Movie Review: Star Wars: The Force Awakens..with renewed vigour

As you sit in the hall watching the beloved spectacle unfold on the screen, you are more and more convinced that this revival was the right thing to do. This franchise has captured the imagination of millions in its glory days and if you can do justice to it ? then moving the franchise forward is simply the right thing to do. The great news is that with JJ Abrams at the helm ? the early indications sure do look promising.

Taking the storyline itself into the future after Return of the Jedi was a bold and very risky move. There is a lot of nostalgia attached with the old characters and this would?ve been a sensitive one to negotiate. However, I think Abrams has done an admirable job of meshing the old and the new. It tugs at the heartstrings for just a bit but keeps the focus firmly on the action. So much so that this movie simply seems a continuation of the franchise. It is refreshing to see that Abrams is not trying to change much which seems to be the trend with all the reboots and story advances the other franchises are having these days.

The art direction and cinematography is excellent. You quickly get immersed in this distinctly different world and with the technological advances over the years, the action looks simply spectacular. Screen transitions are very much like the earlier movies as well. While the 3D is hardly there, you should catch this one in IMAX if you can, simply because the giant screen would make the action much more immersive. I wish though, that the sequels that follow are even shot in an Avatar-esque 3D camera ? that would really be something.

The story has new characters albeit in familiar plotlines. There are references to what has already happened but not to such an extent that you can?t follow the plot without watching or more likely, still remembering the original storyline. There are some pretty large plot gaps and convenient twists that make this new story pretty average. The climax disappoints in terms of content but the visuals look even more spectacular. One does get the distinct feeling however that this movie is packaged to be an opener to a new chapter of the franchise with more explosive and story laden sequels to follow.

The focus of this movie is largely on the action and the visuals so there isn?t much acting to do per se. However, everybody including the newcomers to the franchise, do a decent job. BB8 is probably going to become the next beloved mascot of this new generation of the series.


I think this is a promising start to a new chapter of the franchise. By staying true to its roots, paying homage to its original story and characters, rather than trying to replace them, Abrams has made quite the fanboy movie and given the series the respect it deserves. May the Force be with him as he now takes on the even trickier job of building a complex plotline in the sequels that are bound to follow.

To Get It Out Of The Way, Here's My STAR WARS Story From 1977

Not long ago, a film writer or fan (I can?t remember which, and the post is heard to locate) made a plea on Facebook for critics not to all start their reviews of STAR WARS: THE FORCE AWAKENS, releasing this week if you haven?t heard, by stating how much the original movie or trilogy meant to their childhoods.

It?s a good point, as the experiences of so many folks with the series are identical, mine included: As a kid, I grew up on STAR WARS (still not calling it A NEW HOPE, dammit!), THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK, and RETURN OF THE JEDI, as an adult hated the prequels, and as an older adult I have a sliver of hope that J.J. Abrams will deliver a new entertaining entry that lives up to at least some of the hype.

But, in the interest of keeping it out of my review, I do have a story to share about seeing the film for the first time. I was seven in the summer of 1977, when my family - my parents and my older brother - and I went to the Varsity Theater in downtown Chapel Hill, North Carolina, to see STAR WARS. 

George Lucas? sci-fi epic had a limited release in May ? the date May 25, 1977 is tattooed in the back of every geek?s brain ? but it didn?t open wide and come to my hometown until July 1st.

I?m pretty sure we didn?t go to see it opening weekend. I have memories of seeing many TV spots for it, plus pictures in newspapers and magazines that intrigued me greatly (that was as big as the buzz got in the pre-internet era) before my Mom and Dad gave in and took us some night ? which I think was a weeknight. 

Like just about every kid, I was blown away by the movie ? it was incredible looking from the first wide screen space shot to the last, really funny (I still remember the roar of laughter when R2-D2 falls face down after being zapped by a Jawa), and all around exciting, ultra fun stuff.

But, although it became my favorite movie in the years to come - collected the toys, had the posters on my bedroom walls, went as Luke Skywalker for Halloween, etc. - my first words walking out of the theater indicated a less than glowing viewpoint:

??King Kong? was better.? I said this to my brother, and he has never let me forget it.

