Saved by the Story. James Cameron, where are you?

Rating: 6/10 (6 July 2003)

T3 suffers from the "Matrix Syndrome," the need to outdue and surpass its predecessors with bigger, bolder, more blast-worthy action. Chases and nitroglycerine abound in this film as characterization is pushed to the background.
To be fair, very little characterization is needed except for the Claire Danes character. Unless you've been living in an isolated commune for the past 20 years, you know the Terminator. Arnold's persona has become pop culture myth -- like the Six Million Dollar Man writ large. Stahl's character, John Connor, is still the ordinary man tormented by his awesome destiny.
T3 does deliver the stunts, the explosions, even the catchy one-liners to which we've become accustomed. Arnold's performance is stellar. His charm breathes humanity into an automaton (Gov. Schwarzenegger one day perhaps?). Stahl is competent, while Danes is immeasurably underused. Note her role as Juliet in Baz Luhrman's Romeo and Juliet -- but hey, this isn't Henry James. Kristanna Loken is good as well, sexily exuding VERY homicidal tendencies.
Yet beyond the action, T3 main point of interest is the story. While the first 2 films touch upon existentialism and self-determination ("There's no fate but what you make" is a recurring theme), this film does a 180 and focuses on destiny. The ending is intriguing, a little 12 Monkeys-que, and certainly depressing.
I agree with Roger Ebert in saying that T3 is really a dumbed down version of its history. Were it not for the creative ending, I probably wouldn't have been as impressed. That said, T3 is a worthy addition to the franchise.