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For over 30 years, James Cameron's The Terminator has relentlessly entertained with its punchy visual flair and its elegant narrative. It presented an iconic franchise, and it did so telling a great story with time travel that actually made sense. With three sequels of varying quality and substance, the series became rather convoluted. With Terminator: Genysis, filmmakers decided to "hit the reset button" and set a new direction for a potential new Terminator saga.
To be honest, I expected Genysis to be a horrid mess. There might be some who will label Genysis as such a mess, but personally, I was pleasantly surprised by the film's earnestness. Make no mistake though, the film does have its share of humorous banter and over-the-top action. Chief among the action setpieces, there are a lot of Terminator brawling scenes, where machines fight each other and destroy just about everything in their wake. There are car chases, and there's even a helicopter chase. The firepower is more explosive, the fights are at their most hard-hitting, and the experience as an action film is satisfying.
As with any film, it's the story that will either make it or break it. Even with a cursory glance, viewers can nitpick about plot holes and contrivances with Genysis, given the fact that all Terminator movies mess up the timeline more and more. In this case, the film takes after the first film and neglects the rest, before presenting a number of twists that splinters the plot into an alternate timeline. This time, Kyle goes back in time to find Sarah is already protected by a T-8-800, and is armed to the teeth. There are already T-1000s lurking around 1984, and everything the characters thought they knew becomes irrelevant. In spite of this, the film does one thing that the other sequels never could: it liberates itself from the original formula of The Terminator and opens up the possibilities to any number of directions. Kyle and the Connors are no longer bound to a singular timeline and forced to fulfill their established destinies; as they journey through a new and uncertain future, they confront threats old and new, and once again prove that anything is possible. Because of the way the film remixes aspects of the original film, it slickly utilizes a few scenes from the first film, and is loaded with references and familiar lines. The film adheres closely to ideas and concepts introduced in the first two films. Thus, it feels like a natural extension of the first film, and in all respects, it's a pretty fun alternate sequel.
If there is anything that hampers the storytelling, it would be the characters. They aren't terrible by any means - Kyle Reese and Sarah Connor are as great to watch as ever - but their relationship takes on a totally different dynamic, and the way it turns out in the end could have been refined more (the romance felt forced; I actually question if it's even necessary in the alternate timeline). More screen time for "Pops," John Connor, and O'Brien would have helped tremendously. Danny Dyson appears in just one scene, but I wish he could have had a much bigger role in the film.
The film is made with decent, but rarely memorable or great, photography. The camera work can be a little shakey in a few scenes, but a lot of the imagery is solid. Editing is not bad. Acting is fine for what it is: Arnold Schwarzenegger returns as the iconic Terminator, and he's still a blast to watch. I felt that Emilia Clarke's performance as Sarah Connor was appropriate. I can't say I like Jai Courney as an actor, but I have to admit that him playing Kyle Reese wasn't terrible; he looked the part, and was appropriately stoic. Jason Clarke is decent. Writing is okay, but I felt it could have used a lot of refinement, especially in defining the villains' intentions and fleshing out character relationships. Plenty of exposition is delivered regarding the various plot twists, and even though it often feels forced, it helps make sense of what could have been a screwed-up plotline. This production has pretty good-looking sets, props, and costumes. Some special effects are great, others not so much. The music score reprises a few of the classic themes in an elegant manner, and it is really nice.
Terminator: Genysis is not nearly as bad as I expected; it won't top the first two films, but it's certainly superior to the last two. There are a few things I wish could have been better, but the film does promise a thrilling new direction for the series' future, and it promises to be quite the explosive ride.
3.5/5 (Experience: Good | Story: Okay | Film: Okay)
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