Now, it would be one thing if I meant the original, 1933 classic KING KONG, but I meant the 1976 Dino De Laurentiis remake, which had come out the previous Christmas. Now, I wouldn?t consider that film to define my childhood at all, but at the time it was my favorite of the very limited amount of movies I?d seen, and I apparently thought that STAR WARS hadn?t topped it.

Decades later, it?s been a well told story in my family with even my brother?s kids making fun of me for saying it (I join in on ridiculing my 7-year old self because, yeah, it is fun).

It feels good to confess that embarrassing moment here. I?ve come around to consider it one of my first moments of film criticism (albeit a hilariously misguided one). 

So I?m glad I got my childhood STAR WARS story out the way here so it won?t clog up my review of THE FORCE AWAKENS. For sure, nobody will want to hear it there.

More later?

The Colony Theater Closes Tomorrow So One Last Ditch Plea For Stories

After tomorrow night?s showings of BROOKLYN (at 7:15 and 9:20) and TRUMBO (7 and 9:30), the Colony Theater in Raleigh will be ceasing operations. Tonight's showing of the 1988 action classic DIE HARD, which I wrote about in the N & O last Friday, will be the last Cool Classics screening at the theater (the series moves to the Rialto in January).
A couple of months back after it was announced that the theater was closing, I posted asking local folks to send in their stories about their experiences with the venue, but I only posted a few of them for a few reasons.

First, there were pesky rumors that the rent might be re-negotiated or that new owners would swoop in and continue its long run as an indie theater. I didn?t really believe they were true, but I still had some small hope that the Colony could be saved.

Second, I didn?t get that many stories. My friend, Anthony Rhodes, who worked there several years ago shared several entertaining ones, and there was a funny anecdote that Brian Hill shared about going to see PULP FICTION there with a girl who was tripping on mushrooms, but mostly I got folks emailing that they were sorry that the theater was closing, and that they went to many movies there.

So, in one last ditch effort to try to job folks? memories I posted this on Facebook today:

The Last Days of The Colony Theater Thread: I was hoping I could get folks to share their favorite movie experience at the Colony as they are closing tomorrow. I?ll start: Three or four years ago, I attended the Colony?s Cool Classics screening of Ridley Scott?s sci-fi horror classic ALIEN.

I sat up close and got more engrossed in the film than any other time I had seen it. Of course, this was largely because I had never seen it on the big screen before, but it was different this time because this time I felt like I was watching the movie back in 1979 when it first came out.

That?s right, I seriously felt transported into not just the world of the movie but the world of the theater that had probably shown the movie back then. Those who are well acquainted with the d?cor of the shag carpeting on the walls can probably imagine the feeling somewhat as the theater never lost its ?70s looks. This vivid memory of that ALIEN screening is one I?ll never forget - when the Colony became a time machine.

Anybody else got a favorite movie experience at the Colony story?

Here are some responses:

Matt Pennachi (Former Cinema Overdrive Series curator): I'm not sure how to craft it into a story that is actually interesting to read, but having a chance to run SLAP SHOT on 35mm was a real thrill to me. In particular, having the opportunity to run the National Film Board of Canada cartoon of "The Sweater" (which was a childhood favorite of mine) before the film was awesome.....particularly when I had to manually chance the masking from scope to flat as we transitioned from the cartoon to the feature.

Jennifer Love (Rialto Theater Manager): When Ambassador first bought the Colony, I remember being there when the new floor carpeting was being installed and helping paint the restrooms. Someone had decided to be creative on the stalls and go for that speckled look. We had old toothbrushes and dipped them in white paint and splattered spots onto the stall walls. That's how we did it and why there are so many different sizes of spots. I think I had more white paint splatters on me than the stalls!

I also worked matinees back when colony ran them everyday. Food lion was being constructed next door at that time. Clif and i worked the unexpected hit, LIFE IS BEAUTIFUL and a sold out show around the holidays (can't remember which) of SHAKESPEARE IN LOVE. just the 2 of us! I still don't know how we did that. My favorite memories are of the midnight late shows. They played in house one: THE ABYSS, HEAVY METAL, THE SHINING and so many more. I know everyone will continue to love the Colony and all the memories made there. Good times.

Daniel Matti (Schoolkids Records Manager): I saw 13 ASSASSINS twice there. The only Takashi Miike film I've seen in theaters. I will miss the Colony.

