Terminator Salvation Matt Smith 24 June, 2009 - 4:39 PM

Terminator Salvation

Starring: Christian Bale, Sam Worthington and Anton Yelchin.  

The year is 2018 and the earth has been decimated by a nuclear holocaust courtesy of Skynet. A handful of resistance fighters lead by John Connor continue the battle to save the planet and its few surviving inhabitants.

'Terminator Salvation' is the fourth film in the franchise and goes deep into the heart of the war which has been alluded to in the past three films.  Fans of the series since its inception, 1984's 'The Terminator', have been waiting for this moment for 25 years and they should not be disappointed.




The film definitely has a grittier edge than its predecessors. Director McG (a man with possibly the strangest moniker in Hollywood) was previously at the helm of the 'Charlie's Angels' films, but the glitz and the glamour from those films are nowhere to be seen in his latest offering.

Salvation's backdrop of destroyed cities, towns and highways is bleak and depressing, totally devoid of any colour or hope. It is here that pockets of resistance fighters use their wits and inferior artillery to battle the robots which are sent in to hunt down human beings.

Previous films, most notably 'T2', set a benchmark for their time in regards to special effects. Salvation relies instead on a strong plot and solid performances from most involved. The special effects are still present, a number of new cyborgs and robotic creatures have been introduced, but the film's strengths lie in its ability to keep the audience on the edge of their seat.

Although science fiction is at the core of the film's plot, it primarily plays at like a good old fashioned action adventure. There are plenty of references to past Terminator films and enough of the universally recognised catch phrases to keep die-hard fans satisfied.

Those, like myself, not fully educated on the back story of John Connor, Kyle Reece or John's mother Sarah will find an encyclopedic knowledge of the franchise is not needed to keep up with the plot.  

Aussie actor Sam Worthington tackles the role of half man-half machine Marcus Wright. His American accent is a tad on the dodgy side, but overall his performance is fantastic. He is currently being touted as the film world's next big thing and he certainly shows enough to satisfy those singing his praises.

Christian Bale is excellent in the role of John Connor despite some terrible lines he is forced to deliver. The best performance of the film comes from Anton Yelchin who was last seen in the latest 'Star Trek' film and many will remember him as the kidnapped Zach from 'Alpha Dog'. Instead of just playing a younger version of Kyle Reese (the man who saves Sarah Connor in the first Terminator film) he underplays the role brilliantly, showing just small glimpses of the man he is set to become.

Terminator Salvation is not the best film in the franchise, but with it's open-ended closing scenes, and a fifth film already in the pipeline, it seems the new look format may give the first few films in the franchise a run for their money.

Three and a half stars out of Five.

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• Alex Dunne says

  saw it and it rocks

  Posted Sunday 9 August, 2009 4:52 PM

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