Hello there ...
My Score per Category from 1 ( not good at all ) to 5 ( Masterpiece)
(Story = 2), (Scenario = 4), (Characters = 4), (Directing- Editing = 4), (Acting = 5) (Production Design = 5), (Soundtrack = 2),
Every time I saw a new Terminator installment that had to do with bringing back the old cast (except the awesome Terminator Salvation with Christian Bale and Sam Worthington), and in an attempt to complete the original storyline of the first 2 movies surrounding the Connor family and their legacy I was disappointed and furious because not only they have failed to deliver, but the movies were awful and deleted from my mind the moment I stepped off the theater,
But not this time ...
For me movies above all are about storytelling, and they made it, I was thrilled, full of suspense, curious, surprised and enthusiastic throughout the film.
They thrived in 3 Factors that every other great franchise (e.g. Star Wars) tried to do and failed,
1st Factor, giving the audience the original storyline with a makeover for new generation of fans, personally I disagree with this logic that runs in an emphatic way the last decades in Hollywood, I'm also against remakes, there are a few exceptions of course like Scarface and Cape Fear, but it's quite different bringing back to life a masterpiece of the past that lost its touch, than messing with one that everybody loves in order to sell it again ... if you must do it, then you must do it perfect, there is no space for errors, every detail matters.
The "Terminator Dark Fate" storyline is the same with the first 2 movies we all loved, there is a villain terminator and a protector and both are coming from the future to face off each other for the salvation or termination of mankind's future leader, the terminator looks unstoppable and frightening, there is no place you can hide, there is no place you can run, it will find you, and it can't be stopped unless there is a great sacrifice, David S. Goyer, Justin Rhodes and Billy Ray respected the legacy of the first 2 movies and added many twists in the plot, gave depth to the characters, they managed to combine everything without leaving plot holes of any significance at least, the flashback sequences served the storytelling and they weren't there just to fill time gap in the movie, and they also leave us with a beautiful message.
The new villain terminator REV 9 is absolutely great, menacing, it's evolved beyond any other we've seen in the past, besides the high-end technology that it brings from the future it can replicate feelings, and that is the most frightening thing about it, it's portrayed brilliant by Gabriel Luna, giving us the best villain since Robert Patrick's T-1000,
2nd Factor, the Nostalgia card, the Terminator Franchise has tried many times in the past to sell us a movie by playing this card especially with Arnold's T-800, finally they did it right, they wrote a great storyline for Arnold Schwarzenegger and Linda Hamilton, they gave them depth and purpose in the movie and not just a cameo appearance, as a result we've enjoyed brilliant acting by both actors reprising their iconic roles,
3rd Factor , Political Correctness, in recent years studios try to make movies that apply in every race, gender, class etc, most of them achieve to disappoint fans and viewers, especially when they revisit classic films that the majority loves, take the Ghostbusters reboot for example with female main characters unlike the original movie, This is also something the Terminator franchise tried to do in the past with 2003 "Rise of the Machines" , having Kristanna Loken in the role of Arnold's antagonist, she gave her best, she was ok, but I didn't enjoyed it , it felt wrong,
in "Dark Fate" Mackenzie Davis is an apocalypse, she gave us a sentimental, tough, ingenuitive, focused, determined and loyal character, she is beautiful, she is charismatic and she is perfect for the role, her character "Grace" convinced me that she was the best one for the job, Same thing goes for Natalia Reyes, her character "Dani" has to walk on a different path, slowly she manages to overcome her fear and surprise of what is going on around her and rise to the challenge she must face , her dark fate, both women are great and worthy successors of Linda Hamilton's legacy in the franchise.
Special praise must go to Tim Miller and his team, his direction is on the spot, he tells a great story and gives us the conclusion to the original movies we've been waiting for since 1991 "Judgment Day", He kept me on edge throughout the film wondering what comes next, perfect editing by Julian Clarke, Ken Seng's cinematography is dark and majestic, the score of the film is a bit indifferent, music works as carpet for the action but in no way it reminds me the magic of the original one, last but not least the Visual effects team should go for the Oscar especially for the brilliant CGI sequence (definitely the best one we have seen until now) of younger versions of Arnold Schwarzenegger, Linda Hamilton and Edward Furlong.
Finally the original Terminator story is completed erasing the mistakes of the past, the Fate of the Franchise is saved leaving us a never-ending universe of many possibilities to explore in the future.