Joel Frady (Fellow Film Critic): REQUIEM FOR A DREAM in 2000 - there must have been 50 or so people in the right theater, and when the credits rolled not a single person moved. Then, when the lights came up everyone slowly exited - but nobody said a word. We were almost back to NC State when I finally broke the silence with ?Who wants a fucking Dairy Queen Blizzard??

Joe Corey (Cinema Overdrive host): Fond memory of going over for a midnight screening of FASTER PUSSYCAT KILL! KILL! for the projectionist inspection. Also the joy of attending my first Cinema Overdrive and feeling at home. It was good to attend a program where I had utter trust in whatever Adam (Hulin) and Matt (Pennachi) programmed. Was so grateful for the months that I hosted the series while Adam was away.

Goodbye, Colony Theater (1972-2015). I, and many others, will miss you greatly.

More later...

For The First Time Since 1983, STAR WARS Is Really Back

Opening tomorrow at every multiplex in the galaxy:

STAR WARS: THE FORCE AWAKENS

(Dir. J.J. Abrams, 2015)

As suspected, J.J. Abrams is much, much better suited for STAR WARS than STAR TREK.

Abrams? TREK movies were poppy, new fangled approximations of the Star Trek ethos, but his highly anticipated seventh entry in the ultra popular space saga, THE FORCE AWAKENS, really is a bonafide, honest-to-God, gloriously old school STAR WARS movie.

It captures the spirit and replicates the story beats of the original 1977 film so lovingly that it is almost a virtual remake, but that back-to-basics approach hugely works in its favor because, unlike the awful prequels, it?s not cluttered and all over the place.

Now, in order to keep from revealing major spoilers ? the kind that would keep people from reading reviews like this in the first place ? I?ll try to be as vague as I can with plot points, and other juicy tidbits.

It?s 30 years after the events in RETURN OF THE JEDI, and instead of the Empire and the Rebel Alliance we now have ?The First Order,? and ?The Resistance.? Darth Vader?s successor, clothed in similar black attire with metal mask and cape, Kylo Ren (Adam Driver), is, of course, trying to crush The Resistance and find Luke Skywalker who?s gone missing.

On a desert planet that highly resembles Tatooine, but is called Jakku, we meet a scavenger named Rey (Daisy Ridley) who befriends BB-8, that cute orange and white spinning droid you?ve probably seen in trailers and TV teasers, who is being hunted by The First Order because he?s carrying a secret message to be delivered to The Resistance. Sound familiar?

Meanwhile, John Boyega (ATTACK THE BLOCK) plays a storm trooper who defects and joins forces with Rey, under the guise that he?s in The Resistance. Fleeing from The First Order, Rey, Finn, and BB-8 happen upon The Millenium Falcon in a space ship junkyard, and luckily it still holds together for their escape.

Before long the Falcon is captured by a large freighter owned by famed smuggler, and rebel hero Han Solo (Harrison Ford in his most invested performance in eons) and that beloved hairy Wookie, Chewbacca (Peter Mayhew), who, unlike Han, hasn?t aged a day.

That?s as much of the plot as I need to go into. You can most likely guess that there is a new Death Star (Starkiller Base), to destroy, a cantina-like scene, light saber battles, X-Wings and Tie Fighter dogfights, and revelations about who?s related to whom.

Carrie Fisher reprises her role as Leia Organa, now a General, with Anthony Daniels back as C-3PO, and Kenny Baker back inside R2-D2, but he hasn?t been the same since Master Luke vanished. 

The new kids, Boyega and Ridley, have great gusto and likable pluck in their roles and a lot of fun to watch run around through battle station corridors, Endor-like forests, and snowy Hoth-type terrain. It's like they split the role of Luke into the two characters, who both long for better destinies before getting swooped up into the galactic battle between good and evil.

As for Luke, we all know that Mark Hamill has signed back on, but going into how he appears would be ultra spoilery so I won't go there.

