New Terminator Trilogy - June 26th 2015

[MoogleViper]

First a shitty TV series, then a shitty film, now another shitty film. Why can't they leave the franchise alone?

 

It should have stopped after T3, such great trilogy it would have been.

[Cube]

I'm sorry, but the TV show is just as good as the first two films. And it erased the godawful T3 from the timeline.

[Shorty]

The TV series was good, got a bit daft in the second season and certainly not T1/T2 levels of quality, but you can hardly call it shitty.

[MoogleViper]

I'm sorry, but the TV show is just as good as the first two films. And it erased the godawful T3 from the timeline.

 

I thought you knew me better than that, Cube.

[flameboy]

The TV is in no way shitty...as I wrote before it did a really good job of continuing the themes of T2 "no fate" and all that and there is a real sense that they are shaping the future for the better. I was truly gutted when it was canned.

[Hero-of-Time]

It's just a rumour for now but...

 

"Smith’s role has been one of many questions surrounding the next installment of the Terminator series, but Latino Review may know his identity. There was a recent test screening in Arizona where a small group saw the film, and one of the anonymous audience members revealed that Smith plays Skynet. Or at least the "embodiment of Skynet."

 

His character is being compared to Helena Bonham Carter’s in Terminator: Salvation. She played a Cyberdyne scientist, but later shows up as the face of the evil computer system that is trying to wipe out the human race. It sounds like he’s the personification of the villainous network, which is a definite change from the first two movies, where Skynet is a more esoteric, looming threat."

 

[Fierce_LiNk]

So...I saw this at the weekend.

 

It's getting a bit sad now. There are now more bad/average Terminator films than there are good ones. The tipping point has come and gone.

 

This is probably the worst reboot that I've ever seen for one very important reason: It's not really a reboot. You can't actually watch this film and understand its basic plot without having seen at least the first Terminator film and probably the second, too. It's even got Arnie in it which...is very confusing for newcomers because the rest of the cast is new.

 

I have to say, it has a very fan-made feel to it in a lot of places. Particularly when:

 

They go back to 1984 and essentially re-create the scenes from the first film frame for frame.

 

 

Also, I said it once this weekend and I'll say it again...I'm bored of the whole John/Sarah/Kyle arc. The story actually reached its conclusion, we got good closure for it in Terminator 2 (it ended absolutely fine there), we got a third film that just extended things for the sake of it, but still reached a decent conclusion. The TV series did a great job, Salvation was ok and it's a bit unfortunate we didn't get to see more of the future war which I think a lot of people wanted...Just give us a new story in this universe. Why retread old ground? There's nothing to be gained there. Give us the same sort of universe, but a new story arc with new characters, new plot points, etc.

 

As for Arnie, he was probably the best thing about the thing. But, I'm sad at how little the series has progressed because there is so much potential there to create a really intricate man vs. machine story/thriller like the original. I think I've come to terms now with the fact that I think that there will never be another great film in this series again.

[Mr-Paul]

I just watched it for a second time this evening. After watching it the first time, I started watching Sarah Connor Chronicles again, and the TV series is so much better.

I actually sorta enjoyed Genisys, but the plot makes absolutely no sense, and the film actually has no shame in it having a nonsense plot, it openly admits it.

Kyle Reese actually does nothing of use in the whole film. It might as well just been Arnie and Mother of Dragons. Also barely any point in J Jonah Jameson.

 

It really is a shame, as the originals are some of my favourites.

[Jimbob]

Having watched the original Terminator and Terminator 2 recently, they should have ended it there. There was not much need for a 3rd movie, because T2 ended things fine. Both the T-800 and T-1000 melted in the steelworks, so no evidence. John and Sarah probably grabbed the T-800 arm left behind and threw that in as well. Miles Dyson's work and the whole of Cyberdyne were blown to oblivion. And it closed out pretty good, to the point i struggled to figure why a 3rd movie was required.

 

Salvation however, that was different and it was ok. Should have been a heck of a lot better, but there we go.

 

Genisys, that had promise but the story was the confusing part.

 

I mean, the trailer basically spoiled things. Having John become a Terminator, showing Arnie face Arnie at the beginning of the 1st movie, which basically wiped out the entire Trilogy before hand. And if there was no evidence of the evil T-800 or the liquid metal one, why was Genisys created and how did Skynet take over. Surely the point of the original was that the chip and arm were left over, thus allowing technology to progress. There were so many holes in the plot, it was obvious. Like, how did John know Sarah and Kyle moved to 2017, surely that time machine could only transport to 1984.

 

 

As you mentioned Flinky, the whole John/Sarah/Kyle story has been done to death over 4 movies and a TV show. Genisys was a chance to relaunch with new characters with a new story, but so far it's a failure.

