One inevitably ranks it in comparison to the first three and by that contrast, it is in serious need of help

Rating: 5/10 (20 September 2010)

As an enormous fan of the first three Terminator movies, conceived and originally directed by James Cameron in the early 80s, I had a lot of hope and apprehension for the fourth film in the saga, unimaginatively titled "Terminator Salvation." First of all, because I knew it was going to make some serious deviations from the atmosphere and quality of the original three films. It's not just the departure of Arnold Schwarzenegger as the humanlike, stone-faced automaton. It's the departure from the present into the future, from slightly comic to overly Gothic and incredibly schmaltzy, from beautiful cinematography to corny cinematography, and ultimately from a good story with memorable characters to an old-hat story with old-hat characters. But even on its own terms, if we were to shuck out the existence of the first three pictures, I don't think "Terminator Salvation" would hold up well. Not for me, at least.
The previous three movies took place in the present but kept looking to the future, to a time when a cyberspace computer called Skynet would take over the planet with an arsenal of weapons including manlike automatons called terminators. The plot of those movies was to ensure the birth and survival of John Connor, who would lead the humans to victory. Now, save for a brief prologue, we are wrapped entirely in this future world. John Connor (Christian Bale) is trying to inspire people to fight as the robots tear things apart around them. In the midst, we have a good cyborg (Sam Worthington) and his human sidekick (Moon Youngblood). And all around this is a tiresome formula of setup and gun battles that never advance toward anything but a larger gun battle at the end.
What was so special about the first three Terminator movies was their complex stories and plots. "Terminator Salvation" is structured and plays (and looks) like a video game. The whole purpose is not to bother with time travel, ensuring survival, or anything. It pretends to be, but it's nothing more than the protagonist going from Point A to Point B and on to Point C. And along the way, he must take out some baddies, which he does. Also gone are those memorable characters. Remember when John Connor was a smart but vulgar kid and then a smart but vulgar deadbeat? Now he's a dumb and boring middle-aged man with laryngitis since Mr. Bale is still acting on his Batman note. If you're going to put us in the future, where John Connor is leading a resistance against a man-made enemy, then we need to feel that. Not here. John Connor is just a stick figure in the background and as dull as a beige room. And the protagonist, though well-played by Sam Worthington, is only slightly more interesting only because there's a little depth with his character's past. The picture also throws in lots of references to classic moments of the first three, but they are so banally positioned that they become predictable and the charm is lost. The film even fails to be kitschy, nostalgic fun.
I didn't care at all about the virtually nonexistent story in "Terminator Salvation" and I didn't particularly like its visual appearance, either. The special effects are quite nice, but they are detracted from by some cornball, grainy cinematography with flamboyant, over-the-top lighting mixed with moments of murky, shadow-swamped darkness. Like many other apocalyptic pictures, there's always a big dust cloud hanging over every scene, because the filmmakers didn't stop to think of how it original it would seem if these vicious battles took place under a clear, blue sky.
To the movie's credit, it is well-made. Its maker, a man named McG, is a very talented filmmaker. His skill with the camera and set pieces is what ultimately saves the picture from being a fiasco, not Mr. Bale or Mr. Worthington's presence. But he has zip of a story to work with and as a result, the first two-thirds of the picture are very tiresome. I must admit that the final third of the movie, consisting of a brilliant final battle, is truly exhilarating and this carves a big notch in the movie's forty-five. It is better for a movie to have a better ending than beginning, for that leaves an impression on the audience as they leave. But in hindsight, I would rather not watch the first hour and a half just to enjoy the battle again.
Performances are mixed. Christian Bale is surprisingly dull and routine in his scenes as John Connor and this is a rare thing for me: spotting a Christian Bale performance without any charisma. Sam Worthington is a talented actor and he does best with what he has. Bryce Dallas Howard and Moon Youngblood are good, but mechanical in their mechanical roles. And Anton Yelchin is not able to overcome his unbelievably bad dialogue and make a likable character. To his credit, few could have. I look forward to seeing him, and all of these people, in better movies.