As for the other new characters, Oscar Isaac, who gets some wise-cracks in (he also appears to be having more fun than I've ever seen him have in a movie), plays Poe Dameron, an ace X-Wing fighter pilot for The Resistance; a stern Domhnall Gleeson (Isaac?s EX MACHINA co-star) plays the evil First Order General Hux, Lupita Nyong?o plays the motion capture-enhanced alien pirate/bar owner Maz Kanata (sort of the movie?s Yoda), and Andy Serkis lends his distinctive talents to embodying the sinister Supreme Leader Snoke (another motion-capture creation), the new Emperor-esque figure.

And who knew that Driver, best known as Lena Dunham's weird, lanky boyfriend on the HBO show Girls, would make such a great STAR WARS villain? He nails the intensity needed for Kylo Ren, and gives him just the right amount of ache as well.

It?s also nice that their dialogue, written by Abrams, Michael Arndt (LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE, TOY STORY 3), and returning series scribe Lawrence Kasdan, is sharp and witty with just the right amount of call backs. This is especially notable in Han and Leia?s scenes, though I wish they fought a little, with that old Tracy/Hepburn-ish back and forth so memorable in THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK. Fisher, who had to slim down to reprise the part, brings gravitas in the form of her older, dignified Leia, but they could've given her a little more to do. However, that's a small complaint considering.

George Lucas may have created STAR WARS, but somewhere along the line he lost its vision. Abrams sure found it here, as one of the best things that I can report is that while watching THE FORCE AWAKENS, I really did forget about the prequels. Abrams? film is entranced with the look, feel, and tone of the original trilogy that all that nonsense about senate treaties, midichlorians, Qui-Gon Jinn, Palpatine, etc. never comes to mind. It?s remarkable how successful it is in rendering Episodes I-III non-canon.

Sure, there's lots of CGI, but little of the aforementioned clutter of the prequels or many recent sci-fi action films. I really appreciate that Abrams had real sets and models built, and relied on practical effects when possible. David Mindel's cinematography lovingly apes the look of the original trilogy, as John Williams reworks all the mighty musical cues of his previous series' scores effectively. 

As a rekindling of the magic of the space opera that I loved as a kid, STAR WARS: THE FORCE AWAKENS is a fantastic success. Abrams really pulled off a wonderful, faithful, funny, and intoxicatingly fun entry that had me from the first line of the opening scroll to its powerful last shot. For the first time since 1983, STAR WARS is really back.

When Han says ?Chewie, we?re home,? he might as well be speaking for the masses that are going to eat this up, and go back again and again for more.

More later...

Dushman

Directed by: Tanuja Chandra

Starring: Kajol, Ashutosh Rana, Sanjay Dutt

Released: 1998

My rating: destroy every copy ? horrible ? bad ? whatever ? flawed but enjoyable - good ? great ? amazing

Few crimes are as awful as a rape. Not only it causes physical harm, it strips the victim of their dignity, violates their privacy, often it crushes their spirit. And when a rape ends with just as violent murder, hardly anything the darkest nightmare could conjure up even compares. And yet that is exactly how this film starts and what it deals with. 

The lives of two twin sisters Naina and Sonia seem happy enough, with both going to the college and one of them accepting a marriage proposal from her boyfriend. In the good Bollywood tradition of twin behaviour, Naina (Kajol with long hair) is a calm, angelic and gentle being, whilst Sonia (Kajol in the most awful wig since the beginning of Bollywood until Anushka Sharma in P.K.) is loud, intimidating, roughened up kid. But then they capture attention of a rapist and Sonia pays the price. The angelic Naina sets on a quest of finding her sister?s killer, and hopes to prevent his perverted actions in the future. Her journey involves overcoming her own demons and fears, as well as some jogging and weight-lifting under the careful guidance of blind Sanjay Dutt.

Horrifying as it is, Dushman is a great film. I have not seen the Hollywood original, but I dare say Dushman definitely is a more than worthy remake. Perhaps the best scene are the moments before Sonia?s death, as Naina helplessly, verging on hysteria, runs among the cars in traffic jam, all the time listening to Sonia?s screams over the cell-phone. The portrayal of the rapist and murdered is excellent, showing him not only as a disgusting deviant, but also a cunning liar and sly operator, who manipulates the only woman who (for whatever reason) actually cares for him.

