Slam Bang Actioneer with Christian Bale As John Connor

Rating: 9/10 (4 July 2015)

The fourth entry in the "Terminator" franchise "Terminator Salvation" doesn't topline Arnold Schwarzenegger. The legendary Austrian bodybuilder appears strictly as a CGI character in a cameo as he looked in James Cameron's original "Terminator," and he doesn't utter any of his signature lines of dialogue. Despite the absence of Arnold, this superbly produced epic qualifies as excellent in every respect, and McG stages everything with the word spectacular in mind. Skynet deploys its devastating Hunter-Killer helicopters that possess vertical engines like a Harrier Jump Jet. The T-101 terminators appear by the scores, and Skynet has a gigantic exoskeleton robot with a mini-Vulcan cannon mounted atop its towering physique. Furthermore, they have water creatures that resemble spines with pincers for mouths. The Resistance counters these forces with A-10 attack jets, and they maintain their headquarters aboard a submarine at sea so as to elude detection by Skynet. This larger-than-life tale initially transpires in the wastelands and then the action moves to Skynet headquarters. Iconically , one of the important things that this movie does is show us how Connor acquired his distinctive facial scar.
Christian Bale takes over the role of John Connor, the chief Resistance leader, in McG's sci-fi action adventure fantasy that takes place during the war between Mankind and Machines after Judgment Day. Skynet is headquartered in San Francisco, and a former convicted murderer, Marcus Wright (Sam Worthington of "Avatar"), plays an important role in this installment. Wright decides to donate his body to science after he is executed; Dr. Serena Kogan (Helen Bonham Carter of "Fight Club") persuaded Wright to make his final contribution and they converted him to being a machine. Later, he learns that he was designed to infiltrate the resistance and locate Kyle Reese (Anton Yelchin), and Marcus succeeds in his mission. Unfortunately, Marcus and Kyle are separated during a Skynet attack. During an aerial attack with Skynet hunter-killer helicopters, a pilot Blair Williams (Moon Bloodgood of "Falling Skies"), stumbles onto Marcus after she survives a plane crash. When they plunge into a minefield on the way to Blair's resistance base, Marcus trips a mine and winds up in captivity. Marcus convinces Connor that he didn't know that he was a Terminator. Meantime, the Resistance is poised to bomb Skynet, and Connor struggles to convince General Ashdown (Michael Ironsides of "Starship Troopers") that he cannot destroy the Skynet camp without killing Reese. Ashdown doesn't seem to know how vital Kyle's life is to the Resistance. Connor disobeys Ashdown launches a one-man assault on Skynet with Marcus' help. Marcus ends up saving Connor during a fracas with a Terminator.
"Terminator Salvation" contemplates what distinguishes mankind from machines. At the end, Skynet's global network remains intact, but the Resistance has won a victory. Christian Bale is good as John Connor, and Sam Worthington rivals him as Marcus Wright, a Terminator who retains enough vestiges of his humanity to triumph over the machine makeover that Skynet has performed on him. "Terminator Salvation" is memorable for many reasons. First, we see Skynet's vast new arsenal of weapons. Second, we get a macro sense of the overall command structure of the Resistance.