Christian Bale is one "common" soldier dude as John Connor in the latest and fourth film of the series, "Terminator: Salvation". He may be the most well-known character and actor of the film, but he is far from the star hero. That would be Marcus(Sam Worthington), the first terminator with a human exterior. His story is the first core of the movie. The second being the "history" of future(2018) John Connor. This sequel/prequel is light on carnage and surprisingly light on robots. I expected the landscape to be crawling with cybernetic monsters. Instead, there are just a handful visible on the streets and a few more hiding in the water. I suppose the timeline might be signifigant, but it's never a certain thing. Time plays a big part in the saga, yet there is nothing apparent showing how time travel is initiated nor how or why a terminator turns good to save the one it is built to destroy. Perhaps it is all just a programming flaw that determines the tide of battle. As much as one such as I may know, there is still much I may not understand or know. Of course, I have seen all three previous films and much of the TV series yet don't recall enough to put all the pieces together. Despite questions and lingering mysteries, this is a fairly solid piece of work and, perhaps, just the first stage of the next leg. Visually impressive with a decent plot, the film has as many strengths as it may have weaknesses.
The story begins with the origin of Marcus(Worthington), a prison inmate on his was to the lethal injection chamber yet offered one last "second chance" at another life. He is asked to sign-over his body to science by a woman(Helena Bonham Carter) dying herself from a fatal illness. Though he claims he wants no such thing, he signs the release. She tells him that what he is asked to do is for a noble cause. And then, we never see him again til 2018 when an infiltrating troop of resistance soldiers led by John Connor(Bale) discover his body along with a number of human captives underground and a computer containing info on a code that could be the undoing of Skynet(the artificially intelligent super-computer built by man out to destroy mankind which it deems a threat to its own existence). Enemy robots trash the place, leaving only John to survive and demand return to resistance headquarters. Meanwhile, a lone and confused survivor--Marcus--wanders out into the world and is devastated by what he sees, waking from his death sleep of the past to an apocalypse. He eventually stumbles upon a couple of kids who soon become key parts of the story, as well. Little does he know what is truly inside himself. And, despite his past, he fights to protect those like him. [Like him. That becomes an echoing question throughout the film. Who is truly the enemy?] In his efforts to do good, he is unable to save the kids from capture. This situation becomes of dire consequence to both sides of the war. Deception is afoot(deception we should find almost apparent and expected as time progresses). And, as the action takes us deep within Skynet HQ, we find John Connor face-to-face with the tool of his impending demise. In the end, good seems to survive. And, we are told that the battle is won though the war continues. [But, all is still not crystal clear. Which seems, to me, to be the norm with this saga.]
As far as acting goes, Sam Worthington makes a worthy criminal hero and looks good playing the part. Bale makes a believable John Connor but offers nothing signifigant to make me care other than a common hope to preserve human life. He shares his screen time with audio tapes from his mother(cameo) in the past which might make things even more confusing and absent of some explanation even if they tell us what we(who have seen the other films) already know. Anton Yelchin is a solid choice for young Kyle Reese. Moon Bloodgood plays Blair Williams, the sexy female soldier who becomes Marcus' rebel sidekick against those out to destroy him. Her part is fairly good yet slightly underplayed, in my opinion. I would like to hope that she will carry on the role and give more to the character if there is another film.
Those who think the film/story isn't the same without Arnold need to accept the reality. He played his part for as long as it applied. This story does not exactly include that character and does not require Arnold. Just because he was the original star does not make him vital to every part of the story. Not having Arnold is no worse than Claire Danes(who I did not like) in a lack-luster ending to Terminator 3(which ended things in a circle of fate which, to me, was a waste of time and filming).
A few things continue to bother me about the film though I can't be certain they are mistakes. How is it that John Connor has any say in the resistance and is able to communicate freely with so many via an old sort of CB radio when, in this movie, he is seen as a grunt working under a table of leading officials? The resistance makes use of the old-fashion radios and a signal which they seem very confident in, yet Skynet is supposed to be the supreme computer system. Wouldn't such an electronic entity find it just as easy to track or manipulate such primitive tactics if they can pick-up on other radio transmitions(like a car radio playing music)? And, if the terminators are so primitive despite their human construction(having seen the somewhat simple-minded nature in the previous films), how is it that the first working hybrid is so intelligent and mobile? [Not to mention, of human mind.] If the computer system and its killing machines were so dominant and effective, why is it so difficult to kill one human? And, why hold them captive long enough for the "hero" to have a chance to save him? Some plot elements might suggest answers, but I cannot be certain.
As the war wages on(or finishes...or starts...or whatever depending on what time is present), I will give "Terminator: Salvation"(Rated PG-13 at approximately 2 hours long) 3 stars out of 5(2.75 out of 4). It provides sufficient action and entertainment(the motorcycle bots being some of the coolest additions) yet lacks a finish in the process of adding to the story. It seems open-ended on purpose, but that purpose doesn't guarantee my interest in another movie. There seems to be but a small gap of information which would explain some things. It's not enough for a separate story yet big enough to leave me wondering and bothered. Perhaps, watching the other films again might help(boosting my understanding and rating) as I don't remember enough of those stories from years ago. Because of its "violence-light" nature, this film passes as PG-13 to(as so many of these franchises do) rope in a younger audience, a new generation. Frights are few though military action(making this appear more like "Saving Private Ryan" than the other "Terminator" movies) is taken up a notch. This film might have been better released before the TV series began.
--brainstormer, free-lance movie critic and participant in the Thoughts.com blogging experience.
[If you're listening to this, you are the resistance.]
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terminator_Salvation
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