Dumb movie, great ending

Rating: Null/10 (2 July 2003)

As a big fan of early Cameron (T1, Aliens, T2), I was as skeptical as everyone else about this movie. From the opening credits through the first hour, I really had to suppress the urge to walk. Everything looked cheap (where did that 150 mil go?), the "humor" was groan-inducing, and the direction was very pedestrian. Worst of all, there were plot holes galore. As I'm sure others have mentioned, why did TX need a gun when her arm was a veritable Swiss Army Knife of a killing device? Also, the time line was completely screwed up with the revelation that Sarah Connor died in 1997. And how did Arnie, John Connor and Kate Brewster just waltz into the military complex? And on, and on, and on...
Then came the ending. A real corker that I did not see coming (especially given how run-of-the-mill the movie had been to that point). I don't know which of the five credited writers we can thank for this, but the ending just does redeem the rest of the movie. It reminded me of an M. Night Shaymalan-type finish.
Arnie looked good, but was just a supporting player. As in T2 when a buffed out Linda Hamilton stole the show, the movie belongs to Nick Stahl and Claire Danes. They did a very believable job with a very weak script. Kudos to the producers for casting scrawny, atypically looking protagonists and NOT teen idol models.
Overall, I believe T3 is worth a look, just to experience the ending. I do find it amazing that the same makers of this film who appeared so lazy with the storytelling, direction, etc. could have come up with an ending as brave as this one.