Terminator 3 - Rise of the Machines (2-Disc Widescreen Edition) Review
This film was the most depressing of the Schwarzenegger
Terminator Trilogy. Frankly, they should have stopped with
T2, because this was one was depressing. It turns out that
in T2, they did not stop Skynet, that artificial intelligence of the
future. They only postponed "judgement day", that day when
the machines declare war on humanity: Sort of like a
cybernetic version of "9-11". The two Terminators come across
as lawyers, one for the Defense (he wants to postpone
Judgement Day) and one for the Prosecution (all humans are
guilty, and beyond redemption).
In this film, John Connor comes across as weak and
ineffectual. He appears to be semi-illiterate. Whenever he
tries to put together a logical statement he sounds like he is
"jumping to conclusions".
Frankly, the kid in T2 (as annoying as he was) is still a much
better choice to "lead the Resistance" than this guy, who takes
over 3/4 of the film to realize that he is not the only important
person the Terminator has come back to protect. He meets
Kathy Brewster, who is oddly better able to control her emotions
than he is. She locks him in a "kennel", a "cage" when they first
meet. Maybe she should be the future leader of 'the Resistance'?
But remember Connor's biological dad from T1?: He seemed to
have leadership qualities that his son lacks here in the present.
And in T2, the scene where that kid teaches the Terminator "bad
English" while his mother sits silently in the back not admonishing
him, is heartbreaking. What kind of parents are they? He is
fatherless.
There is some humour in the movie. A male cashier asks the
Terminator if he intends to pay. The Terminator extends his hand,
like a Nazi, and says: "Talk to the hand". He then takes the food
and walks out, without paying. INCENTIVES and INTIMIDATION,
like a super model without a credit card. The Terminator: Give him
what he wants and maybe he will not break anything, especially
our legs. The Super Model: Give her what she wants and she might
return.
A woman might bake a cookie for her child. But if a child looks
around his room he might observe that there is very little there that
was built by a woman. For whom do men build things, and why?
"Paper, or plastic?" is a question that used to be heard in grocery
stores, but did not refer to money. Metal, and electronic information,
can be used as money. Men seem to build things for pay checks, or
otherwise attempt to purchase affection (approval) with their works.
Where is the man who has not "paid for..."?
The Terminator tells Brewster, that without her, he would have no
"meaning", for he would be useless in a world without humans to
serve. (The woman was created for the man, wherefore he feels a
NEED for her, and she might WANT him, if he is useful.)
CAVEAT: Profanity, obscenities.
The Sgt. Candy clip, found in the 'extra features' section on
disc 2, is an interesting example of reverse psychology. He
looks white, but sounds like an oppressed black male,
attempting to "fit in" by not sounding aggressive, or displaying
a confident masculinity. Instead he sounds like a child, a boy,
or a man, who has been hurt, not allowed to play with the other
kids, rejected by society, refused employment many times, etc.,
and so he pretends that what happened to him, didn't really
happen. Sgt. Candy wears a mask of denial to conceal "the
pain" of "not belonging", of not being accepted as a person.
He plays the part of "silly negro", a "tool", a disposable
commodity, as soldiers are taught to be. In the army, they are
called "maggots". In the army, females may advance to positions
of command, without ever seeing combat, for they are given the
option, not to SEE combat. They are F, and the soldiers are m,
"maggots". Frankly, the St.Candy clip is the best reason to get
this movie, T3.
The movie closes with these words, which are written, or
spoken, depending I think upon which version of the movie
you get:
The future has not been written...
There is no fate but what we make for ourselves.
- Sarah Connors
By the time Skynet became self-aware it had spread
into millions of computer servers across the planet.
Ordinary computers in office buildings, dorm rooms:
everywhere. It was software, in cyberspace. There
was no system core: it could not be shutdown.
The attack began at 6:18 PM just as he said it would.
Judgement Day, the day the human race was almost
destroyed by the weapons they'd built to protect
themselves.
I should have realized that it was never our destiny to
stop Judgement Day, it was merely to survive it,
together. The Terminator knew, he had told us, but I
didn't want to hear it.
Maybe the future has been written. I don't know...
All I know is what the Terminator taught me, never stop
fighting. And I never will. The battle has just begun.
Terminator 3 - Rise of the Machines (2-Disc Widescreen Edition) Overview
A decade has passed since John Connor (NICK STAHL) helped prevent Judgment Day and save mankind from mass destruction. Now 25 Connor lives "off the grid" - no home no credit cards no cell phone and no job. No record of his existence. No way he can be traced by Skynet - the highly developed network of machines that once tried to kill him and wage war on humanity. Until out of the shadows of the future steps the T-X (KRISTANNA LOKEN) Skynet's most sophisticated cyborg killing machine yet. Sent back through time to complete the job left unfinished by her predecessor the T-1000 this machine is as relentless as her human guise is beautiful. Now Connor's only hope for survival is the Terminator (ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER) his mysterious former assassin. Together they must triumph over the technologically superior T-X and forestall the looming threat of Judgment Day - or face the apocalypse and the fall of civilization as we know it.Running Time: 110 min.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: ACTION/ADVENTURE UPC: 085392772322
Terminator 3 - Rise of the Machines (2-Disc Widescreen Edition) Specifications
With a reported budget of 2 million,
Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines starts in high gear and never slows down. The apocalyptic "Judgment Day" of
T2 was never prevented, only postponed: John Connor (Nick Stahl, replacing
T2's Edward Furlong), now 22 and disconnected from society, is being pursued yet again, this time by the advanced T-X, a sleek "Terminatrix" (coldly expressionless Kristanna Loken) programmed to stop Connor from becoming the savior of humankind. Originally programmed as an assassin, a disadvantaged T-101 cyborg (Arnold Schwarzenegger, bidding fond farewell to his signature role) arrives from the future to join Connor and his old acquaintance Kate (Claire Danes) in thwarting the T-X's relentless pursuit. The plot presents a logical fulfillment of
T2 prophesy, disposing of Connor's mother (Linda Hamilton is sorely missed) while computer-driven machines assume control, launching a nuclear nightmare that Connor must survive. With
Breakdown and
U-571 serving as worthy rehearsals for this cautionary epic of mass destruction, director Jonathan Mostow wisely avoids any stylistic connection to James Cameron's
Terminator classics; instead he's crafted a fun, exciting popcorn thriller, humorous and yet still effectively nihilistic, and comparable to
Jurassic Park III in returning the
Terminator franchise to its potent B-movie roots.
--Jeff Shannon*** Product Information and Prices Stored: Nov 23, 2009 00:35:22
