'Terminator: Dark Fate' A Review

Terminator: Dark Fate is a scifi action movie, a continuation of the Terminator series and a direct sequel to 1991's Terminator 2: Judgement Day. After the events of T2 Sarah Connor(Linda Hamilton) and John Connor(CGI Edward Furlong) have successfully prevented Skynets prominence and Judgement Day however there are leftover Terminators criss-crossing the globe in search of John and one of them(CGI Arnold Schwarzenegger) kills him then disappears. That's just the prologue! Cut to present day Mexico City and Dani Ramos(Natalia Reyes) is going to work with her brother. A Rev-9 Terminator(Gabriel Luna) is sent back to kill Dani and Grace(Mackenzie Davis) a human cyborg is sent back to protect her. During the initial confrontation they are saved by a grizzled Sarah Connor who joins Grace in protecting Dani. Seem convoluted? That's just the beginning!

Hamilton is the clear star here, her entrance is electric and although she's had a steady but sedate career since T2 her movie-star magnetism is undiminished. She is a thrill to watch, her energy and gravitas unintentionally mostly eclipse the valiant if wanting efforts of Reyes and Davis. Both of whom do their best but are let down by the Gordian knot of a plot and the sheer inability to match the presence of Hamilton. Davis clearly leveraged significant effort and she is physically imposing but she lacks the razor edge the Hamilton has always had and maintains here. Schwarzenegger is able to recapture his old imposing stolidness and humor to a degree and his old school action hero watchability also overshadows the efforts of the newer cast members even though he doesn't enter the movie until about the half way point.

Visually the movie is overstuffed with over-the-top CGI, extensive action sequences with zero practical effects render them mostly flat and more reminiscent of a dated video game than cinema. A huge disappointment given that part of the success of Terminator, T2, and T3 for that matter is their use of real world action to create real stakes and real thrills and this installment purported to be a return to form for the series. The script is the other glaring issue, instead of trying to do something different it merely apes the already established formula only attempting to increase its speed and spectacle and in so doing story is sacrificed for simple kinetic momentum. And the hoops that have to be jumped through to justify this alternate timeline, to retcon in it into position is elaborate to the point of incoherence.

With the return of Hamilton this installment had incredible promise but she is the only one who really rises to the occasion.

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