Written by: Dan Geer

In the previous installment of the Terminator franchise, Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines, we found out that the deeds of Sarah and John Connor that were accomplished in T2 did not stop Judgement Day but rather postponed it. Judgement Day was inevitable, and we saw Skynet become self-aware and begin destroying the planet. The moment this was shown to us is the moment that decided the fate of future Terminator movies. We were now at war with the machines. The future had begun, and we could finally have something totally different for the franchise.

This brings us to Terminator Salvation, which deals with John Connor (Christian Bale, The Dark Knight), the leader of the Resistance in 2018, and the  discovery of a computer signal that can shut down all of Skynet’s war machines, which would mark his first real chance at bringing down Skynet altogether. This discovery has motivated a character by the name of General Ashdown, militantly played by Michael Ironside, to order a full-on assault of Skynet.

But there’s a catch. Human prisoners are held captive there, one of them being Kyle Reese (convincingly portrayed by Anton Yelchin from Star Trek) – the man who eventually gets sent back in time to protect Sarah Connor and become John’s father. John thinks he has a fighting chance at saving all the prisoners, but Ashdown thinks otherwise and orders the assault in light of the “bigger picture,” thinking that they must be sacrificed in order to win the war. If this happens, Reese never goes back in time to become John’s father like he did in the first film and John Connor would not exist.

This film is not about whether or not Connor will be able to save Reese. We know he will. What it is about is showing us the story of how they met and united together with the Resistance. The assault on Skynet is only the backdrop for bringing these two characters together for the first time.

If you’re looking for a movie that focuses more on drama and character, it must be said that this is not the movie for you. It has to be admitted that this aspect was sacrificed somewhat. However, if you’re looking for tons of well-choreographed action in a gritty post-apocalyptic world, much like what was in the film Children of Men (and massive explosions every five minutes), then this is definitely what you’ve been looking for. This movie is pretty much loud, non-stop heart-pounding intensity from start ’till finish. It has the best action out of any of the Terminator films hands down, which was inevitable because now it takes place during the actual war against the machines.

Now this is not to say that there is no dramatic storytelling here. While it may be below the bar that Terminator 2 set for storytelling, the characters of John Connor and Kyle Reese bring much to the table, as well as Kate Connor (Bryce Dallas Howard), originally Kate Brewster from T3, who is now John’s wife. It also must be noted that the character of Marcus, played wonderfully by Sam Worthington, has the stand-out storyline  here. His character probably has the most heart of out any of the characters, and is also the most interesting because his back story is shrouded in mystery for much of the film. The beginning of the movie reveals that he has some history with Cyberdyne that we didn’t know about before that later on becomes imperative to the story and involves Connor’s mission to destroy Skynet and save Kyle Reese. This is easily the most deep and interesting part of the plot.

While this movie is a worth addition to the franchise, Terminator 3 still had more character development than this movie did.  Regardless of one’s opinion of that film, director Johnathan Mostow did know how to let a film breath and take  its time developing the characters. Terminator Salvation director McG does not seem to care about the “little moments” that go a long way to enhance the heart of the story. Also, some of the supporting cast is rather weak – particularly Dr. Serena Kogan played by Helena Bonham Carter (Fight Club, the Harry Potter films, etc.), who usually does well in her films. Her character just came off rather cheesy and out of place. I expected more from her.

Saying that, Terminator Salvation is a great future war movie that definitely goes beyond what we have seen in previous installments of the franchise in terms of action and special effects, including a scene with a certain T-800 model that we have seen in previous films (hint, hint). This is a war movie. It is not nearly as good as Terminator 2: Judgement Day, but did we really expect that after T3? This is pure popcorn fun that does not take away from what we knew before about Terminators, Skynet, the Connors, etc. It only adds to it, and that is a good thing.

Rating: (out of four)