A shell of its former self

Rating: 6/10 (14 November 2014)

The first 'Terminator' was basically a sci-fi slasher flick. Dark, relentless and scary. The second one was more cerebral and polished, trading terror for white-knuckle action. 'Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines' is merely a generic summer popcorn movie. The script is thin, recycling old ideas without any of the careful craft that Cameron originally put into them. Also missing is the crucial relationship building that gave the first two films their heart.
Arnold returns, looking remarkable for a man in his late 50s, but his Terminator here lacks the cold menace of the original or the sly wit of his 'T2' counterpart. Nick Stahl is surprisingly effective as John Conner, but his character is unfortunately underwritten. "Heroine" Claire Danes mostly just screams and villain Kristianna Loken is nothing but eye candy as the eye-rollingly named Terminatrix.
Though it breezes by at a fast clip, 'Rise of the Machines' is a weak and uninspired successor to the two legendary originals.