T3 reviews coming in

[Kai Lord]

DON'T expect teh quiality or seriousness of T2 and you'll enjoy it.

And if you realize that T2 was just a safer, more blatantly preachy version of the fiercely gritty and intense T1, you'll enjoy T3 even more.

Not that T2 isn't greatly entertaining, but it doesn't hold a candle to the raw desperation of the situations in The Terminator. T3 is better than T2, and a fantastic closer to the trilogy. I see no need for a T4.

 

[Ycore Rixle]

I see no need for a T4.

And I don't need a huge fireworks display tonight - but it will sure be fun to watch anyway!

Seriously, I see your point. But I still hope they make T4, because if it's anywhwere near as good as any of the first three, it will be better than most of the movies that come down the pike, whether the storyline "needs" it or not.

 

[Ristamar]

I, too, had expected the movie to suck.

To echo some of the previous sentinents, having just returned from the theater, I'm pleasantly surprised. T3 is a very solid action flick.

A few comments:

1) IMO, Robert Patrick is a better Terminator than the new Termanatrix. He's colder, more mechanical. However, Kristanna Loken was still good in the role.

2) T2 receives much of its classic status from the groundbreaking visual effects of the T-1000, which were revolutionary at the time. T3 impresses visually (the big chase scene is crazy and must've cost a pretty penny), but there's nothing that will have an impact on film like T2's effects once did.

3) T2 had better characterization, but since Linda Hamilton is nowhere to be found in T3, this is to be expected. That being said, Nick Stahl and Claire Danes were far better than I had thought they would be.

Oh, since Hulk was brought up as a barometer of taste, I should mention that I liked it, as well (and also went in thinking it would suck), so take that for what it's worth.

 

[stevelabny]

just got back

went in expecting a mindless action movie, just like the first two. i'm continually amazed at how people treat some older decent movies as great works of art that are deep and meaningful. t1 was a sci-fi horror movie. period. t2 took the t1 concept and turned it into a 90s movie, which is to say a big budget, action-comedy. there was no signifiant plot or depth to either movie. really. they were just GOOD, FUN movies.

so mid-movie im thinking WOW. this is a REALLY GOOD mindless action movie. the terminatrix wasnt convincing me that shes as bad as either of the first two evil terminators and im debating if 3 of the 4 actors are stiff or just have so little to work with, but my main problem was the pause for arnold's one-liners was in the wrong place. the pause kept happening AFTER the line, as if cueing the audience to laugh, but the pause is supposed to happen BEFORE the line to make his great delivery hit just right.
the comedy is MUCH better when its unintentional, dimbulbs.

so im crusing along though the good action movie ready for the hollywood happy ending, and then i got something else. something that was done so well, i had one of those big stupid smiles you only get when a movie does something so right, you cant help but just sit back and revel in it.

so i thought this was a very good flick. and i dont think that was because hulk was a diaster. its just fun on its own

 

[Technik4]

I won't compare T3 to either of its predecessors since it has been a while since Ive seen them (except I agree the T2 was more passive and scary than the TX...by far).

Couple niggling things (no spoilers):

Neither of the terminators' clothes got messed up, regardless if they were smashing through walls, stores, or vehicles. I can understand (to an extent) for the TX, because she could reform her clothes, but can we at least "see" that? As for Arnie, I mean come on! Think about where he got his clothes and ask yourself if they shouldve held up the whole movie.

Ok, so John Conner is going to lead the human struggle against the machines. We know this. So why is he so friggin stupid? I mean, hes got this whole gig going which sounds cool and then within 5 minutes he has it potentially screwed up. Do you think landing in jail won't immediately lead to some questions there John? Not to mention his entire lack of being able to put anything together, he mostly runs around with a dopey smile waiting for people to tell him what to do.

The suspense and time limits that the film tries to convey are not not articulated well by the actors. Most of the time Claire Danes (Kate Brewster) and Nick Stahl (John Conner) are just standing around watching cool effects when they should be running their asses off to get where they need to be.

Anyway, don't get the wrong impression - I too had a good time and don't regret seeing it. My overly nitpicky analysis is mostly due to a friend of mine who picked apart Matrix: Reloaded like that, and then had the nerve to say that he couldnt find any errors in T3. Pssh, where the hell does Arnie get his starting shotgun anyway...?

Technik

 

[uv23]

Too much running around and T1/T2 rehash, not enough sci-fi. I dunno, maybe I went in with far too high expectations but I was dissapointed. Seemed like more of a prelude to Terminator 4 than anything...

 

[Alzrius]

I went in to see T3 today with a knot in my gut...it was the same feeling I had before I went to see the D&D movie - its that feeling where you really want this movie to be good, but your logical side is whispering to you that its going to be awful.

I've never been so glad I was wrong...especially since I'm a big Terminator fam (heck, I helped work on the unofficial-but-still-unbelieveably-good d20 Modern version).

The single biggest difference in tone that I felt, after taking some time to think about it compared to the other two (which I watched back-to-back a few days prior to seeing T3) was that unlike T1 & T2, T3 wasn't a movie of suspense. The first two had moments where you tensed in your seat, and others where you shivered at the cold precision of the machines. T3 didn't have that, it was just pure action.

This isn't to say that I feel this is a bad thing at all...I loved T3. It's at least as good as T2, and I'm somewhat inclined to say it may even be better than T1. It's just that I think the reason some people dislike it (or don't like it as much as they would have otherwise) is that they're expecting a different animal...this isn't an action/suspense/sci fi movie...its action/sci fi.

Having the humorous moments in the film felt odd, but that's because of the shadow of its predecessor films being cast on it. By themselves, they were actually quite good. Likewise, Loken as the T-X did a fantastic job...its just that the movie itself never actually (IMHO) had a scene which enabled her character to come off as coldly mechanical as the first two movies did for their android assassins.

T3 was meant to be a slightly different film from its two predecessors, and if you remember to take that into account, it was damn good.

 

[Dr Midnight]

Loken as the T-X did a fantastic job...its just that the movie itself never actually (IMHO) had a scene which enabled her character to come off as coldly mechanical as the first two movies did for their android assassins.

I'd just like to say that the part... uh, this requires a spoiler warning, so go below.

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The part where the terminatrix is stuck in the magnetic field and helpless, but she's still staring at John in that creepy terminator way...
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just wanted to say that I found that very chilling.

 

[Alzrius]

Oh, I agree that scene was well done by her...as I said, she did a terrific job, but compare that to, say, the scene in T2 where the T-1000 jabs a finger-needle through the security guard's head at the mental hospital and he wriggled on it as he dies...it's just not the same. Loken did great, but for real "fear the machine, for it has no soul" moments, the movie just didn't give her any, IMHO.

 

[Kai Lord]

Having the humorous moments in the film felt odd, but that's because of the shadow of its predecessor films being cast on it.

Why? T2 had more one-liners and comedic gags than T3.