Untapped potential

Rating: 6/10 (17 December 2012)

I have never been a big fan of the Terminator series. Though I've always admired the inventive story-line (namely in the first two films), the movies themselves have never really appealed to me. I decided to rent Salvation and give it a shot despite the mostly negative reviews I've seen on-site. The result was a fairly high-paced and entertaining film with no real highlights. I believe Salvation had the potential to be great (though admittedly I hold high hopes for most post-apocalyptic films), but it didn't quite exploit it.
The script is mediocre, though not atrocious, with predictable and often banal dialogue. Tributes to previous entries in the Terminator series seemed somewhat strained and incongruous, but otherwise satisfactory. The acting was reasonably good, though Christian Bale's one-dimensional rendering of John Connor was a bit sub-par. Sam Worthington was the sole exception, with a strong and emotional portrayal befitting his character. Moon Bloodgood played her part well, though sometimes the damsel-in-distress cliché clashed with the toughened soldier she attempted to depict. The scenery was great, properly illustrating a spread-out human race trying desperately to resist the growing threat and near-absolute dominance of Skynet.
But alas, Salvation ends up feeling like a missed opportunity. The plot feels contrived and weak, and I often found myself wondering why I felt bored during what were supposed to be action-packed sequences. The fact is, there's barely any suspense in the film to keep up the pace, and if it weren't for Worthington, I honestly wouldn't have minded turning off the film without watching the ending. In the end, Salvation is a film that packed a lot of promise, but ultimately ends up feeling like an entertaining flick which could have been much, much more.