The star of the whole thing is of course Kajol, who is only challenged in her performance by truly terrifying Ashutosh Rana. It is by far the best work I?ve seen Kajol doing and I would be much happier if people would talk about her talent with references to films like this rather than to mediocre stuff like Kuch Kuch Hota Hai or even worse to K3G. Dushman gives her a great scope and great material to work with and she seizes the opportunity. However I would have been much happier had there be no love subplot, which I found completely unnecessary, not to mention Sanjay and Kajol do not work as a jodi to me, not at all. Sanjay overal did well, but his character, just as the whole subplot, was given more importance than I would like, as I was hyped about all the thrilling stuff and confrontations between Kajol and Ashutosh, and Sanjay bits were only slowing everything down and distracted one?s interest. For the sake of everything it would have been better if we saw more of the training than romance.

The climax was way too violent, way too long and the music behind it way too awful. And the very ending took away from the feeling of satisfaction brought in by the climax. The romance nobody cared about should not have diluted the sense of relief and justice previously brought on by the bloody death of the rapist at the hands of his upcoming victim.

Excellent thriller I cannot recommend to ladies as a late night movie unless you have a box of chocolate, strong boyfriend and fully loaded Beretta by your side.

Krampus

***DISCLAIMER*** The following review is entirely my opinion. If you comment (which I encourage you to do) be respectful. If you don't agree with my opinion (or other commenters), that's fine. To each their own. These reviews are not meant to be statements of facts or endorsements, I am just sharing my opinions and my perspective when watching the film and is not meant to reflect how these films should be viewed. Finally, the reviews are given on a scale of 0-5. 0, of course, being unwatchable. 1, being terrible. 2, being not great. 3, being okay. 4, being great and 5, being epic! And if you enjoy these reviews feel free to share them and follow the blog or follow me on Twitter (@RevRonster) for links to my reviews and the occasional live-Tweet session of the movie I'm watching!  Krampus is the reason for the season.

Krampus ? 4 out of 5

'Tis the season, I guess?but when the season now starts the day before Halloween, it?s really hard to remain in the Christmas spirit when December gets here.  To me, the holiday is about spending some time with the family, exchanging stories, gifts and laughs and eating too much?and then going to the movies because that?s a tradition with my girlfriend and I.  Occasionally, I get into a Christmas film here and there?films like A Christmas Story, Die Hard (yes, that?s an X-mas film), Home Alone, How the Grinch Stole Christmas or Gremlins?but, for the most part and even though I like them, I don?t really partake in many of these features too often?at least, not on a yearly basis.  However, when I saw the trailer for Krampus, I quickly realized that I think I found a holiday feature that was right up my alley?and it surely was!

                                                                                                                    Universal Pictures
When you think about it, sounds of joy and horror aren't really so
different.

                                                                                       Universal Pictures
Adam Scott just looks at home in the dark comedy genre.

It?s the most wonderful time of the year for Tom (Adam Scott), Sarah (Toni Collette), their kids; Max (Emjay Anthony) and Beth (Stefania LaVie Owen), and Tom?s mother (Krista Stadler).  The family is having their fair share of issues as Tom and Sarah?s marriage is a bit unstable and Max is becoming a bit of a problem; however, the boy is still hoping to have at least one Christmas like the ones he is used to.  Those hopes are dashed as Sarah?s sister Linda (Allison Tolman?who I loved on the first season of Fargo) and her husband Howard (David Koechner) bring their loud and abrasive family to the festivities and their tomboy daughters; Stevie (Lolo Owen) and Jordan (Queenie Samuel), find Max's letter to Santa and openly mock him for his belief in the bringer of happiness and joy at the dinner table.  Max is embarrassed, enraged and disheartened and rips up his letter to Santa.  This act awakens a dark and ancient spirit, the very shadow of Santa Claus, and he?s come to collect the wicked people of the neighborhood.  He is, as the grandmother explains, Krampus.

                                                                                                                    Universal Pictures
Plot Twist:  Krampus was a bell the whole time!

