Do we need any more of this? -- Terminator Salvation
SPECIAL-EFFECTS EXTRAVAGANZA:Terminator Salvation
Genre: Action, sci-fi, fantasy
Director: McG
Cast: Christian Bale, Sam Worthington, Helena Bonham-Carter, Anton Yelchin, Moon Bloodgood, Bryce Dallas Howard
Storyline: Judgement Day is passed and John Connor is leading the resistance against the machines
Bottomline: Cool without being awesome
What started off as a robust B movie, with bright colours, Eighties hair and camp humour has now morphed into a bloated, special-effects stuffed extravaganza. `Terminator Salvation,' the fourth instalment of the iconic sci-fi franchise is set in the postapocalyptic world of 2018. The machines in the defence systems of Skynet havebecome "self-aware" and are busy making terminators to hunt and kill humans. John Connor is leader of the resistance. His plans go awry with the appearance of the mysterious Marcus Wright. Also throwing a spanner in the works is Kyle Reese, who is John's father, the man who goes back from the future to save John's mum, Sarah.
Directed by McG, `Salvation'
is rather grim and can be
thoroughly enjoyed only if
you are completely clued into
all the `Terminator' lore. Everything
the film offers has
been done before. This creates
a feeling of d‚j… vu, which
makes things even more confusing
thanks to the movies'
back-and-forth timeline.
Stale, but stylish
That is not to say the film is
not stylish. The sepia-toned
palette that all futuristic films
seem to favour is used to excellent
effect here. The shots
and framing are innovative
without being out of the ordinary
(the exploding chopper
was eye-popping), while the
stunts are cool without being
wow. Of all the hardware, the
coolest were the bikes. Of the
cast, Christian Bale looks
grim and grunts most of the
time as John Connor. Wonder
which scene the Director of
Photography mucked up that
prompted the infamous meltdown.
The three women -
Moon Bloodgood as feisty
Blair Williams, a resistance
soldier, Bryce Dallas Howard
as John's pregnant wife Kate
and Helena Bonham Carter
(gnashing her teeth as the evil
scientist) - form a trinity of
creator, destroyer and
preserver.
The original Terminator,
Arnold Schwarzenegger,
makes an appearance in the
virtual form as work-in-progress
looking suitably creepy.
Sam Worthington plays the
conflicted Marcus Wright
with not much expression.
Bale promises us that he will
"be back," and there is
enough in the end to signal
sequels. The question is, do
we want any more of this?
MINI ANTHIKADCHHIBBER
Printer friendly
page
Send this article to Friends by
E-Mail
Friday Review
Bangalore
Chennai and Tamil Nadu
Delhi
Hyderabad
Thiruvananthapuram
