Just Like a Machine, Technically Well Made, but Heartless

Rating: 4/10 (24 March 2014)

I remember watching Terminator Salvation right when it came out with the film leaving me very cold and empty after watching it. I didn't hate it, didn't love it, it just left me cold. After revisiting this film a few days ago, things haven't changed.
Plot: In 2003, death row inmate Marcus Wright signs his body over to Cyberdyne Systems for medical research after execution. A year later, Skynet becomes self-aware and destroys much of humanity. 14 years later, John Connor discovers human prisoners and schematics for a new type of Terminator yet to be known to him. Meanwhile, Marcus suddenly wakes up and finds himself lost with no idea what happened to him but meets a young Kyle Reese and a mute little girl, Star. After hearing a radio broadcast from John, they go together to try to find him but Kyle and Star end up getting captured by Skynet, so Marcus ends up going instead with a resistance fighter by the name of Blair. But when they get there, Marcus accidentally steps on a mine and gets smoked but survives due to having robot parts inside him, he didn't know he had before.
The first big problem with Terminator Salvation is the story. It seems like the writers have no idea how to progress John's character, or expand the mythology of the Terminator universe. John Connor in this movie basically has NO development whatsoever. All he does is deliver exposition about the plot and occasionally get into an action scene. He basically has no place in this movie's script whatsoever other than that he's John Connor, so the audience expects to see him. The plot itself also feels like filler, without much of a point to the overall outcome of the series. It's like the writers have no idea what to do after T3 so they just said "Eh, who cares, let's just write a story that has little to no consequence so we can continue to write more of these and make a bajillion dollars." The best example of this is the 30 minutes of the film where they discover a radio signal that can shut down Skynet's machines but midway through the film, they... never bring it up again. If you want to follow the mythology of the Terminator series, missing this film wouldn't be that big of a deal.
The characters and the actors playing them in this movie are a mixed bag. Christian Bale just plays John Connor as a generic action hero, while speaking in his trademark Batman voice. He doesn't have much personality beyond that, he's just really bland. The only moment where he gets to shine is when he delivers a speech at the end. Marcus is supposed to be the emotional center of the film as he's the character who goes through the biggest arc but the problem is, Marcus is really unlikable. I'm not sure should I blame the script for this, or Sam Worthington's performance but either way, Marcus just came across as a huge douche the way he constantly shouts at people around him for no good reason and generally acting like a prick. I actually wanted to see Arnold rip his heart out, THAT'S how unlikable he was. Moon Bloodgood did a fine job as Blair Williams, even if she looked a little too clean and model-ish to be a soldier. But the best character has to be the young Kyle Reese, played by Anton Yelchin. I really BELIEVED this guy to be the younger version of the hero of the first film, Yelchin did a spectacular job mimicking Biehn's mannerisms but also playing his character differently enough to convince us that he's a younger version.
The tone of the movie is another problem. While I like how much more SERIOUS this film felt when compared to T3, which felt too jokey and almost like a PARODY of Terminator at some points, they also go way too far with it and end up creating a really dull film. No matter what kind of movie you're making, you need moments of humor and emotion in your film to make it feel real but this film just had this constant moody tone to it that made it feel as inhuman as the robots in the film. There's practically never a moment for you to take back and laugh a little and there's not a whole lot of human emotion felt in this film. Compare that to the first two films which, were action-packed movies, but also took time to have some levity and human emotion with scenes like the Terminator learning to smile in T2, or Kyle revealing to Sarah that he came back not because he was ordered, but because of love. Scenes like this make the action more exciting as the story feels real and it connects with the audience on an emotional level as well so when the big car chases DO come in, the audience is genuinely invested as opposed to just "Explosions! Awesome!"
If there's anything redeeming about the film, it'd be the technicals. The cinematography has a very gritty, greyish look to it that helps sell the despair that the characters are feeling and the special effects are surprisingly convincing. They made good use of both CGI and animatronics for all the different Terminators and the way they blend together is very smooth and seamless. The action feels appropriately gritty and brutal while not showing a whole lot of blood. And props to McG for not using shaky-cam like so many rubbish action directors working today.
Overall, Terminator Salvation just seems confused. The writers seem to have no idea how to continue the story so they just end up creating a filler story. It's a good film on a technical level but it lacks heart. If you just want an action movie, you'll get it. But if want you something more, then keep on looking. 4/10