For those of you who don?t know, Krampus is based on an ancient folklore from Europe who hung out with St. Nick and punished the bad kids and taught them lessons.  In the past few years, Krampus has re-entered the world of pop culture?possibly due to the extremely hilarious episode of The League.  I can?t confirm if that?s why the creature?s popularity returned but that?s how I discovered the legend of it.  Having this legend become a big piece of our pop culture pie, getting a sweet, dark Christmas story out of it seemed like inevitability.  Sure, there are a couple of cheap ones made by studios who mastered the art of the low budget, Direct-to-DVD features but it?s nice that a big budget one was released into the theaters because there just aren?t enough dark Christmas tales out there.  Sure, we have schlocky ones like Silent Night, Deadly Night and classics like Gremlins but it?s been a long time since we?ve had a darker, more twisted Christmas film come along and Krampus really hits the spot and fills the void.

                                                                                                                     Universal Pictures
Krampus is metal as fuck!

One thing that surprised me about the film was the fact the story definitely felt more geared towards horror than comedy.  Yes, the film does have some very funny moments and there are enough of them that firmly cements the film into the genre of dark comedy but the story really felt more like it was leaning more in the direction of horror than it was towards the humorous.  This observation is in no way a complaint because I actually really liked that about the film.  The director (who also co-wrote this one and directed and co-wrote the awesome Halloween feature Trick ?r Treat) really mastered the tone and atmosphere of this film and was able to create something that took all the clich?s of the season?like snowmen, decorations, sweets and toys?and was able to make them feel horrifying, unsettling and extremely creepy.  The film is never flat-out terrifying but it does work in a few decent jump scares to get the heart racing and the visuals and Krampus? creatures (and the beast himself) are designed to look very spooky and really made for a film that will have you laughing one second with its humor and cast but sending a shiver down your spine the next.

                                                                                                                       Universal Pictures
In all seriousness, this thing was terrifying.

Additionally, the story never tries to overcomplicate itself or try to be anything beyond what it needs to be.  It?s simple, direct and to the point and it works to get the plot moving rapidly and establish so much without having to resort to over-explaining what is happening.  The only real time exposition is laid out for you is when the grandmother Omi is explaining who is tormenting their neighborhood and her history with Krampus and, even then, it is done creatively with some sweet animation and it never feels like the production is telling rather than showing.  Furthermore, the writing is done so well with the characters that we are able to learn so much about them, their motivations and their conflicts by natural feeling dialogue and interaction between them.  This really helped to create characters that all feel unique, vital to the plot, fairly realistic and extremely sympathetic.

                                                                                                            Universal Pictures
"His name is Krampus and we all need to kiss our asses goodbye.  Omi out!"

Writing the characters well is all good but without actors to back it up you don?t have much.  That really wasn?t a problem here as the cast is comprised of very talented people that all did their job very well.  I?m a big fan of Adam Scott and really enjoyed him in another dark comedy (Piranha 3D) and it was nice to see him return to this genre and share the screen with other actors I?m fond of like Collette, Tolman and Koechner.  One thing that wouldn?t get out of my head as I watched this was the reality that if I was an actor, this would be a project I would fall all over myself to be a part of.  Being a fan of dark comedies and combining that with the story and the concept of killer toys being led by an evil version of Santa, I don?t know how I could resist such a project.

                                                                                                                    Universal Pictures
It's pretty much a guarantee that if Koechner is in it, I'll see it!

Finally, the one thing I really enjoyed about this film was the ambiguous but ominous ending.  Everything built up in the story could have easily been undone with an overly sappy clich? Hollywood happy ending.  However (and without giving anything away), Krampus takes an old formula seen in the Christmas lesson stories and does a nice little twist on them that allows the viewer to make up their own mind on how pleasant (or unpleasant) of an ending it was.

                                                                                                                     Universal Pictures
Now we just need the badass tattooed Santa from Rise of the Guardians and
we have an epic battle crossover event of a lifetime!

I was pretty excited to watch Krampus and was thoroughly pleased with the final product.  The story is straight forward and filled with some laughs and some genuinely creepy moments.  The cast is fantastic and it definitely has some replay value to it that I want to buy it on Blu-ray and make it a yearly tradition to watch the thing.  I?ll always have a place in my heart for more traditional Christmas tales that involve a mean man with a tragic case of a tiny heart or a dude who is abducted by some ghosts and taught to not be a dick or seeing a bullied reindeer learn that everyone is special?especially when some asshole needs something from you?but, as much as I dig these stories, I kinda dig ones with a little darkness and horror to them more.

