Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003)
If you liked "Terminator 2," you
should like the third part of the series. I remember
seeing the second one, without seeing the first, in
1992 and thoroughly enjoying the film. I had only
slightly begun to seriously analyze film and was only
writing brief reviews on my brand new computer (using
5 inch floppy disks as well as a DOS based word processor
that I still use). My notes on the second film looked
something like this:
Terminator 2
The most unbelievable special
effects ever crafted by George Lucas' Industrial Light
& Magic. Puts "Total Recall" back in "Kindergarten."
Linda Hamilton, Schwartzanegger, and Edward Furlong,
under the magic touch of James Cameron, have built
a film much longer in tooth on plot and meaning than
any sci-fi since the 50's. Not to be missed by anyone!
Note:
Schwarrtzaneggar is 6' 2" tall.
He appears nude in a "Thinker" pose in the film.
Considered on of "The Ten Best
Films of 1991" by Joe Leydon of "The Houston Post."
The #1 grossing film of 1991
with a take of $204.3 million.
1991 Oscar for Best Visual Effects,
Best Sound, Best Sound Effects Editing, and Best Make-Up.
Grade: A+
(Note: review reprinted exactly
as I wrote it with misspellings intact).
Well, I may have gotten a bit verbose
but those sentiments, as flippant and as wannabee
clever as they seem, pretty much summed up my feelings.
"Terminator" was a sci-fi action film that had a good
story, interesting ideas, great acting and amazing
special effects in its arsenal. While Arnold Schwarzenegger
is certainly not a great actor by any stretch of the
imagination, he plays a robot (excuse me, cybernetic
organism) to perfection. Arnold is wise and chose
a vehicle for himself that showed both his muscles
and his intellect while utilizing his muscles and
his nonexistent thespian skills in a manner that satisfied
both action fans and those requiring a bit more story
and character development. The result was one of the
highest grossing films of the early nineties.
Although cutie Edward Furlong can't
seem to get sober and therefore was not cast in this
third installment of the series, he has an adequate
replacement in Nick Stahl. Having made a name for
himself in indie product like Larry Clark's "Bully"
and the Sundance hit and Oscar grabber "In the Bedroom,"
Stahl has the acting chops necessary to carry the
film and does so well. The powers-that-be are also
wise enough to cast another good actor as his love
interest, Claire Danes. Since Schwarzenegger and his
female counterpart, Kristanna Loken, don't have much
acting of the type that gets you on "Inside the Actor's
Studio" to do here, director James Mostow realizes
that the film hinges on the ability of his "human"
leads to carry the film's plot and emotional base.
Stahl and Danes, while lacking a bit of chemistry
(and maybe rightly so), still manage to make this
film intense and interesting.
But the script is the key here and
while it makes many missteps on minor chords, it hits
all the right notes when it comes to the complete
composition. Sure, there's far too many one-liners.
And yes, some of the dialogue is inane. (Danes actually
has to say, "There's my dad's planes. I'm trained
on it.") Still, the story here is wonderful. This
film ends in one of the most chilling and twisted
scenarios since the original "Planet of the Apes."
I totally dug it.
The action here is truly what the
film is all about and without question this is the
most awesome aspect of "T3." Mostow spares no expense
and takes as much time as he needs to beat the living
crap out of every single inanimate object in sight.
The car chases here are out of control! There's big
rigs, construction vehicles, and even a hearse used
here and all of them end up in wreckage on the road
by the time their respective scenes end. The budget
for vehicles and props that got beat up, exploded,
shot up and wrecked in this film must have been in
the millions. The action here isn't about bloodshed
(a joke is even made about how few "kills" there are
in the film); rather it is metallic carnage, machines,
that get pummeled in this film. Not only politically
correct, it also serves the theme of the film well.
"T3" is a wonderful capper to the
"Terminator" series and certainly leaves way for many
films to follow. The 3 DVD Box Set is going to be
on my wishlist as soon as it gets released. But everyone
should see "T3" on a big screen, with huge sound and
talking patrons and cell phones blaring and babies
crying and popcorn crunching. It's that good!
Note:
With Chris Hardwick who used to
be on some MTV show, what the hell was it? The one
with Jenny McCarthy...
The film had was greenlit with an
approved budget of 170 million dollars, the highest
budget ever approved prior to filming beginning.
Schwarzenegger supposedly gave up
some of his salary so the crane sequence (where the
truck crane smashes into several buildings) could
be shot.
Sophia Bush was cast in the Danes
role and even filmed some scenes before Mostow deemed
her "too young" for Stahl and replaced her. Several
actors were considered for Loken's part, including
many males.
The film was slated to lens in Canada
but moved to L.A., perhaps because of Schwarzenegger's
forthcoming political bid. The film was also going
to have the tag line, "The War Begins in 2003" but
that was changed when war ACTUALLY did begin in 2003,
thanks to some of Arnold's Republican buddies.
Ang Lee turned down this film to
make "The Hulk." James Cameron, director of the first
two film had nothing to do with this one although
he is credited with creating the characters.
T1 was in 1984. T2 in 1991.
Viewed in Austin on a special Tuesday
night sneak preview, the day prior to the films "official"
opening on July 2nd, 2003. My friend Christian accompanied
me.
