Terminator Genesys - A product of the times

First of all let me say that I’m one of the biggest fans of the Terminator series.  I loved parts 1 and 2, enjoyed 3 and, like most, did my best to forget part 4.  Therefore, I was pretty damn excited to hear that Arnie himself was returning to ‘reboot’ the franchise.  If you’ve followed the series then you’ll probably be aware of the story – a computer becomes self aware and launches a nuclear attack of humanity, then when the last humans fight back, the machines send a cyborg (aka Terminator) back through time to assassinate the mother of the one man who can stop them.  Most of you probably know that, so when ‘Terminator: Genesys’ (not a typo!  You’ll find out why it’s called that) recaps the plot, you can kind of switch off.  However, the franchise has been going for so long, it now needs to appeal to a new audience.  Therefore, if you haven’t seen a Terminator movie before, don’t worry – everything is explained to you as it goes along.

Now, if you’ve seen the Star Trek reboot, you’ll know about ‘alternate timelines.’ Terminator Genesys (pretty shamelessly) borrows from this and uses time travel as a way of explaining changing the original story and starting again (without alienating the numerous die-hard fans of the original – like me).  Now, the Terminator films have always been pretty dark and violent.  But, ‘dark and violent’ is a niche market these days and the studio obviously didn’t want to prevent many cinema-goers from watching.  Therefore, this Terminator film is 12A (in the UK), allowing kids to see it (I only counted the one ‘F-bomb’). 

What we have now is basically a teen love story.  The characters Kyle Reece and Sarah Connor are now much younger (and therefore sexier) and you get the impression the film-makers are trying for a ‘will they/won’t they’ kind of tale (think Twilight and others like it).  Game of Thones Emilia Clarke takes over the Sarah Connor role and does her best with it.  Although I found her a bit physically too small to come across as ‘bad-ass’ as Linda Hamilton played her.  Then we have Jai Courtney, taking over from Michael Biehn as Kyle Reece.  Here we encounter the film’s first major problem.  He’s just wooden.  In Terminator Salvation (part 4), Reece was already recast as Ashton Yelchin – who did a damn sight better job with the role.  Jai Courtney really is the film’s ‘weak link.’

So, while Emilia and Jai are there for the ‘teen market,’ us old boys are waiting for Arnie to show up.  And he does.  Mostly.  He sort of turns up here and there to kick some metal ass and then goes away again.  He’s – obviously – the film’s star and yet he feels like he’s a side character in a film called Terminator.  In short – there’s not enough Terminator in Terminator Genesys.

Also, there are a couple of sub plots which really could have been got rid of.  Yes, it was nice to have a nod to Danny/Myles Dyson from T2, but everything about him and some cop who remembers the time travellers through the years could have been cut for a tighter run-time.

Then there’s the spoiler.  I try not to add spoilers to my reviews, but, if you’ve seen the trailer, you’ll already know it. My advice would be to steer clear of the trailer and do your best to see if you don’t see it coming.

All in all, Terminator Genesys is fun.  I enjoyed it and see it as a decent addition to the saga.  However, I’m aware that it wasn’t really made for me.  It was made for the primary cinema-going age group – teens – and therefore had to pander to them first.  If you’re a die-hard fan like me, be aware of this and don’t expect too much that’s like T1/2.  It’s better than part 3 and a million times better than part 4.

Welcome back Arnie, but I still can’t quite get used to calling you ‘Pops.’

And, if you’ve got really good eyesight – try and spot the one second cameo from the former T-1000 Robert Patrick.  Blink and you’ll miss him!

8/10 The Force is definitely strong with this one