Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (July 5/03)

Okay, so James Cameron had nothing to do with this movie. If you're to have any hope of enjoying Terminator 3, an action film that owes nothing to The Matrix, it's incredibly important to leave all preconceived notions of what a Terminator flick should be behind. This isn't Cameron's Terminator; it's Jonathon Mostow's. A colleague emerged from the screening disappointed by the film because it wasn't as gritty as the first or as awe-inspiring as the second. Though I do agree with those charges to a certain extent, it's worth noting that the same would have been true no matter who directed the film. Cameron set an incredibly high standard for this series, and Mostow has to be commended for staying true to the themes and ideas established in the first two flicks - while also crafting a movie that's as full of action and suspense as its predecessors.

The movie picks up about a decade after the events of Terminator 2, and it becomes immediately clear that John Connor's life hasn't been an easy one. He's been forced to adopt a transient existence, out of fear and necessity, requiring him to eschew friends and move around constantly. This being a Terminator film, though, it's not long before Connor (played by Nick Stahl) finds himself under attack from a new and improved assassin known as the T-X (Kristanna Loken). Luckily, Arnold Schwarzenegger's T-101 is just around the corner with a mission to protect Connor, along with potential love interest Kate Brewster (Claire Danes).

The most surprising thing about Terminator 3 is how involving the storyline is, especially considering how neatly things were tied up at the end of part 2. Screenwriters John Brancato and Michael Ferris effectively bring back all the major characters (well, except for Linda Hamilton's Sarah Connor - but her absence is convincingly explained), and interestingly enough, it's the non-action sequences that are the highlight of the film. It doesn't hurt that Mostow has cast a couple of fantastic young actors, Stahl and Danes, in key roles - with Stahl, in particular, a standout. He's been delivering superb performances in films like In the Bedroom and Bully, but the transition from small art films to a big-budget extravaganza like this could have been disastrous. It would've been easy for him to get lost in the explosions and special effects, but Stahl does an excellent job of bringing the character of John Connor into his 20s. That same kind of searing intensity that Stahl's become famous for is on display here, and it really works. Clearly, Connor's not the easiest character to play - he has to go from junkie to hero in the space of about an hour - but Stahl's seemingly effortless performance is absolutely convincing from start to finish, and it's easy enough to see why Furlong wasn't invited back.

And then, of course, there's Arnold. Back as the Terminator, Schwarzenegger's doing more in these films than most people give him credit for. In the first film, he was a relentless killing machine, which made his softer, gentler Terminator in the sequel all-the-more jarring (not to mention comedic). Now he's assumed the role of ambivalent Terminator - he doesn't really care about Connor or Brewster beyond the parameters of his mission - a welcome change, mostly because a reprisal of his caring robot act would have been more tiresome than anything else. The one-liners are also back, and though they're not quite as creative as they were last time around (does anyone still say "talk to the hand"?), their inclusion serves the useful purpose of bringing comic relief to otherwise tense proceedings.

As far as the plot goes, it's just as engaging and intriguing as the first two - which is really saying something, when you consider that Cameron co-wrote those films (and has nothing to do with this one). Brancato and Ferris take the storyline to the next logical level, involving the rise of the machines, and it's interesting to note that SkyNet (the company responsible for creating the smart robots) is just as pivotal in their existence - despite the fact that they didn't have a futuristic chip to go on (as in the second film). But more than that, Terminator 3 echoes that feeling of dread that Cameron did such a fantastic job of including in the first two movies - and though Mostow doesn't quite have Cameron's knack for seamlessly blending action with exposition, the film does a nice job of keeping us on our toes. By the time the end rolls around, it's hard not to wish that the film had been shot with a sequel back-to-back (as was rumored some years ago), because this is a conclusion that's crying out for more story. If no further Terminator films are made, this'll be the worst way to end a series since Son of the Blob in the '70s.

Look, the bottom line is this: While Terminator 3 will never be mistaken for a sci-fi classic, it does just about everything a good summer movie should. On that level, it's certainly worth a look.