Entertaining, but features James Cameron's traditional foul-ups

Rating: 6/10 (5 July 2012)

You probably already know the plot of this movie, so I'll get right into my review. As a standard sci-fi movie (not as a sequel), this is fine. It is entertaining, it has a decent plot, it has good effects, and it has some great action set pieces. However, there are several problems I have with this movie, and most of them tie back to the director, James Cameron. First of all, the editing techniques that he is so famous for really irritate me. He often shows 5 or 6 different angles of the same explosion over and over and over again. Why do we need to continue to see this explosion 5 times. Just move on with it. Additionally, this film is the epitome of over-used slow-motion. Every action scene has it, and slo-mo is one thing that, unless it has a metaphorical purpose (like in Inception), is really unnecessary and annoying. I understand that these techniques are used to make the film look cooler, but it really doesn't in my opinion. It just makes it worse and more irritating to watch.
I truthfully believe that James Cameron is an excellent visceral director. He knows how to establish a visual and milk it until the last drop of awesomeness. However, being good with visuals doesn't mean that you are good at anything else. That is the second problem I have with this movie. Most things involved with a movie are for the visceral aspect, but there are two things that aren't: writing and acting. The writing of this movie wasn't bad. It could've been better (and certainly more original, which I'll get to later). But the acting is another story. Linda Hamilton was okay as the crazy action lady. Arnold Schwarzenegger didn't really have to act. He had to be a robot, which was exactly what he was. The kid, however, was horrible. This was his first movie, and he needed direction, which he could not get from Cameron. In fact, I disliked the kid so much that whenever he cried, especially in the end, I didn't care at all. In fact, I actually welcomed Schwarzenegger's death. Cameron, as I said, is a great visceral director, but he cannot direct an actor (or actress).
Finally, this film was very, very, very similar to the original. Almost unoriginal, in a way. It didn't really expand on the first one. The Schwarzenegger character is sent back to protect them, and Robert Patrick's T-1000 is sent to kill them, just like in the first (except in the first, Schwarzenegger was sent to kill them). It was also very predictable. As soon as the Liquid Nitrogen truck appeared, I called the ending. Then, when I saw that there were still 20 minutes left, I saw the rest of the movie coming.
The only reason I gave this movie a 6 is because it was fun. The action sequences were very well directed, but everything else was either meh or just bad, and most of the blame lies with the director.