Terminator Salvation

When you have a favorite film that becomes a franchise, part of you is thrilled because you love the characters so much that you want to see more of them. But a bigger part of you is full of dread that someone will come along and screw it up. Whether it is an actor who refuses to return, a lame script, or a bad directing choice, you hold your breath with anticipation until you know that everything is going to be okay.

After seeing Terminator Salvation I have two things to say. McG didn’t screw things up, and Christian Bale is a worthy successor to the John Connor throne. I found the film spare, gritty, and on point. Many of the things that I loved about the original were present, and like its predecessor, Special Effects played its proper role, enhancing the action and not competing with it. In other words, the Special Effects were not the star of this film, the story was. This key element is why this franchise has been so hard to destroy. It has survived multiple directors, changes in cast, and even a TV show version. And yet, like the Terminator, it’s back, with a vengeance.

In many ways this film is a proper link between what has gone on before and what we can expect from the future. Like John Connor, we are pouring over our notes, trying to recall what we already know  and reconcile it with what we are told will eventually happen. In between is that gray area, the unknown. It is here that we live in the present, and like everyone else, we’re making it up as we go along.

From the moment the movie started, I was engrossed, happily eating my popcorn. The outside world was gone and I had become one of them, a resistor, just trying to survive until tomorrow. When the movie was over, I knew that we had won, we had lived to see another day, But the battle is not over yet. By the looks of the film and the box office receipts, there will be another, so don’t resist any longer. See it! This Terminator is a good one. And then you can start holding your breath for the next one.

Rating: Must See     A worthy addition to the franchise