Sunday has apparently become movie day. So here we are another Sunday at the movies. Same cinema, different theater. This time we went all out and got soda and popcorn… it’s that kind of movie.
It’s been a long time since I’ve seen Terminator or any of its sequels. I liked Terminator, thought it was cool at the time, but couldn’t really count it as one of my favorite movies. I seem to remember Terminator 2: Judgment Day being pretty good, but being slightly annoyed at the idea of a terminator being a good guy, although that was balanced by the cool liquid metal terminator effect. Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines was a decent action flick, but felt weak too me and the ending was unsatisfying. I don’t know that I’ve actually sat down and watched any of those on TV or DVD since I saw them the first time. The television series, Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, I didn’t watch and only saw bits and pieces of assorted episodes, it never felt like I was missing anything by not watching it. So I went into Terminator Salvation with a pretty open mind and no real expectations.
Pretty good. Definitely a big-budget summer movie. I liked it. Lots of things blowing up. Lots of guns and shooting. A couple chase scenes. Some fighting. And even a little hint of romance amongst the ruins of humanity and the resistance.
It’s pretty obvious that they’re setting us up for a few more of these, probably a trilogy, they always make these things in three’s. And I think they might be able to pull it off. This movie stands alone nicely, but acknowledges what has come before it and leaves plenty of open space for something to come after. Christian Bale does alright as John Conner, but he is not the focus of the tale, which is just as well because my opinion might change if I had to watch him storm around more than I did. But the characters that the movie does focus on are interesting and if not likeable, they are at least captivating.
As with any movie of this sort it does something’s that make me ask why? And there’s plenty there that I would have written differently. But all in all it was a good, entertaining movie. I wouldn’t pay to see it again, but I just might sit through another watching or two on cable. My recommendation, go see it. Everybody else is going too, and you may as well be able to talk to them about it. Besides, it’s a summer popcorn movie and it’s hard to go wrong with those.