 For
more than a decade, the prospect of seeing another “Terminator”
movie was about as likely as hearing a new song by The Beatles.
After the first two films grossed more than $550 million worldwide,
writer-director James Cameron had a major falling out with “T2”
producers Mario Kassar and Andrew Vajna and swore that he would
never work with them again. Since Kassar and Vajna also owned
the rights for a third film, it didn’t seem like it would ever
happen without Cameron calling the shots.
Well, if
the mop-tops can get back to where they once belonged to finish
two songs left behind by their former bandmate (as they did in
1995 for “The Beatles Anthology”), then why can’t Arnold Schwarzenegger
do a new “Terminator” movie without the filmmaker who created
the franchise? That’s what happened when Kassar and Vajna offered
him almost $30 million to reprise his role and move forward without
Cameron on “T3,” which was green-lit with a staggering budget
of $170 million.
Jonathan
Mostow, the capable director behind potboilers like 1998’s “Breakdown”
and 2000’s “U-571,” took over the reigns, and the results are
(thankfully) a lot better than you’d expect given the circumstances.
While “Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines” may not be as innovative
as the first two films in terms of visionary wonderment, sheer
emotional power and groundbreaking special effects, it is still
an amazing film in its own right that serves as an excellent addition
to the franchise.
It’s been
10 years since John Connor (Nick Stahl) helped prevent Judgement
Day—when technologically advanced machines threatened to take
over the world. Despite surviving two attempts made on his life
by machines from the future, Connor faces death once again when
the advanced, curvaceous and beautiful T-X (Kristanna Loken) travels
back in time to complete the job left undone by its predecessors.
This time around, Connor’s future associates are also on the hit
list, including Kate Brewster (Claire Danes), a veterinarian who
suddenly finds herself in the middle of a fight to save humanity.
Help arrives in the form of another futuristic cyborg (Arnold
Schwarzenegger), but can they all act fast enough to prevent Judgement
Day from happening once and for all?
Where 1984’s
“The Terminator” made Schwarzenegger a star and coined one of
the best catch-phrases of all time (“I’ll be back!”), the second
film, 1991’s “Terminator 2: Judgement Day,” was a groundbreaking
hit that was (and still is) way ahead of its time. Budgeted at
more than $90 million (a ridiculous amount of money back in 1991),
the exciting, visionary action thriller broke new ground in digital
effects—most of which are still impressive even by today’s standards.
The advances
made by “T2” have grown in leaps and bounds over the years (as
evidenced by recent films like “The Matrix,” “The Lord of the
Rings” and “Spider-Man”), but the effects in “T3”—as impressive
as they are—don’t feel quite as groundbreaking as they did in
1991. On the other hand, the stunts and action pieces are an absolute
thrill to behold, especially a high-speed truck chase on the back
streets of Los Angeles that gives the freeway chase in “The Matrix
Reloaded” a run for its money. It’s also exciting to see Schwarzenegger’s
tough Terminator get the crap kicked out of it by a bodacious
babe from the future who never so much as messes up a hair on
her pretty little head.
As thrilling
as the action scenes are, it’s safe to say that “T3” covers much
of the same ground that was covered in the second film. Once again,
the Terminator bonds with the person he is programmed to protect,
and in the process, he develops some human characteristics that
are warm and humorous. There’s also the now-mandatory catchphrase,
and it won’t be long before people start saying “talk to the hand!”
as much as they said “hasta la vista, baby!” after the last film.
Most importantly, the story once again examines the prospect of
changing your destiny, but where the ending of “T2” was optimistic
and hopeful, the ending of “T3” is much more downbeat and depressing.
The whole
prospect of making “T3” seemed like an act of desperation to revive
Schwarzenegger’s career (his last three films—“End of Days,” “The
Sixth Day” and “Collateral Damage”—all tanked at the box office),
but there’s no doubt that it will put the 55-year-old icon back
on top. What could easily have been an embarrassment is quite
exciting and even funny at times, as Schwarzenegger looks better
than ever and seems to be enjoying himself with one-liners that
are even cornier than usual.
Schwarzenegger
may be the only holdover from the franchise, but the supporting
characters are also very strong. Though he’s usually found in
more independent fare (like 2001’s Best Picture-nominee “In the
Bedroom”), Nick Stahl takes over the part of John Conner from
“T2’s” Edward Furlong with more than adequate skill. Claire Danes
also rises to the occasion after jumping on board the project
at the last minute, and it’s fun to see her in a role that’s more
physical than what she normally does.
Even Kristanna
Loken, who plays the menacing T-X who goes head-to-head with Schwarzenegger,
comes off surprisingly well. She plays her advanced Terminator
much like the way Robert Patrick played his T-1000 in “T2”—with
very little dialogue and a non-expressive face—but she looks hot,
so that’s an added bonus.
Director
Jonathan Mostow may have had the unenviable task of following
in the footsteps of the self-imposed King of the World, but he
deserves a lot of credit for delivering a film that will please
fans and non-fans alike (and maybe even James Cameron himself).
“Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines” may not be the best of the
three, but it’s still a decent film in its own right. You know,
kind of like how the two “new” Beatles songs were good, but not
better than anything the fab four did in their heyday.
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