Review of Terminator Genisys (2015) by Leon B — 15 Nov 2015

Review:

After the disappointing Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines, my expectations for this film wasn't that high. Because of Arnies age and the fact that  Cameron wasn't directing it, I really thought that they should leave this franchise alone but it actually wasn't that bad. It wasn't in the same league of the first and second Terminators but the action and storyline did keep me gripped throughout. It definitely wouldn't have worked without Arnie, who I personally thought was the best thing in the film and the witty script and funny one liners was well put together by the director. James Cameron really set the benchmark with Judgement Day, which is a timeless masterpiece so I feel sorry for any director who tries to bring these characters back to the big screen. Anyway, this movie sees an elder John Connor (Jason Clarke), head an elite force to take out the robots who are controlling earth in the future. After a chain of events which put the company, Skynet, in control of earth, John Connor sends his close friend Reese (Jai Courteny), back to 1984 so he can protect Sarah Connor (Emilia Clarke) and destroy Skynet. When he finally teams up with Sarah, he's not to happy to see that she is being protected by a Terminator (Schwarzenegger) but they soon join forces because they both have the same intentions in mind. That is a very basic version of the plot because there are many elements which were introduced throughout the movie. One of the problems that I found with the film is that they are still using Cameron's effects, which he used in Judgement Day in 1991, so I was expecting some fresh, new material for this day and age. With that aside, it does have non-stop action from the beginning to end and I liked the chemistry between Arnie and Sarah Connor. Jai Courtneys constant whining did get on my nerves after a while and I couldn't help thinking that the movie would have been much better without him. I know that this movie wasn't everybody's cup of tea but I personally enjoyed it but they really need to push this franchise to the next level. Enjoyable!

Round-Up:

This movie was directed by Alan Taylor, who recently directed Thor 2 and 6 episodes of the Game Of Thrones, which is a massive achievement for someone who hasn't got a massive back catalogue behind the camera. He's also done an episode for Boardwalk Empire, 4 episodes of Mad Men, 9 episodes of the Sopranos, an episode of Lost, 6 episodes of Sex and the City, 2 episodes of Homicide: Life and the Street and 2 episodes of the West Wing. He's definitely had a versatile career to date and he's worked on some of the best TV series of all time so he must be a trusted director, especially for his contribution to the Game Of Thrones series. He didn't really bring anything original to this movie because the liquid robots and the half robot half human action scenes were in the previous movies but the script was well written and it's the type of movie that I can watch again. Surprisingly enough, Arnold Schwarzenegger, 68, was the best thing in the movie and he seems to be still going strong, after seeing the profit that this movie made at the box office. He still has the Toxic Avenger, Triplets, the Governator and the Legend of Conan in development so he's definitely proving that his age isn't going to stop him taking on some challenging roles during his comeback to the big screen. .

Budget: $155million.

Worldwide Gross: $440.6million.

I recommend this movie to people who are into their action/adventure/sci-fi movies starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, Jason Clarke, Emilia Clarke, Jai Courtney, J.K. Simmons, Matt Smith and Courtney B. Vance. 6/10.