Arnold brings the cyborg back
The aging machine returns in a film that leaves fans dizzy with its timeline and story changes
Terminator Genisys (out of 4) Starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, Jason Clarke, Emilia Clarke, Jai Courtney, Byung-hun Lee and J.K. Simmons. Directed by Alan Taylor. At GTA theatres. 125 minutes. 14A
The most quotable line in Terminator Genisys is the returning Arnold Schwarzenegger’s retort: “I’m old, not obsolete.”
The most appropriate one, though, is this shout by another character: “Are you kidding me?”
This latter exclamation will resonate with fans of The Terminator saga, now making its fifth take on sci-fi survivalism, who are confronted with head- slapping timeline and story changes.
Director Alan Taylor ( Thor: The Dark World) and screenwriters Laeta Kalorgridis ( Avatar) and Patrick Lussier ( Drive Angry) pay due homage to the first three Terminator films, delivering the CGI-enhanced sight of Ah-nold’s T-800 cyborg in three different eras, right back to 1984. (The Schwarzenegger-free fourth film, Terminator Salva- tion, is as forgotten as its title punctuation.)
No problem so far. But the T-brains also trample on key aspects of the humans-versus-machines narrative, introducing alternative histories explained away as “nexus points” of disrupted lives.
The “Judgment Day” apocalypse by diabolical computer network Skynet in James Cameron’s T2 ( still the best of the five films) is bumped from 1997 to 2017, better to fit the revised time-travelling tale that stretches beyond 2029.
“I’m old, not obsolete.” ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER AS T-800 CYBORG
Schwarzenegger’s killer Terminator has been rebooted into a teddy bear-toting parental figure, with grey hair and answering to “Pops.”
The changes aren’t terrible per se, because the franchise hasn’t exactly been a model of consistency.
But everything unfolds with the grim solemnity of a tax audit, albeit an audit accompanied by car chases, pursuing liquid-metal men (T-1000 is also back, played by Byung-hun Lee) and explosions (what, the Golden Gate Bridge gets smashed again?).
There are new faces and character arcs for major supporting characters: Antimachine matriarch Sarah Connor ( Games of Thrones’ Emilia Clarke), her resistance-leading son John (Jason Clarke) and his loyal lieutenant, Kyle Reese (Jai Courtney), all played with dour authority by capable actors.
The only one really having a good time is Schwarzenegger, who grins like a Cheshire cyborg even when nothing’s funny, least of all the impending destruction of humanity. He’s always had a problem with empathy. But Terminator Genisys has a couple of other things going for it, besides happy cat Schwarzenegger. The plot threat about people potentially sealing their Skynet fate by voluntarily downloading Genisys, the “ultimate killer app,” actually makes wicked sense. And Sarah Connor’s command, “Come with me if you want to live!” not only makes a great gender-flipping salute to T2, it also qualifies as the year’s best double entendre.