Terminator Genisys

***DISCLAIMER*** The following review is entirely my opinion. If you comment (which I encourage you to do) be respectful. If you don't agree with my opinion (or other commenters), that's fine. To each their own. These reviews are not meant to be statements of facts or endorsements, I am just sharing my opinions and my perspective when watching the film and is not meant to reflect how these films should be viewed. Finally, the reviews are given on a scale of 0-5. 0, of course, being unwatchable. 1, being terrible. 2, being not great. 3, being okay. 4, being great and 5, being epic! And if you enjoy these reviews feel free to share them and follow the blog or follow me on Twitter (@RevRonster) for links to my reviews and the occasional live-Tweet session of the movie I'm watching!  So, he really wasn't lying when he said he'd be back.

Terminator Genisys ? 3 out of 5

In a world where knee-jerk reactions of hatred and outrage are things that are considered normal behavior (but only for things like movies, reboots and casting non-white actors to play comic book characters that are usually depicted as Hitler?s wet dream?if you dare get pissed about things like sexism, racism or rape culture, you?re then assaulted by the people bitching about female Ghostbusters and guys who really hate women having opinions on video games and are told that you are just whiners and offended by everything), anyway, everyone was quick to start throwing hate at the new installment to the Terminator franchise when it was announced it was going to happen..  Meanwhile, I watched the trailer and said, ?Sure, I?ll watch it.?  I keep forgetting that I?m supposed to just instantly hate everything.  I?ll guess I?ll never truly belong on the internet because I tend to reserve extreme opinions until I actually witness the product.  Anyway, after days of judgment, machines doing their rising thing and some salvation given to us by Batman?s gravel voice, Arnie is back in Terminator Sega Genisys.

So...the machines just couldn't invent a self-driving truck?  Google did it.

The endless time loop war!

In 2029, the savior of the human race John ?When will this fucking machine war end? Connor (Jason Clarke) launches his major assault in the attempt to stop Skynet from ruling the planet.  Like we?ve seen, the machines sent back a T-800 series model to kill Sarah Conner in the past in order to stop the Resistance from being created since Sarah is John?s mother.  In an effort to protect both his mommy and his creation, John sends his father; Kyle Reese (Jai Courtney) back in time with the mission to stop the T-800 and to protect Sarah?and also to protect his privates because they have to do baby-making things.  However, things take quite a turn compared to the last time we saw Kyle?s journey through time and he witnesses a new machine attack John.  Now, somehow, the timeline has changed and Kyle?s mission isn?t what it was going to be.  He arrives and finds Sarah (Emilia Clarke) is already a badass and trying to stop Skynet from going live and nuking the world.  Now, together, Sarah and Kyle?alongside a T-800 that was send back to protect her when she was a child and she now lovingly refers to as Pops (Arnold Schwarzenegger)?use a cobbled together time machine to transport themselves to 2017 in order to stop Skynet?which is disguising itself as a worldwide operating system called ?Genisys.?  The mission seems straightforward enough until they run into John and learn he is no longer the hero he once was destined to be.

Holy shit!  That is cool.

I won?t say I walked into this one with high hopes.  The first film is awesome and created something completely unheard of in the world of sci-fi when it came out and the sequel was one of those few films that was, in my opinion, actually better than its predecessor and instantly became a classic action film that still holds up today.  The third film wasn?t the best thing I?ve seen, in my opinion, but there were some cool parts to it and, despite my really hoping for something dark, gritty and exciting with Salvation, I found the fourth one to be ?ber-disappointing.  So, naturally, I wasn?t foaming at the mouth for Genisys?buuuut, I will honestly say that seeing the first trailer had me interested at the idea of a new alternate timeline, some sweet looking action, a return of Arnold in his prime form and a plot twist that realistically shouldn?t have been in the trailer but really showed how this film can be different from the others and a possible game-changer.

The shot so cool, they have to put it in every freaking movie!

