Movie Review: Terminator Genisys further proof they shouldve stopped in 1991

Written by Adam Mast

TERMINATOR GENISYS (PG-13)

“Terminator Genisys”—or as I like to call it, “The Terminator Greatest Hits Collection”—isn’t quite the train wreck I was expecting, but it is further proof that this series should have come to a close with “Terminator 2: Judgment Day” back in 1991. “Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines” had its share of problems, but it was fun enough. “Salvation” on the other hand, was a forgettable mess. Quality-wise, “Terminator Genisys” lies somewhere in between its two predecessors.

As “Terminator Genisys” opens, we are introduced to a world in shambles. Skynet, a self-aware global military computer system, has all but taken over the planet. Standing in the way of Skynet’s plan for world domination is a human resistance led by soldier John Connor (Jason Clarke). When Skynet fears that Connor and his army are inching ever so closer to victory, they send an unstoppable killing machine—called the T-800—back in time to terminate John’s mother, Sarah (played by Emilia Clarke—no relation to Jason), before his birth, all in an effort to preserve their own victory.

Ever the resilient solider, John is well aware of Skynet’s plan, but the pesky system initiates its scheme before the resistance has an opportunity to stop it. Connor is left with no other choice but to send a member of his team back to serve as Sarah’s protector. Enter Kyle Reese (Jai Courtney), John Connor’s right-hand man. John has looked after Kyle since he was a child. In fact, had it not been for John, Kyle most certainly would have been killed by one of Skynet’s Terminators. Therefore, Kyle jumps at the opportunity to serve his fearless leader.

John reluctantly agrees to send him back, but when Kyle makes his arrival in 1984, it is a very different 1984 than fans of the original “Terminator” will remember. It’s an alternate timeline, one in which Reese comes face to face with a dreaded, shape-shifting T-1000 (Byung-hun Lee), and one in which a T-800 (Arnold Schwarzenegger) has already been protecting Sarah Connor for the previous 9 years.

If the plot of this movie sounds congested, confusing, and silly, that’s because it is. And for the few of you who have never seen the first two movies, you’re sure to be far more confused then those of us who have. To call “Terminator Genisys” convoluted would be an epic understatement. For a large portion of its running time, “Genisys” feels more like an overstuffed time travel movie than a straight-up “Terminator” flick, and with all that time travel comes the usual barrage of head-scratching questions, the big one being, who sent a Terminator back to protect Sarah Connor and who the hell programmed him? This is one of many questions this film never answers.

James Cameron, the writer and director of the first two “Terminator” movies, wasn’t interested in belaboring his time travel hook. His films were more about relentless action and character. Here, time travel is the emphasis, and it affords director Alan Taylor (“Thor: The Dark World”) and crew the opportunity to double back, recreate time lines, and move from the future to the past to the present all within a two-hour running time, attempting to apply the same sort of plot devices that worked to much stronger effect in “Back to the Future Part II” and J.J. Abrams’ “Star Trek” reboot.

“Terminator Genisys” also makes a valiant effort to play off our sense of nostalgia by using numerous call back lines and skillfully recreating entire scenes from Cameron’s original “Terminator” from 1984. While technically, these moments are quite a thrill to look at, they don’t add too much because “Genisys” is unable to generate any real life of its own. The action is there, and Taylor is adept at staging a lot of this stuff (aside from an abomination of a helicopter chase sequence), but overall, I didn’t have a genuine connection to what was going on. There was no real sense of urgency.

The general argument would be that this is simply an action movie and to attack a film like this because of a lack of plot or character is silly. However, while the first two films were action driven, Cameron also managed to create characters and relationships worth caring about. The interpretations of already established characters in “Genisys” feel like lesser carbon copies of their former selves.

Schwarzenegger has a fun time here as the aging T-800, affectionately referred to as “Pops” (for the record, his aging is explained, but I’ll be damned if it’s an entirely reasonable explanation). Schwarzenegger’s natural sense of humor and iconic physicality will always be worth noting. Even in his 60’s, he’s still got it.

Emilia Clarke (“Game of Thrones”) certainly looks like a younger version of Linda Hamilton circa 1984, but she lacks the toughness and anxiety we have come to expect from this character.

Courtney possesses none of the quiet intensity or the survivalist instincts that made Michael Biehn’s take on Kyle Reese so compelling. Granted, part of Kyle’s poor characterization here falls squarely on the shoulders of the screenwriters, Laeta Kalogridis and Patrick Lussier. Having said that, I don’t entirely get Courtney’s appeal as an actor, particularly in heroic roles. He’s more charismatic here than he was in “A Good Day to Die Hard,” but that’s faint praise at best. Quite frankly, Courtney has been more effective when he’s playing villains (see “Jack Reacher” and “Divergent”).

Like Courtney, Jason Clarke feels sorely miscast as John Connor. Clarke can be a terrific actor (check out his wonderfully subdued work in last year’s exceptional “Dawn of the Planet of the Apes”), but here, I simply never bought him as the tough-as-nails leader of a futuristic resistance. And I never bought into his poorly applied battle scar either, but I’ll blame the make-up team for that one.

It’s clear that Paramount Pictures has been concerned with the negative buzz that has plagued this film all the way through production. Why else would they divulge all major plot details in the trailers? They even revealed the identity of the primary villain in their marketing campaign. Don’t worry, I won’t reveal that here. Even a faint endorsement by James Cameron felt like a move of overwhelming desperation on the part of the studio.

Having said all of that, “Terminator Genisys” isn’t a flat out terrible movie. It has moments, and Taylor is certainly a competent filmmaker. Again though, this is yet another sign of a franchise that should have been rendered obsolete many years ago. Where “The Terminator” films are concerned, I don’t think I’m alone in hoping that Schwarzenegger will utters the words, “I won’t be back.”

But where a new “Conan” movie is concerned, however, that’s another story.