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Twenty-five years after Arnold Schwarzenegger first uttered his famous catch phrase, “I’ll be back,” in James Cameron’s The Terminator, a director known only as McG teams up with the [seriously angry] guy who plays Batman for the franchise’s fourth installment.
Terminator Salvation takes place in 2018, in the bleak, post-Judgment Day future, where John Connor (Christian Bale) is working with the Resistance to fight against Skynet’s army of machines. After breaking into Skynet, the Resistance discovers a secret signal that will shut down the machines—and they plan to use it to destroy Skynet once and for all. The problem, however, is that the Resistance leaders plan to sacrifice any human prisoners in the process. But Kyle Reese (Anton Yelchin), the teenager who will later travel back in time and become Connor’s father, is one of those prisoners.
Connor’s only hope of saving his father is Marcus Wright (Sam Worthington), a convicted killer who’s looking for a second chance—but he might not be the most trustworthy ally.
Heavy on explosions but light on substance, Terminator Salvation is a summer blockbuster for moviegoers who don’t want to trouble themselves with a pesky plot.
When it comes to action and effects, Charlie’s Angels director McG cranks the dial up to 11. Visually, it’s all pretty cool—though it’s not exactly new or original. The desolate, post-apocalyptic landscapes are reminiscent of the Mad Max movies. The industrial, computerized interiors are a little bit Matrix. And the gigantic robots look like they may have been filched from the set of Michael Bay’s upcoming Transformers sequel.
Meanwhile, the story is nearly non-existent. There’s some stuff about a super-secret signal (though it’s not exactly easy to follow). And John Connor is resisting the orders of the leaders of the Resistance in order to save his dad. Now, I realize that Connor is destined to be a great man—the one who’s supposed to save the human race or whatever. But, if you ask me, he spends a whole lot more time ensuring his own existence than actually saving humanity. And that same old story is starting to get a bit old—as is Bale’s gravelly tough-guy schtick. Perhaps, in T5 (which is slated for a 2011 release), Connor’s existence will be secure, and he’ll finally be able to save the world (but I’m not holding my breath).
Still, the film’s most interesting plotline has little to do with Connor. Sam Worthington’s mysterious Marcus adds an interesting twist to the story; I just wish there had been more of it.
In my rough estimation, the various plotlines in this nearly two-hour movie add up to about 30 minutes. The rest of the film is filled with massive explosions and tight, jerky action sequences that go on just a bit too long. Sure, it has its share of thrills—and if you’re looking for some brainless robot action and effects, Terminator Salvation offers plenty of that. But, without a captivating story to back it up, it’s little more than a bunch of meaningless explosions.