[flameboy]

So I watched this last night finally. What a mess....so a lot is made of oh well they stopped this so John Connor wouldn't exist etc... Terminator to all extents and purposes is stuck in this constant loop of a rewritten future attempting to alter the past, but for me that's not what's wrong it's time travel is too convoluted and complicated for it's own good. Look at Primer a bloody complicated time travel movie but one that certainly makes sense.

 

There are few things I couldn't get my head round.

 

 

1. Why did John Connor start building a time machine in 2017? Did Skynet need work to begin on it then so it's built in time for everything thats follows?

 

2. I guess they set the precedent that a CPU could take over the endless replicating bodies of the liquid metal which for no apparent reason is there right next to the magnet generator/time machine. Doesn't explain how Arnie survived the massive explosion are we to believe that the temperature was lower than that of the molten lava in T2? Entirely possibly....does this mean the end of arnie getting his face scratched off or is he now some kind of hybrid. Still his metal endo skeleton but with liquid metal grafted on to himself.

 

3. So a T800 can renew lost flesh (the reason he can't leap forward with them and instead has to wait it out) but then what that skin would grow back old? Would it surely not regrow back how it used to be?

 

4. Why do the Terminators in the future drive trucks.

 

5. Why did Pops and Sarah wait it out to killer the T1000 until 1984, seems like it was risk. Both Pops and that T1000 seemed to have prior knowledge of Kyle's arrival so its risky to have to both take down the 1984 T800 and T1000 in one day. I'm assuming the T1000 lost their trail and knew they would going to that crucial moment hence why he replaced the original cop.

 

6. The remade "wash day nothing clean scene" was horrific poorly acted and their outfits and hair were wrong! The other redone parts were pretty good.

 

7. I hated the fleshing out of the mythos around Kyle being selected etc... its shows a scene that could have been in Terminator but likely would have ended up on cutting room floor. Weird fudging of "facts" where Kyle still has the photo of Sarah even though it was burnt years prior, Guess we had to see that for Skynet's inflitration of John Connor.

 

8. John Connor other than being born from a paradox has never actually been special. I mean this in as much as that his "prophetic powers" were nothing more than a result of his mothers knowledge from Kyle etc.... However Skynet kind of turns this on it's head when it decides that John Connor can become the first human to ever survive their terminator assimilation program without going insane. Therefore making him some kind of Robot Human Jesus Hybrid. Now it could be said that maybe he hadn't been activated for long enough for this to happen but we are led to believe that he was back ensuring Skynet was being developed for a couple of years. Long enough to become friends with Danny Dyson who last time I saw him could barely drive a remote control car let alone help run a company.

 

9. What is this obsession with giving Skynet a face? It was far far more sinister without one. It doesn't need a single face...Didn't work in Salvation doesn't work here with the Space Baby from Mass Effect 3 turning into Matt Smith.

 

10. Towards the end of the movie when they are being confronted by Genysis/Skynet/Alex/Dr Who? via the projections he seems to have knowledge of the future 2029 which makes no bloody sense at all. Unless it sent itself back as well.

 

11. Who sent pops back? It was implied we would find out that answer we never did. It's made apparent that he sent by someone in 2029 at the end of the war.

 

12. How many back up plans did Skynet need? At some point in time we are to assume their 1984 and 1990s missions (now rewritten and non existent) failed so they sent another T100 back to 1973 as well as John Connor back to 2017 and itself potentially.

 

13. It made absolutely no sense that Kyle went back to see young Kyle after they have prevented Genysis to tell him that Skynet is

Genysis. Sarah's moment with him earlier about the straight line and not stopping made sense. His however didn't, his memory was of himself holding a Genysis tablet and repeating the phrase. Now the credit stinger implies Genysis could still be a growing concern but it seems fairly loose to me.

 

14. My final issue....after all this why does Pops get his driving off into the sunset moment. They know the problems it could cause if the cheap ended up in the wrong hands (again he may not have a chip anymore if its been all consumed by liquid metal) he should have been destroyed ala T2

 

 

Oh also finally as much as people shit on Jai Courtney, Jason Clarke was a horrific John Connor. So now we are in this situation where we have had two good John Connor's one half decent and two absolutely terrible. John Connor as a man should remain a myth so to speak just like was intended to be in Salvation before Bale got his grubby mitts in.

Edited August 12, 2015 by flameboy
Automerged Doublepost

[Pancake]

Not seen it, won't see it. Can't get over a terminator being referred to as "Pops". Why don't they just have a terminator cuddly bedtime toy range next!

 

I know he was good in T2, but that was you know... done with some dignity!