Terminator: Salvation

[Rob]

Man I'm glad that I went on a matinee. I would be pissed if I spent $12 on this one.

As soon as the opening credits rolled I got really nervous.

McG is basically a music video director with limited experience in films. The two films he is most known for are "Charlie's Angels" and the sequal "Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle." As much as I am a fan of almost all the actors in those two films, I reviled the movies themselves. Tripe. Utter tripe.

And what really bothers me is I want to like McG. He directed the Barenaked Ladies biggest music video (they have gone on record as saying it is the only video ev er made for one of thier songs that they like and are satisfied with) for thier #1 hit "One Week" and I'm a huge huge fan of thiers.

He's also working with Duncan Sheik on a "Spring Awakening" film (or something) as a producer... and I've met Duncan and am a huge fan of his as well. Spring Awakening, in case you didn't know is a Tony award winning musical for which Duncan won the Tony for the music writing (or something like that).

But he tends to direct movies as if they were music videos; long on effects and short on plot.

So I was nervous when I saw him in the credits for Terminator: Salvation as the director.

Then I saw the cast... and the only two names I recognized were Christian Bale and Michael Ironside. Not good. As much as I like Michael Ironside he's never been what you might call a "blockbuster" actor. Sure he's had some good roles and I do always enjoy his performance but quality of plot is not a known hallmark of his movies.

My concerns were justified.

But I cannot lay the blame entirely on McG. The script, frankly, and don't read this if you don't want to know, is simply a retread of the first three Terminator movies.

They took some plot points from the first, some plot points from the second, used the "nuclear fuel of Terminator's makes for big booms" from the third movie and ignored the basic rules of the Terminator universe. So they could introduce this new Australian actor who plays Marcus Wright.

There is even a scene, so similar to the first film's ending that it looked nearly shot for shot; where a Terminator with no legs tries to kill a badly injured John Conner and the two crawl along, Conner trying to escape, the Terminator doing its' thing.

Plot holes abound. There are also some major missed opportunities. The stuff with the Doctor (a criminally underused Helena Bonham Carter) and Marcus Wright's past; the circumstances under which he finds himself in prison. None of that is explored with any depth.

And when the plot isn't ripping off the other movies, riddled with holes and missing opportunities it is so preposterious that it can hardly be believed.

According to IMDB McG is already working on a 5th Terminator movie. I was really hoping that "Salvation" would end the franchise on a high note but it seems that the studios involved plan to go back to the well until its sucked dry.

I'm sure James Cameron is rolling around in his money filled vault decrying the dilution of his vision.

No I'm not.

At least it was nice to see Ahhhnold looking young and muscle bound as a Terminator again. Even if it was CGI.