Terminator Salvation

I didn't realize that there was no colon in the title. I thought it was Terminator: Salvation. The lack of a colon makes it make less sense.

Which is telling. Not that the movie makes no sense, but that it is thoughtless and pointless.

The first fifteen minutes are a great indication of what is about to follow.

It starts with a horribly written, poorly acted scene. We are introduced to a new character in the Terminator mythos, Marcus Wright. He, more so than John Connor, is the lead of this movie. And he has never been mentioned in any of the previous three films. Hmmmmm...

After that crap, we see a bunch of text on the screen, explaining the Terminator story. Judgment Day and all that. Just a big ole wall o' text. That is lazy writing and direction.

After that we are treated to a great action scene. There is a great tracking shot, following John Connor into a helicopter, flying the helicopter and crashing the helicopter. Best part of the movie, in my opinion. And it is right near the start. All kinds of ominous portents in this review.

Cut to John Connor on a plane. He jumps out of a plane. Cut to John Connor on a sub as Michael Ironside explains his character to us.

Yup.

That is how the movie goes. Jumps from place to place, plot point to plot point, with no care given at all. All the film's attention is on the action scenes. And the action scenes are all well done. The whole film looks and sounds great.

But with no one to care about, what the hell is the point?

There is no point to this film. This story does not advance the 'Terminator' story at all. This film adds nothing to the cannon.

At least T3 ended with a bang. it killed off the world. Which is not how you expect a Summer Blockbuster to end. Sure, it kind of made the first two Terminator movies basically pointless, and it was not a good movie overall, but there is something in that film I can point to and appreciate. Other than the special effects, which are expected at this point.

What I'm saying is this is the worst Terminator film yet. There is no real reason to see it other than the action sequences. There are no characters to care about. Other than the kid who plays Kyle Reese, there are no remarkable performances. The music is forgettable. There is a scene where the whole god damn movie is explained to us. Stopping the movie dead in its tracks. So many nits to pick.

Move along folks. Nothing to see here.