Terminator Genisys
Here we go with another Terminator movie that’s trying to convince people that this is a rich and exciting universe that you want to be a part of. I have to say, just like the last two entries, “Terminator Genisys” fails.
Although this particular chapter of the franchise gives us a great reminder of how this whole thing got started in the 1984 classic, by re-filming some of those original scenes. That part was a real blast to me because I love that original story. It does a great job showing the friendship between Kyle Reese and John Connor and the moments leading up to our hero taking that infamous time jump to the past.
Once Reese gets back to 1984, he meets a very different Sarah Connor than who he was expecting, and this is where all the time traveling storyline plots come into play.
I like a good time traveling movie as much as the next guy, but this one felt extremely muddled. After a while, I didn’t even bother trying to keep the time lines straight. I just wanted something that sparked my imagination.
This movie really tries to be a PG-13, comic book version of the first two movies blended together, without using any of the strong story points that made those originals successful. So you get chase scenes and explosions for characters that you don’t really care about. J.K. Simmons shows up in a really cool role, where it’s like “Finally! An interesting character!”, then he’s out of the picture just as quickly as he showed up.
So this is okay as a mindless popcorn movie to watch on cable, but as a big budget, 3D summer picture, big disappointment.
I never thought that a chase scene in a summer action blockbuster, involving helicopters whizzing around skyscrapers, would be a yawn fest. If your name isn’t James Cameron, then leave Terminator alone.
