Terminator Salvation

Terminator Salvation D: McG



So I went to this film expecting to see a generic, all-out action flick. And that's basically what I saw. This 4th Terminator film is a complete change in pace from the tense, chase-like earlier films and a whole lot better than the awful 3rd film. The action sequences are perfectly executed and the story, although predictable (especially if you know your Terminator storylines) does have it's fair share of twists and turns. Essentially, with all the time traveling in the previous films we know from the get-go that John Connor, our hero played by Christian Bale, will not defeat the Cyberdyne corporation within the 115 minute running time.
That said Bale does kick his fair share of robot ass. If you're interested in this movie it's probably fair to say it's not entirely because of the story. There's some brilliant long-take fight scenes, stunning CG ships, sky-scraper high terminators, bike chases, car chases, explosions and tons more to feed action-film junkies. Terminator 4 is the one fans, apparently, have been waiting for. The all out war against the machines, and there's no doubt that the film delivers. The action is fast, clever and looks stunning!
I was excited to see Danny Elfman pop up as composer in amongst the boring opening credits. Yet throughout the film I failed to hear any particularly striking music, not even the original Terminator theme (bar the beating drums.) Perhaps this is because most of the music was drowned out by the awesome sounds of the Terminators themselves. The booming, electronic drones and grinding, eery metallic sounds of the robots themselves really selled a lot of the action sequences for me. There's just something about having your cinema chair actually shake with the sound of the film. That's real cinema!
Of course Terminator Salvation isn't all action action action. There is a genuinely interesting underlying idea behind the film focusing on the humanity of the characters and the reasons for fighting the war against machines. Helena Bonham Carter stars as a early Cyberdyne employee that helps Marcus Wright, played by Sam Worthington, get a second chance in life. Acting is great for the most part although for most characters it just involved sitting in scragily clothes and looking miserable. Of course, they had to do a bit of running as well... Oh and Bale's voice is getting beyond ridiculously low. I can hardly hear him! Additionally, Anton Yelchin will star as that guy that you know you've seen in something else recently but can't remember what. His actual character is Kyle Reese, John Connor's father. Knowing your Terminator stuff of course, John needs to meet his father to send him back in time to meet his mother so he can be born. Yes, it can be complicated but seriously, if you haven't seen the first 3, do so. Okay, maybe not the 3rd one. Either way the stories are interesting, engaging and perhaps confusing enough to justify the immense action sequences in what, I think, is a brilliant sci-fi actioner. And for the record, Yelchin is that foreign one in the new Star Trek film.

Overall
An exciting action-packed film that actually has an interesting story. With a fair share of twists, turns and surprises both in the plot and action-sequences, Terminator Salvation blows the 3rd film out of the water (or rather molten magma) whilst still keeping some of the tension, fear and cheesy one-lines from the first two.

Donnie Darko

Donnie Darko D: Richard Kelly



A brilliant story about a troubled teen who hallucinates and sees a giant rabbit that tells him to perform a series of strange and dangerous tasks. Don't expect an entirely relaxing, enjoyable experience, Donnie Darko is surreal and strange throughout. A seemingly normal story of a boy making his way through school, meeting a girl, hanging with his friends and sub plots concerning parents and school teachers is present but is cleverly juxtaposed with almost alternate reality, dream-like sequences concerning our main character, who frequently visits a psychiatrist and is finding hidden meanings and connections in his life.
It's perfectly well done and the story is written in such a way that it is satisfying and enjoyable even though you're not quite sure what's going on half the time. It then ends in a way that is both confusing and explanatory for the strange happenings that happen previously.
Jake Gyllenhaal plays the title character of the 18 year old going on 25. Seriously, he looks a little old for his role. Either way his performance is brilliant, he switches scene by scene from a fairly normal if troubled teenager to a deranged, disturbed one with a real freaky manic smile. Other notable performances include one of Donnie's school teachers played by Drew Barrymore, or as my mother put it, the little girl from ET. The rest of the cast are brilliant and do their part in creating believable characters in this surreal and seemingly unbelievable world.
My only main criticism is the use of Mad World by Gary Jules as the closing track. Of course this film relaunched the song back in 2001 but now... Well, that song is just annoying.

Overall
An enjoyable and, not necessarily thought provoking, but thought warping and disturbing, film. If your looking for a teen/horror/thriller with an edge this is for you.