Think of The Terminator. What’s the first thing that springs to mind? Is it the ten bar drum beat intro followed by the catchy keyboard melody? Is it the T-1000 sprouting out its liquid metal knifed arms? Or is it the anticipation of Arnie uttering “I’ll be back?” Whatever your best memory of the Terminator franchise is, Arnold Schwarzenegger is back…literally.
At last, the fifth Terminator instalment is here and it has an interesting premise bringing something fresh to the table. Already Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines is now considered ancient history and Terminator Salvation is barely recalled, no pun intended. It just demonstrates that the franchise cannot be successful when Arnie was too busy being The Governator instead of The Terminator.
There’s even a new T-1000 (Byung-hun Lee) doing what he does best whilst coaxing pure nostalgia from Terminator 2: Judgement Day. As he tries to kill Reese with his liquid metal knives and impersonate other beings, it’s Sarah ‘Khaleesi’ Connor (Emilia Clarke) who steps in to save Kyle with the classic line, “Come with me if you want to live.” Whilst you may be confused, you are certainly engrossed - enough to romp along for the 126 minute ride in order to have the many questions answered.
The action sequences are excellent. The bus chase sequence on The Golden Gate Bridge makes Speed look like a kid playing with a toy bus. Moreover, John Connor (Jason Clarke) as the villain and more advanced than the T-1000 and T-X is a very risky decision for writer’s to make, considering he was originally our hero of the resistance to battle Skynet; the computer that will cause Judgement Day. However, risk works here when we see Kyle and Sarah having to fight their son, through intense warfare, in order to break Skynet andthis new John. Emilia Clarke’s take on Sarah Connor proves that she is more that an iconic TV role.
Is it better than T1 and T2? Let’s just say it’s far better that the third and fourth, easily. Terminator Genisys is highly recommended and to see Arnie return back to his signature role is an unadulterated treat. Although “the future is not set,” at least set Terminator Genisys as a must watch.