger and more ruthless, and more beautiful, but they're still Terminators. The threat's still AI. The method's still time travel. It's more relevant than ever and yet... it feels distant from what it once was too.
I can't come to any good conclusions here, but I don't think I would've rated this higher even if I'd never seen the prequels. It's too rushed. Too predictable. Too PC. Get things right.
rated 3.5/5: not bad at all