Thank you,
With Respect, Chris
My Score per Category from 1 ( not good at all ) to 5 ( Masterpiece)
(Story = 2), (Scenario = 4), (Characters = 4), (Directing- Editing = 4), (Acting = 5) (Production Design = 5), (Soundtrack = 2),
Every time I saw a new Terminator installment that had to do with bringing back the old cast (except the awesome Terminator Salvation with Christian Bale and Sam Worthington), and in an attempt to complete the original storyline of the first 2 movies surrounding the Connor family and their legacy I was disappointed and furious because not only they have failed to deliver, but the movies were awful and deleted from my mind the moment I stepped off the theater,
But not this time ...
For me movies above all are about storytelling, and they made it, I was thrilled, full of suspense, curious, surprised and enthusiastic throughout the film.
They thrived in 3 Factors that every other great franchise (e.g. Star Wars) tried to do and failed,
1st Factor, giving the audience the original storyline with a makeover for new generation of fans, personally I disagree with this logic that runs in an emphatic way the last decades in Hollywood, I'm also against remakes, there are a few exceptions of course like Scarface and Cape Fear, but it's quite different bringing back to life a masterpiece of the past that lost its touch, than messing with one that everybody loves in order to sell it again ... if you must do it, then you must do it perfect, there is no space for errors, every detail matters.
The "Terminator Dark Fate" storyline is the same with the first 2 movies we all loved, there is a villain terminator and a protector and both are coming from the future to face off each other for the salvation or termination of mankind's future leader, the terminator looks unstoppable and frightening, there is no place you can hide, there is no place you can run, it will find you, and it can't be stopped unless there is a great sacrifice, David S. Goyer, Justin Rhodes and Billy Ray respected the legacy of the first 2 movies and added many twists in the plot, gave depth to the characters, they managed to combine everything without leaving plot holes of any significance at least, the flashback sequences served the storytelling and they weren't there just to fill time gap in the movie, and they also leave us with a beautiful message.
The new villain terminator REV 9 is absolutely great, menacing, it's evolved beyond any other we've seen in the past, besides the high-end technology that it brings from the future it can replicate feelings, and that is the most frightening thing about it, it's portrayed brilliant by Gabriel Luna, giving us the best villain since Robert Patrick's T-1000,
2nd Factor, the Nostalgia card, the Terminator Franchise has tried many times in the past to sell us a movie by playing this card especially with Arnold's T-800, finally they did it right, they wrote a great storyline for Arnold Schwarzenegger and Linda Hamilton, they gave them depth and purpose in the movie and not just a cameo appearance, as a result we've enjoyed brilliant acting by both actors reprising their iconic roles,
3rd Factor , Political Correctness, in recent years studios try to make movies that apply in every race, gender, class etc, most of them achieve to disappoint fans and viewers, especially when they revisit classic films that the majority loves, take the Ghostbusters reboot for example with female main characters unlike the original movie, This is also something the Terminator franchise tried to do in the past with 2003 "Rise of the Machines" , having Kristanna Loken in the role of Arnold's antagonist, she gave her best, she was ok, but I didn't enjoyed it , it felt wrong,
in "Dark Fate" Mackenzie Davis is an apocalypse, she gave us a sentimental, tough, ingenuitive, focused, determined and loyal character, she is beautiful, she is charismatic and she is perfect for the role, her character "Grace" convinced me that she was the best one for the job, Same thing goes for Natalia Reyes, her character "Dani" has to walk on a different path, slowly she manages to overcome her fear and surprise of what is going on around her and rise to the challenge she must face , her dark fate, both women are great and worthy successors of Linda Hamilton's legacy in the franchise.
Special praise must go to Tim Miller and his team, his direction is on the spot, he tells a great story and gives us the conclusion to the original movies we've been waiting for since 1991 "Judgment Day", He kept me on edge throughout the film wondering what comes next, perfect editing by Julian Clarke, Ken Seng's cinematography is dark and majestic, the score of the film is a bit indifferent, music works as carpet for the action but in no way it reminds me the magic of the original one, last but not least the Visual effects team should go for the Oscar especially for the brilliant CGI sequence (definitely the best one we have seen until now) of younger versions of Arnold Schwarzenegger, Linda Hamilton and Edward Furlong.
Finally the original Terminator story is completed erasing the mistakes of the past, the Fate of the Franchise is saved leaving us a never-ending universe of many possibilities to explore in the future.
Thank you,
With Respect, Chris
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