Terminator, Dark Fate: My Review

I watched Terminator Dark Fate yesterday and it was OK, just OK.  I was a fan of the old Terminator films so I gave this film some grace for being a part of a franchise that I loved long ago.  However, I don’t think it stands alone very well.

Linda Hamilton and Arnold Swarzenegger were great in this movie.  When I heard about this film’s release I was confused as to how either of them could reprise their roles due to their ages.  Both actors are what most of us would consider to be long in the tooth to be an action hero.  Hamilton is sixty three and Schwarzenegger is seventy two.  But they played their roles as well as they did in their prime.  Perhaps they are still in their prime; who am I to say?  Edward Furlong wasn’t in Dark Fate if you’re wondering but his character was in the story briefly.

I have always had a problem with movies that transcend time and or dimension.  Movies such as The Matrix and Inception always confuse me.  I have a difficult time keeping track of what is the reality or a dream and what is the present, the future or the past.  Back to the Future worked because there were clear differences between the times that he traveled between.

The plot was pretty typical.  A young woman held the fate of all humanity in her hands and she needed to be protected.  There was a villain, a Terminator that was trying to kill her in order to change the history of the world.  She had to be protected.  Chaos and destruction ensues.  Meh.

Terminator, Dark Fate took place in the future and then went further into the future.  I think.  It was hard to keep up with what was going on.  In all fairness I have to divulge that I borrowed a DVD of this movie from the library.  I had to watch it late at night on a work night and I was drowsy while watching it and dozed off in parts.  That might explain why I couldn’t totally follow the plot.

Another problem with this film is that it is extremely loud.  I’m glad I watched it at home where I could control the volume.  This film must have been overwhelming in theaters.  I don’t remember being bothered by the loudness of Terminator 2 that I remember seeing in a theater.  But I was much younger then and more tolerant of racket.

This movie could stand to be shorter.  There is a loud, non stop action sequence that lasted thirty to forty five minutes.  Crazy things happened, such as fights against indestructible, futuristic robots in planes while in flight and a huge door was open.  They fought the robot under water for a while.  The story took place in Mexico City so I have no idea what body of what they were in.  The scenes were wild and the noise was deafening.

The evil robot that was in pursuit of the savior of the world, the late model Terminator, had a clear advantage in that he was nearly indestructible.  I mean this guy got shot, bludgeoned, set on fire, put through a turbine of some sort and continued to fight.  But he couldn’t take out three mere mortals and one robot that was an old model.  That was a huge hole in the plot for me.

If you enjoyed the old Terminator films you may get a kick out of this for the sake of nostalgia.  You may also enjoy it if you enjoy raucous action films and special effects.  This movie was just OK for me.  If it wasn’t a part of a successful franchise that I enjoyed long ago Terminator, Dark Fate wouldn’t hold much merit for me at all.