Termination

Just saw Terminator: Salvation and I'm not quite sure what to make of it. There were some cool scenes and some interesting thoughts and ideas, but I'm still somewhat disappointed. I definitely found it refreshing to get out of the whole time travel rut (and all the obnoxious paradoxes that come from that) and see the actual war against the machines. It was also interesting to see how some of the characters that get mentioned in the previous films came together and who they really are.

I think what left me feeling less than satisfied was a certain pet-peeve of mine when it comes to film distributors. Have you ever watched a preview and thought, "Well, I guess I don't need to watch that movie now," because you just saw everything in the trailer? I had hopes that would not be the case for Terminator, but I was mistaken. They give away the big shocking moment that changes the course of the entire film in the preview. And from that point on, the plot is predictable.

I was also a bit nonplussed with the ending. They have made it clear from the beginning that this was intended to be the beginning of a new trilogy that would show the final showdown between the machines and humans (Matrix anyone?), but by the end, I honestly didn't care about seeing more. I liked the idea that no matter how much meddling the people of the future did in the past, the inexorable march of technology will lead to the mechanized judgment day, and I was initially interested to see this side of the story. But now, I don't know how they can continue to make an interesting story from here on out without being utterly predictable. I think the corner they have backed themselves into is that when technology is the enemy, you have to keep upping the ante with each film. They've done that for 4 films and I don't know that they have anywhere to go.

Anyhoo, just some thoughts. And, of course, an obligatory metal head...