Men and their 'Machines'.

Rating: 6/10 (13 July 2008)

My Take: Lacks the originality of the first or the thrills of the second, but effective all the same.
Third chapters are usually gamble, especially if you have a series that's as successful as the TERMINATOR saga. What started as a hit low-budget sci-fi thriller (in THE TERMINATOR) turns into one of the most explosive and expensive blockbuster of all time (in TERMINATOR 2: JUDGMENT DAY). So what is there in store for audiences in TERMINATOR 3: RISE OF THE MACHINES. Not to terribly much I'm afraid, as the film falls under the category of "been-there-done-that" for most of the scenes. Director James Cameron unfortunately leaves further involvement in this third film, and leaves the directorial reigns (as well much of the TERMINATOR legacy) to action director Jonathan Mostow, who isn't exactly a brand name a director. The new story (helmed by new batch of writers who are everything but James Cameron and Gale Ann Hurd).
But regardless of its shortcomings, TERMINATOR 3 isn't a total loss as it might have turned out. While he rushes the screenplay for production, Mostow does offer a nicely done batch of action sequences and nifty special effects to keep one busy. There's much action here to satisfy the conventional action fan, be it chase scenes or wild gun-play action (maybe even both in one scene). Arnold Schwarzenegger (before running for governor of California) returns as the ever-present emotionless futuristic cyborg once again sent to protect John Conner (Nick Stahl), now a messed-up drifter, from yet another mechanical creation from Skynet sent to the past to kill him. For a change (whilst not much), the new machine, called the T-X, is takes the form of a chick (played by Kristanna Loken), which is just as unstoppable as its predecessor, other than that there's very little else new nor interestingly unique about this new killing machine. In addition, the big bad machine from the violent future must also protect Conner's would be wife (played by Claire Danes). Their connections with each other? They were classmates once! It doesn't get much more complicated than that, now does it? While the writing leaves much to be desired, and its anticlimax of an ending (of an anticlimax of a sequel by the way!) leaves us wondering why we had to go through the events of this film in the first place. One more thing, the much beloved characters of the ass-kicking woman warrior Sarah Conner is sorrily missed, almost as much as a payoff to the character of John Conner, who is a disappointment here in this film. Still, nonetheless, TERMINATOR 3 is a decent action thriller, packed with action and thrills. Leave our cynicism and brains at the door, it's brainless summer season again, and TERMINATOR 3 is a decent effort of pure mainstream film-making. It's disappointing, but only as sequel.
Rating: *** out of 5.