“Terminator Genisys” is the fifth installment in the now-31-year-old-franchise. The main reason why this sequel hoped to erase 2009’s “Terminator Salvation” from the minds of most diehard fans is that ARNOLD is back! But I actually liked “Salvation” and now even more after experiencing “Genisys”, which is dull, dry and disappointing.
Schwarzenegger receives top-billing, but at no point in “Genisys” is his Guardian character (he’s not listed as a Terminator) the main focus. Yes, he’s part of most of the action scenes, does the time traveling thing and delivers some corny one-liners, but nothing, including the much talked about motion-capture stunt double aimed to look like a younger version of Arnold, is worth getting excited about.
In this version Jason Clarke (“Zero Dark Thirty”) plays John Connor. It’s 2029 and he and Kyle Reese (Jai Courtney of “A Good Day to Die Hard”) are finally about to take-down Skynet. But problems arise when a time travel device produces the younger Arnold, and John realizes that his mother – Sarah Connor (“Game of Thrones” star Emilia Clarke) must be rescued. So he sends Kyle back to 1984, but Sarah’s all good because of middle-aged Schwarzenegger, who’s been protecting her since she was 9.
So then THEY decide, based on visions into the future, that they can prevent Judgment Day from ever happening by destroying Skynet (which is being passed-off on humans as “Genisys” – a digital sync service) before it goes on line. So it’s back to the year 2017, where Kyle and Sarah meet-up with the gray-haired Arnold. This is also where a detective played by Oscar winner J.K. Simmons enters the picture. He’s been trying to figure-out this case for the past 30-years – I had a hard time staying interested in this film for 2-hours.
“Terminator Genisys” bounces around with the past, present and future, and plays fast and loose with logic – and yet this is a very straightforward film with nothing new to offer in terms of story and character development. And the only real “twist”, which is basic and unimaginative, will likely upset diehard fans of the series.
The visual effects, once a highlight of this series, are uninspired and the action scenes don’t produce a single “wow” moment. And I still can’t believe that it takes Kyle and Sarah basically the entire movie to realize that bullets will NOT stop the T-1000s. Didn’t we learn that in “Terminator 2”? But was that before or after “Genisys” – or both? Frankly, I’m just happy to have survived this mess. And if there is a “Terminator 6” – I can confidently say…“I WON’T be baaaack.”
On The Official LCJ Report Card, “Terminator Genisys” gets a D.
Running Time: 126 min.