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By
WAYNE KLEIN
This third installment in
the series has a number of quirky and clever plot twists that enhance the
film making it something more than just a remake of "Terminator 2: Judgment Day."
That's a good thing since, if not for the twists in the screenplay and the
way director Jonathan Mostow ("U571") turns our expectations of the film on its
head, it would be a by-the-numbers franchise extension designed only to garner
money. While Mostow doesn't quite have James Cameron's visual flair, he's more
than up to the task of filling Cameron's shoes with an inventive science fiction
action film.
"Terminator 3" is really about the cruelty of time. It's about recapturing
the past and changing it to thrive in our post-ironic world. With the success of
James Cameron's two previous "Terminator" films, and with Arnold's career on a
downswing, Arnold wisely chose to revisit the past and help reinvent himself by playing the most popular role he's been identified with
-- outside of
governor of California. While Arnold is once again cast as the "hero" of the film,
it's a hero without conscience and a dark past. The script allows for the hero
to redeem himself and discover the little voice inside our head that tells us
right from wrong.
As "Terminator 3" opens we catch up with the savior of humanity, John Connor.
Connor (Nick Stahl) has become an itinerant construction worker
with no permanent address. The future he was prepared for by his mother (Linda
Hamilton, who is sadly missed) hasn't come to pass. That's good news in a sense
since the whole purpose of the battle in "T2" was to prevent the destruction of
mankind. Ironically, by changing the future, she and John robbed him of his
purpose. So he ends up wandering from job to job with his motorcycle, his most
important possession, and no place to call home. When the Terminator (Arnold)
arrives, he's coming to a world that, on the surface, doesn't really need him.
Judgment Day has been avoided with the destruction of Skynet. But what Connor
doesn't know is the fact that the military has continued the work begun at
Skynet. They've developed more technology based on the original computer
chip that was destroyed in the second film. So, to make sure that the future does
come to pass as it was supposed to, Skynet sends back yet another Terminator
model, this one in the form of a woman (Kristanna Loken).
While the
shapeshifting T-1000 from "T2" was formidable, this newer model is just as
merciless with the advantage of molding itself into a single, deadly weapon. Its
mission is simple: to eliminate all those children that Connor will recruit to
become his lieutenants and advisors. If this new Terminator can't eliminate
Connor, it will cripple his resistance efforts.
Stahl and
Claire Danes are both up to the task as the reluctant heroes of the film. Loken turns in a believable performance as the TX model;
while she
lacks the acting chops of Robert Patrick from "T2," she still manages to make a
strong impression. Arnold appears ageless. Perhaps he's got a portrait hidden in
his closet at home somewhere. Once again his role doesn't demand much range. His
performance is professional and memorable. The sequence where his Terminator has two
conflicting programs fighting it out for control of his body was unfairly
attacked by many critics. But Arnold communicates the conflict very well given the
limited range of the character.
The DVD looks good overall although I found it to
lack the sharpness and clarity of the best DVDs
currently on the market. The film is available in
both widescreen and a full screen version (but not
in the same set). I'm a little surprised that the
picture quality isn't quite a bit better given the
high tech look of the film and the quality of the
recent transfer for "The Terminator." Don't get me
wrong, it's not bad just falls below the high
expectations I've come to expect from a film of
this type.
The sound utilizes the 5.1 mix better than any of
the other films in the series. I did find the mix
occasionally harsh and brittle in the sections
where the sound was unusually busy. On the whole,
though, the sound for "T3" has good depth, range
and separation.
The extras are, for the most part, located on disc
two. Disc one does have the two audio commentaries
and trailers for the film and the video game. The
extras on disc two are a bit disappointing. One of
the best feature is the Sgt. Candy deleted scene.
It's clear why it was deleted it's way too funny
and probably wouldn't have fit the mood of the
film. It also would have stopped the film cold.
The second best feature is the visual effects
section but, I have to agree, that the interactive
menus is time consuming and a bit of a pain.
Storyboards are also included and there is DVD-ROM
content associated with the film as well. I should
note that the interactive menu is by the numbers
and fairly unimaginative. Again, this is a
surprise given the detail and imagination that
went into the first two films on DVD.
The most interesting extra is "T3: Visual Effects
Lab" where you can build your own sequences from
the film. It's an improvement over some of the
previous attempts at creating a home editing lab,
but it doesn't compare to an editing computer
program. You may play with it once or twice but,
beyond that, you'll spend most of your time
watching the movie or investigating the DVD-ROM
material.
On the whole "T3" is missing the ghost in the
machine that haunted "The Terminator" and "T2" so
well. It's entertaining and a great action
picture, but lacks Cameron's detailed character
development and thoughtful situations. It's not
disappointing (after all, it's not a Cameron film)
it just takes a bit of an adjustment if you're a
fan of Cameron's first two films.
One other point: This is one of the few Warner films released to DVD in an
Amaray case, not in a horrible cardboard snapper case. It's a step forward in the right
direction and probably was done because this is a 2-disc set. Let's hope
Warner will be abandoning the snapper case for all their films. |
