Terminator 3 : Le Soulèvement des machines

No matter what people say Terminator 3 was a turkey.The tone was wrong and bad decisions were made in the casting and character phase of the film.Sarah Conner is feebly written out of this story and the film suffers badly for missing her presence.There is also too much self referential parody,there are times when Arnie is made to look silly through the use of badly timed and misjudged comedy moments.I partly blame Jonathan Mostow,he held the reigns on this one and would have had a big say in how it all played out.I couldn't believe they went as far to copy the scene in T2 when Arnie gets his leathers in the bar only this time he gets them from a gay bar and ends up wearing 70's style plastic Elton John style glitz glasses instead of his iconic shades.This was embarrassing.Ed Furlong is replaced by the inferior Nick Stahl and Clare Danes is just filler. The Terminatrix doesn't really come off although Kristianna Loken tries her best.In all this is a hugely disappointing experience for people that have followed Terminator films so far.It has some great standalone action sequences but as a whole is a lazy retread that indulges parody and comedy far too much divorcing itself from the serious tone set by the previous two films.

While this film is clearly not as great as its predecessor, I think it has a lot of merits. The way I see it, It's the most underrated Terminator movie. I like how the story connects with the previous movies and the how it tries to expand the Terminator universe. The characters themselves are compelling and the action is bigger, thrilling and almost on par with the previous movies. The acting department is also excellent with Arnold swarzenneger stealing the show once again. The villain is improved and also chilling. Overall, this film starts out really promising, holding your attention, it did begin to begin muddled in the somewhere in the last act, but that doesn't take away from the action and good characters.

Just as the title says, I truly dont understand why people hate this movie a lot, I think its fine and still really entertaining. Yes, from the 3 movies up to this point this one is the weakest, but that doesnt mean its bad. Yes, there are some moments in the story that feel weird, there are actually some plotpoints that are never adressed, it parodies itself a little bit too much, and etc. But the action is still pretty cool, the story while having its bunch of mistakes, its still very entertaining. I do hope more people appreciate it with the time.

In 2003 John Connor is living a life without record, with no fixed address, no bank account and no permanent job. He does this to avoid the terminators of the future being able to find him and kill him. In absence of him, Skynet sends back a T-X to kill secondary targets – Connor's future lieutenants, among them Kate Brewster, daughter of military scientist Robert Brewster. Luckily, in the future, Kate has sent back a captured Terminator to protect them. As the group escape Connor learns more of judgement day and sets out to try and stop it again.

T3 is different from T2 in that it isn't really in the same league (IMO) as T2 was when it came out. In my view T2 was the must see movie of it's time whereas now it has faded a little and is secondary to the matrix and other cutting edge blockbusters. In fact so second was it that I wasn't that bothered about seeing it or not. However I'm glad it did as T3 is nicely paced, doesn't expect too much of itself and does just what a blockbuster is meant to be – be entertaining.

The plot is mostly secondary to the action but, basically, the T-X has been sent back to take out a group of people before it then (accidentally) finds it's primary target of John Connor. Some of the plot is a little tenuous but it doesn't matter as it moves along at such a pace that you don't have time to really think too long about any one scene. However the climax is a hark back to the original Terminator with a down deep and depressing ending where fate manages to happen regardless of Connor's best intentions.

The action is great although it does look basic beside the effects of Matrix etc. I did feel that they worked better by not trying to be overly flashy or fancy. The morphing effects are actually more enjoyable because here they make up part of the action whereas in T2 they were key moments of cutting edge technology. The film's action takes the form of a simple chase and is very effective, the multiple car chase is my favourite scene – partly because it shows how very out classed the Terminator is by the new model!

The direction is good and Cameron isn't missed at all. Mostow does a great job with the action scenes and keeps everything just perfect. Because the film realises that the franchise is build on catch phrases and images that have entered into popular culture so much that they are overused, it wisely chooses to mock itself and has a real nice sense of humour to it. For example the original Terminator had the terminator entering a motor cycle bar and exiting dressed in biker leathers, here he enters a bar and finds a ladies night in full swing and has to get his clothes from a gay stripper. The deadpan way in which he rejects the sunglasses is really good. In a way this could have undermined the effect of the film but it is managed well and doesn't.

The cast is roundly good. The exit of Sarah Connor is handled well and her replacement (Danes) is good despite a few duff lines which don't convince. Stahl's performance could be seen as mocking Furlong's drug problems (I can't see any other reason for his junkie-like tics etc.) but he is still good and carries the film well. Schwarzenegger wisely agrees to mock his own character – the film takes the idea that time has passed the Terminator franchise by, by having the terminator itself being totally superseded. Loken is good as the T-X and is sexy enough but isn't given as much to do as anyone else. Whereas Patrick was pretty much the main focus of T2 (because of the effects) Loken has less of an impact.

Overall I had my doubts about this film but it did manage to do just what I needed it to do. The action is overblown and enjoyable without being the cutting edge in special effects at any time. The plot-driving scenes are good and the main story (behind the action) is involving and interesting, right up till the downbeat ending. I must say that, although it is hardly the most imaginative or inspiring film made this year, it certainly does what you need a blockbuster to do – no deep, pretentious plots, no joy-less acting, but rather a big noisy movie that doesn't take itself too serious (despite the serious plot) and is actually very enjoyable to watch. Nor a great film but I really wish that more blockbusters were like this.

Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines is often criticized by fans as being not in the same tone as its predecessors. While I agree with that statement in many ways, I think Jonathan Mostow made an honest effort to bookend the series.

Storyline: The story is probably one of the things I take issue with most. It brings up new questions on the nature of time travel within the Terminator universe, as well as bringing new plot holes (something the previous films also had). Some of these flubs could've been corrected with a little research, but I digress.

The story tends to be a retread of Terminator 2, which hurts it a lot. But Mostow tries to draw attention away from this with some awesome action sequences. The storyline, in this respect, takes it up a notch with scenes such as the restroom fight and crane scene.

Acting: I think the acting is one of the best things in this film. Mostow did an excellent job in casting. Rather than going for actors known for their work in action films, the director instead used performers known for their talent in dramatic roles. Nick Stahl and Claire Danes both portray their characters with depth and humanity. Stahl does an especially good role in showing the paranoia and uncertainty of the future.

And, as always, Arnold Schwarzenegger does a great job as the Terminator. His lack of social interaction provides many humorous moments throughout the film, while also giving him a drill instructor approach when dealing with the John Connor character.

Lastly, there is Kristanna Loken as the T-X. While not as intimidating as the T-1000, I didn't expect this to be the case. Robert Patrick played a character with no face and every face, which can only work once if at all. That being said, Loken does a decent job in the role, providing a very cold performance for an equally cold character.

Visual/Special Effects: The visuals of Terminator 3 are pretty good. The liquid metal effects are still as great as they were in 1991 along with some of the CG animated endoskeletons in the Future War sequence.

My only qualms with the visuals is that there is a lack of blue tint that was prevalent in James Cameron's previous films, but this is more a matter of taste than anything.

Musical Score: Brad Fiedel's dark and mechanical theme is absent from the film until the credits arrive, which is something that bothered me. Not only that, but T3's rendition of the theme isn't as powerful as it is in its predecessors.

However, Marco Beltrami does manage to increase the tension of scenes with his score, though little else. This aspect, like the storyline, could of been improved.

Conclusion: Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines wasn't a necessary sequel, but a decent one. I don't believe this installment ruined the series as much as, say, Alien^3. This film will no doubt continue to be one that either fans love or hate.

I happen to love it.