Terminator Genisys is the fifth installment of the Terminator film franchise. The first Terminator movie, created by James Cameron was released way back in 1984 and it changed the world of science fiction cinema forever. The second film – Judgement Day, again from James Cameron was a global sensation with mind-blowing effects and an intelligent premise.
It's fair to say, that the first two Terminator movies are true iconic science fiction films. However, the two films that followed fell drastically short and drastically lacked James Cameron magic. So it made complete sense for the production team to consult with Cameron to bring the brand back to a new generation.
In many ways, Terminator Genisys does succeed in recreating the feel of the originals. The smart move used here is to leap directly into the scenes from the 1984 film. We get to see old Arnie Terminator get to fight young Arnie Terminator, which is weird but cool. But then the ideas tend to get a little bit wild. Let me clarify, there are T-800's, a T-1000, a T-3000 and oh my goodness a T-5000. Which is the physical form of Skynet and appears to be able to turn humans into Nanocyte. Stay with me now, then we start in the future and go back in time, then into the future and if that is not hard to follow. How about this, whilst traveling in time they hit a Nexus! Which changes time, creating an alternative universe.
Confused, well you are not alone there. But, even though they did get a little bit carried away with the storyline, the film does manage to hold it's self together as a great action movie. There certainly are no points in the movie that you could say are boring. Arnold Schwarzenegger (Aftermath) is amazing again and director Alan Taylor does well in generating a similar feel to the Cameron films and the end result feels like a full volume version of T1 and T2. And here lies the problem, in attempting to make this film different a line was crossed that takes away the romance of the original concept and the void that is left is filled with overwhelming complications.
Surprisingly, what does bind this film together incredibly well is the performance from Arnold Schwarzenegger. He is genuinely funny, whilst slipping back into the iconic role which is all his own. The scriptwriters have even written in some tongue in cheek lines like “I'm old but not obsolete”. To be fair, there are some other very good performances. J.K.Simmons is brilliant as the drunk cop who always seems to find himself in the wrong place at the wrong time. Jason Clarke does well as John Connor and Emilia Clarke is fantastic as Sarah Connor. Emilia works incredibly well with Arnie, to create a great double act. But whoever cast Jai Courtney as Kyle Reese either has never seen the original or just chose to cast completely the wrong person.
I know that is a lot to take in. It sounds like I am tearing the film apart. But, to be fair I kind off enjoyed the movie. It's just that the whole thing seemed a bit pointless and crossed so many lines that the original concepts were somewhat destroyed.
All in all, if you like none stop action films with a little bit of humor weaved in then Terminator Genisys is a solid choice. Just don't expect it to blow you away. Oh, and if you are wondering what Genisys is? all I can say is, switch off your phones kids.
