The Terminator franchise has gone a long way, that is, in terms of its original and complicated alternate timelines, and the number of movies and TV series it generated. IMHO, the whole series is in a mess. The original Terminator and its direct sequel, Terminator 2: Judgement Day, were technological advances during their time that awed the audience even though they both worked on similar premises - the future is ruled by machines (which today we like to term them as artificial intelligence) which sent a Terminator back in time to prevent the existence of the human resistance leader. Subsequent films and TV series took this to newer, more confusing levels.
Therefore, there is no surprise here that the original creator James Cameron attempts to bring it full circle and make Terminator: Dark Fate a sequel to Judgement Day and not a continuation of the convoluted timeline. Dark Fate has all the action sequences and special effects we come to expect from the Terminator series. Unfortunately, it no longer impresses on the visual effects department because even the worse movies feature good enough computer-generated graphics these days. The only way it could retain enough interest is a strong storyline and bring in high profile actors to build on its existing (dwindling) fan base. Although it’s great to see Arnold Schwarzenegger and Linda Hamilton return, there is not much new material to work on. The plot is too similar to the prequels.
Backed by the pioneers, it is obvious the introduction of younger actors means the change of guards and another attempt to extend the rather stale franchise. Being an action movie, there is little avenue to build on the acting but this is expected. The action sequences are quite engrossing for the first half but as the film builds to its climax, I felt tired of the repetitiveness. Without any strong elements to support it, I would say this is a mediocre, albeit high profile and high budget film.
It also poses the same questions that never had clear answers - why send only one advanced robot (I used to think the noun “robot” is lame until I started reading Isaac Asimov’s Foundation series) to kill the protagonist that is bound to change the future? Why the resistance of the future send only one of them to protect the victim? Why can’t the bad guys just send the terminator into a more strategic time to kill off the victim? Of course, a simple answer would be “There won’t be much of a movie if these questions are answered, would it?” XD
Long story short, Dark Fate is a combination of the original Terminator and Judgement Day wrapped in a modernised package with a brilliant touch of feminism... and of course yet another effort to expand the franchise.
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