Terminator: Dark Fate Review

The Terminator is back for a third reboot within 10 years. This latest attempt to bring the franchise back to life sees the return of Linda Hamilton as Sarah Connor and James Cameron operating as a producer.

After the events of Terminator 2: Judgement Day Sarah and John Connor have stopped the rise of Skynet. But it doesn’t mean the future is safe and another A.I system. will takes over the world. Two time-travellers from this future land in Mexico City. The first is Grace (Mackenzie Davis), a cybernetically enhanced human who’s sent to protect a young factory worker, Daniella “Dani” Ramos (Natalia Reyes). The other is the Rev-9 (Diego Boneta), an advance and unstoppable Terminator sent to kill Dani. Fortunately for Grace and Dani they have the experience Terminator hunter Sarah Connor on their side.

Since the success Terminator 2: Judgement Day the franchise has been floundering. The three following sequels have been hated by fans. What resulted was a trilogy of failure. Each film was meant to start a new series and fell flat on their faces. And each subsequent film seems to be a reaction to fan criticism. Fans complained that Rise of the Machines was just a remake of Judgement Day and they wanted to see a film set in the future war. Salvation was set in the future war and then fans complained that it no longer had Schwarzenegger. So Genisys brought Schwarzenegger back despite the fact the actor was in his late-60s.

Terminator: Dark Fate was the last throw of the dice for the franchise. The return of Linda Hamilton and James Cameron was basically a Hail Mary because fans have been demanding their return. Yet the box-office for the film shows that franchise fatigue is here to stay.

All the Terminator film sequels after Terminator 2 had some inbuilt disadvantages. The first was Terminator 2 was a perfect sequel because it expanded on the lore of the world and acted as a great continuation to the story. More importantly, Terminator 2 was a perfect ending due to the Connors destroying Skynet and stopping Judgement Day. There isn’t much wriggle room for filmmakers to continue the story. Nor does it help that none of the directors who took on the series after Terminator 2 match James Cameron’s talents.

Terminator: Dark Fate was an expensive fan-film. Despite Cameron’s name being attached to the project I expect his involvement was minimal. It was really Tim Miller’s baby and he is a big fan of the series. The story has the same basic setup as the first two films – a cat-and-mouse chase involving time-travellers. It shows that the series has few story possibilities. Dark Fate also reused some ideas from Rise of the Machines and Genisys like Judgement Day being inevitable, alternative timelines, and all three films relying on nostalgia.

Miller is a skilled director, his previous film was Deadpool and he has worked as a visual effects artist. What he achieves is a competently made action film. The first major action sequence was a combination of the factory battle at the end of The Terminator and the truck chase of Terminator 2. The final sequence was a long, constant affair that goes from a military base to a hydro-electric dam.

Terminator: Dark Fate is the first film in the series to achieve an R-rating since Rise of the Machines (although that film was rated 12 in the UK). The R-rating meant more F-bombs and bloody stabbings. Being a bit of a sadist it was fun to see the Rev-9 stab his way through soldiers and guards.

Another issue affecting the Terminator sequels after Terminator 2 is no evil Terminator has matched the T-1000. The T-1000 was a simple yet genius idea because it was liquid metal which meant nothing could destroy it. Everything after the T-1000 seemed like a downgrade. Rev-9 is the closest to match the T-1000 because it could divide itself into two, a liquid metal form and a metal skeleton. During the scenes set in the future the Rev-9 moved so fast and the only way to defeat them was with an EMP. This remained me of the future in The Matrix movies.

Some vocal minorities on the internet – like the Youtube channel Midnight Edge – have criticised Terminator Dark Fate as ‘feminist propaganda.’ Obviously these people are ignoring the fact that Sarah Connor is one of the most recognisable action heroines. Terminator: Dark Fate doesn’t even make a big deal that the main characters being female. They are just people trying to fight and survive. The biggest piece of social commentary actually came when the character crosses the US-Mexico border.

Linda Hamilton still has it as Sarah Connor. She’s older but still a tough mofo who’s adept with firearms. Mackenzie Davis was physical as the protector and acted as a Kyle Reese figure due to being a soldier from the future whilst having the abilities of the T-800. Dani is essentially the new Sarah Connor – the actual Sarah Connor even states this. Sarah Connor’s character arc in The Terminator was she went from a scared young woman to embrace her destiny. Dani has a similar arc, although she was already a confident woman and had a happy home life before the Terminator strikes.

An issue with Rise of the Machines and Genisys was both films relied too much on comedy and turned the T-800 into a joke. Dark Fate doesn’t make the same mistake because Schwarzenegger played this T-800 as one who had blended into society. When Schwarzenegger did have to tell a joke he delivered it in a deadpan manner. This is the best portrayal of the T-800 since T2.

Terminator: Dark Fate has been declared the best Terminator film since T2. That is damning with faint praise. I personally rank it on par with Salvation. On its own terms Dark Fate is a serviceable action film, but it had a big legacy to live up to.