Fits well with the franchise.

Rating: 7/10 (19 September 2012)

While I didn't think this movie was as good as the first two, I thought it was way better than the 3rd film. The acting was great, the story was well told and tied into the story arc well, and the effects were incredible. It really is impressive to watch all four films over a short period of time. You really appreciate how far the technology has come. I thought they did a great job with the setting and overall feel of the environment. I also thought that the concept of Sam Worthington's character was really interesting and the "Arnie" cameo was pretty sweet. There were some things that I wasn't a fan of however. I thought they tried to add too many new little gizmos for Skynet. I also thought the ending seemed a bit weak and almost like an afterthought. They have paraded around the concept through the entire series of your "fate" not being set and yet the series is always determined on never wavering from the future laid forth in past films. While the argument can be made for that logic, it can also be made countering it. Lastly, while I thought the casting for Kyle Reese was fantastic, I thought having Bryce Dallas Howard play the role of Kate Connor was a terrible idea. Not only does she look nothing like Claire Danes but she also looks way too young. The timing just doesn't feel authentic at all. Shoot, they could've just used Claire Danes and kept the continuity completely. I doubt she was too busy since she hasn't really been doing anything major. Also, while she would still be young, at least she's a bit older than Howard is and they could've always made her look a little more aged. If you can make a robot look like the spitting image of Arnie, I don't think adding a decade or so to Claire Danes would've been too much of a challenge. Overall though, this was a very good movie and definitely fit into the series well. While they have yet to really show why John Connor is a threat in the first place or to show the resistance make even a dent in Skynet, they at least hinted towards a possible light to end the darkness with the frequency concept. I don't know if they're ever going to make a fifth film or even reboot the franchise which seems to have become the rage these days but if they do neither, at least we can more or less figure out how things unfold from here.