There?s a lot of flaws holding this addition to the franchise down and keeping it from being on the same level and becoming an instant classic like the first two films but the film does have enough working for it that it?s fairly decent.  The film?s opening feels like it is right out of the 2^nd film and manages to craft the same tone?something completely unseen in Salvation?a film that felt like all the Terminator elements were added on later in order to shoe-horn it into the franchise.  The computer effects are fantastically good and absolutely breathtaking at points.  The action has some really cool fight scenes between the machines and some killer big action pieces that are amazingly exciting and unique.  And, finally, the new time travel components may work against the film by making the timelines in this franchise very convoluted but it also sets this film apart from the rest of the films and doesn?t feel like just another ?let?s send another, different robot back in time to kill John? story.  

Way, way, way better than CG Auhnold in Salvation.

Seriously, great CG but they can't get decent makeup
effects?  That looks like it was done from an off-the-shelf
makeup set from a Halloween Express.

Additionally, many members of the film?s cast really helped this film flow and be more entertaining than I thought it was going to end up.  Jason Clarke is pretty cool as John Connor?even though this is once again a new actor playing John and they are once again playing the character completely different than everyone else did (also, those facial scars they added to him looked super fake and were very distracting).  J.K. Simmons is here and playing a very fun character who recognizes Sarah and Kyle in 2017 from when he was a young officer being saved by Kyle when he traveled back to the 80s.  Emilia Clarke does a great job of filling Linda Hamilton?s boots as Sarah Connor and Arnold, as usual in this franchise, steals the show as the now older T-800 model Pops.

J.K. Simmons is awesome in everything he does.  Please, please, please, PLEASE have
him come back as J. Jonah in the MCU.

She does kinda look like Hamilton, I'll say that.

However, for all the good the film has, it still has a lot of flaws that hurt it and really stopped it from feeling like an adequate addition and something that belongs in the same league as the first and T2.  For example, the movie overdoes the nods and winks to the previous films and it quickly stops feeling like homages to what came before it and fun bits of nostalgia and quickly just feels like this franchise is just endlessly repeating itself and actively going against trying to pave new ground.  Some of the action scenes that are more bullets flying-based feel mediocre and pretty standard action movie stuff that doesn?t really stand out.  There?s some truly awful jokes?like one involving the Cops theme (but that one was at least saved by Arnie) and there is absolutely no chemistry between Jai Courtney and Emilia Clarke.  This part really hurts the film because the relationship that develops between Kyle and Sarah in the first film felt so natural and in this, due to the absence of chemistry and some bad writing (and a really bad performance), the relationship feels wholly unnatural and extremely forced.

Arnie just makes this stupid shit work.

Seriously, Smith brought nothing to this role that any
hungry actor with no career couldn't have done.

Finally, one of the worst parts about this film is the performance of Jai Courtney.  There were other members of the cast that had some issues like having an actor like Matt Smith, who just came off a very iconic role, play a character that, realistically, could have been played by anyone because Smith really didn?t bring anything of note to the part.  Additionally, Emilia Clarke?s delivery of lines occasionally is super cheesy and she never truly feels like the Sarah Connor we know (but a different timeline kinda explains that one away).  However, at the core, she still has a gooey, caramel center that is the Connor we?ve see.  Courtney, on the other hand, lacks this and never once feels like he is Kyle Reese.  It?s bad enough that his performance is very bland and flat but the fact he never, ever comes close to being the character that Michael Biehn made famous in the first film feels very tragic and a wasted opportunity from the production.  This very boring and uninteresting performance from Courtney only made the piss-poor developed and lazily forced relationship between Kyle and Sarah only look worse by the time the film was over.

I'd hate to post blame on a film on one person but, seriously, Courtney was just
that bland in this film.

I won?t go as far as to say that Terminator Genisys is bad or a waste of time.  It?s definitely more entertaining than Salvation but I think I would say it?s about equal to the third film?it?s not great but it has its moments (amusingly enough that this film actually retcons the existence of those two films).  The film definitely had some potential it was striving for and, even though it suffers from a moment or two of really lazy writing, the film was pretty ambitious.  Heck, even James Cameron gave the film his approval and has labeled it his ?official? third film in the franchise?he basically told Rise of the Machines and Salvation to go fuck themselves.  Genisys is, without a doubt, serviceable in its entertainment and Arnold is all kinds of fun in his role but, at the end of it all, it?s still another just functioning sequel added to this franchise?s already growing list of only functioning sequels.

Fun Fact:  That's the original T-1000 Robert Patrick on the left there making a quick
cameo.