Not up to the level of the first two, but it's still a great sci-fi action flick

Rating: 8/10 (11 November 2016)

To start off with, TERMINATOR 3 is just not up to the level of its two predecessors. The first two films in the series were classics, skilfully made by James Cameron with an eye for perfection and detail, timeless masterpieces to be watched over and over again. Watching Arnie progress from vindictive killer to humanitarian robot was a great emotional experience and one that my generation grew up with. For TERMINATOR 3, all of the emotion and drama has gone; what we're left with is just another action-orientated summer blockbuster, albeit a very good action-orientated summer blockbuster. No more subtext or detail; no more perfectly-crafted movie. But the action – the action alone makes this a must-see.
The plot is basically the same as that of TERMINATOR 2, at least for the first two thirds of the film. There is a heck of a lot of action packed into a relatively short time. Wicked shoot-outs with police in a graveyard, the mother of all showdowns between two machines in a lavatory (amazing stuff), people being executed in cold blood, plus much much more. The violence has been toned down but the film still packs a brutal edge – watch out for the stomach punch to see what I mean. By far the greatest action sequence is the exhilarating crane chase, which is absolutely classic, one of the best chases I've ever seen; truly the highlight in cinematic viewing this year. A real pulse-pounding thrill-ride which makes up for any deficiencies the film might otherwise have. Director Jonathan Mostow cut his teeth on the thriller genre with the little-seen but very good Kurt Russell starrer BREAKDOWN, before going on to make the superior submarine epic U-571. All these films have had great direction and very well handled action, making Mostow once one of the most promising action directors in today's cinema.
Back to TERMINATOR 3. Arnold is back, inevitably, and he's older but still in great shape. His terminator here is colder, less human, but with a fine line in quips and one-liners; indeed most of his dialogue is monosyllabic, quotable stuff. He doesn't really get time to connect with the audience, but he holds his own in the action sequences, and to see an actor returning to his best role after a somewhat lean period is a real pleasure; hats off to Arnie for making this film work. Linda Hamilton is gone now but long forgotten; her character had nowhere else to go. Claire Danes plays a younger version of the Sarah Connor-style fighter, and is pretty good. But the best performance goes to Nick Stahl as John Connor, playing a mentally scarred drug addict going through some very hard times.
Kristanna Loken is all right as the Terminatrix, although its hard to see her as a serious menace. The clashes between her and Arnie make for classic entertainment, and I especially loved the hard-hitting sound effects which accompany them. Other things to watch and listen out for are a welcome cameo from Earl Boen (the only other actor to appear in all three films with Schwarzenegger) and Marco Beltrami's effective orchestral score; it's sad that Brad Fiedel's classic theme is relegated to the closing credits, but to be fair Beltrami does a good job and I'd like to see him go far. The finale of the film moves into new territory (instead of just being a rehash of the TERMINATOR 2 plot) as the machines come to life, leading to plenty of mass destruction and gunfire; excellent again. Special effects (both mechanical, pyrotechnic, and CGI) are remarkable. The moment where Arnie struggles against his programming is good, even if it does show up the star's limitations. In comparison, the final showdown between the two damaged robots is far too rushed and unmemorable; you barely have time to register what happened. The way is paved for a fourth instalment with a downer of an ending which is the most unexpected and remarkable thing in the whole movie. TERMINATOR 3 isn't a great movie by any means, but instead a good movie with some great action and only a few flaws. Check it out.