'Talk to the Hand'

Rating: 3/10 (8 June 2009)

And with that quotation is a perfect example with everything that is wrong with Terminator 3 and how is doesn't keep in spirit with the James Cameron masterpieces.
Set in 2004, John Connor (Nick Stahl) is an out-the-grid drifter. Computer systems around America are starting to fail, and this is a puzzle to Air Force General Robert Brewster (David Andrews), the commander of the new Skynet system. In 2032, the machines had lost the war and sent an advance terminator, the TX (Kristanna Loken). Her mission is to kill John Connor's lieutenants, including Kate Brewster (Claire Danes), a vet and John's future wife. The resistance send a re-programmed Terminator (Arnold Schwarzenegger) to protect John and Kate from the TX and the impending doom of Judgement Day. The Terminator tells John and Kate that John and Sarah Connor never stopped Judgement Day, just delayed and that Judgement Day was just a day away. This sets the heroes into a race against time to stop the event.
I bet James Cameron wished he used his alternative ending, it would have stopped any sequel being made. The whole point of the ending Terminator 2: Judgement Day was Judgement Day was stopped and that John and Sarah were free to live their lives. What's the point if they is no hope. James Cameron refused to do T3, saying T2 was the end of it. Linda Hamilton refused to do T3 because Cameron wasn't involved, and Schwarzenegger only did this film because he was paid $30 Million and 20% of the profits, I don't blame him really. It also helped his political ambitions.
The choice of director was Jonathan Mostow, a workman-like director who made the awful U-571. Also, the screenwriters were John Brancato and Michael Ferris, wrote Catwoman, that says it all.
T3 was basically made as a re-harsh and parody of T2. They is too much humour which wasn't needed at all. The whole point of the first two films was that they were played straight as possible. They are poor lines and no good one-liners (such as 'you are terminated!') compared in the first two films,. When the Terminator steals his clothes off a male-strippers, and eyes stealing them off a fat woman, or that the TX makes her breasts bigger to stop the cops these are all very bad signs. The action scenes were well done, but nothing surprise, nor especially memorable.
But the worst part of the film is the characterisation. John Connor goes from punk kid who had to battle the T-1000 to a scared young man who is really dumb, especially since he had to live through. Nick Stahl was a terrible choice to play John Connor. Arnold Schwarzenegger ends up over-acting and being overly emotional, which is surprising seeing he is an actor of limited talents. Claire Danes is a pretty good actress, but isn't served well in this film. Kristanna Loken lacked the menace of being a foe to the Terminator and the screenwriters were just pushing the extremes from large bloke (T1), to skinny man (T2), to skinny woman (T3).
The screenwriters attempt to hard to make twists in this film. The only things worth seeing are Earl Boen cameo as Dr. Peter Silberman and the ending. Any true Terminator fan should ignore this film and just focus on T1 and T2.