Review of Terminator: Dark Fate (2019) by Markhreviews — 16 Nov 2019

It’s been 35 years since Ahh-nold first threatened to return. For better or worse, he’s back… again.

A unique element of the Terminator series is the complete lack of continuity among the episodes. Unlike “Star Wars” and other film franchises, the Terminator films have no canon, meaning that people who have died can suddenly reappear or other crucial plot developments from previous episodes may not actually have happened. This sleight of hand (you say sleight of hand, I say creative laziness) is explained by the amazing fact that anything inconvenient to the current story apparently occurred in a parallel history that never actually came to pass. Some days, suspending your disbelief can involve some very heavy lifting.

In “Terminator: Dark Fate,” Grace, a robot from the future, has been sent to earth to protect Dani, who represents the future of the human race in the face of a future artificial intelligence bent on exterminating all human life. Clearly, shamelessly recycling ideas is another key element of the Terminator series.

To be fair, there’s also a lot of good news about this film. First, Linda Hamilton (Sarah Connor) and Schwarzenegger (T-800 or Carl) get to reprise their iconic roles. As a bonus, viewers get some really incredible flashbacks, where both characters were digitally de-aged. Current cast members Mackenzie Davis (“Tully,” “Halt and Catch Fire”) as Grace and Natalia Reyes as Dani are appealing, compelling and able to deliver their more egregious lines with a straight face. Also, the action sequences are consistently spectacular. The film’s opening scene runs nine minutes. By the time that first scene concluded, I was wondering if I’d been transported into a new James Bond film. It’s all great fun.

There are a few quibbles: As a mere mortal, it’s totally understandable why Hamilton has aged, let’s make a guess, about 35 years. It’s less apparent why Schwarzenegger, an inanimate T-800 robot, should be so much worse for wear. That’s just one of the many plot twists that don’t just strain credulity – actually, this plot beats the living s*** out of credulity, runs it over with a tank, then throws it off a cliff. The script, too, is totally off the rails. Here’s a sampling. Sarah Connor: “I’m wanted in a couple of states. Fifty, actually.” [After being shot in the chest three times] T-800: “This will be very hard to explain to Alicia.” [After a big battle] T-800: “You look terrible.” Grace: “At least I still have all of my face.”.

If you want to see a movie that explores the nuances of human existence, or artificial intelligence… c’mon, really?! On the other hand, if you want to see a killer robot from the future who can operate independently of his endoskeleton, two thumbs way up.