Reviewed by: Joe & Kris

Directed by: Jonathan Mostow

Produced by: Andrew G. Vajna, Mario Kassar, Joel B. Michaels, Colin Wilson, Moritz Borman, Guy East, & Nigel Sinclair

Cast: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Nick Stahl, Kristanna Loken, Claire Danes, & David Andrews

Action/Adventure 1 hr. 48 min. Arnold Schwarzenegger returns in this third installment of the popular sci-fi action saga as a cyborg from the future once again becoming involved in the affairs of twentysomething John Connor and his first battles with the SkyNet machine network.

Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines is a good summer popcorn film. T3 doesn’t even come close to the majesty of T2 and for several reasons. The dialogue is much less serious then T2 but this was to be expected with James Cameron not at the helm this time around.

The plot holes presented in the film also hurt the overall effect. There is no clear explanation on what Skynet is exactly and how it is able to control the machines if there is no core. There are also unanswered questions involving how John Connor and the Terminator are able to enter a secret military area with no problems at all. This doesn’t seem to really matter as all Hell breaks loose soon after.

The film is also less dramatic then the first sequel and plays more for just action and laughs but that seems to work on its own level. There were many humorous moments in the film with some working like the statements made by the T-850 replying to situations that machines can’t understand. But there were also moments that didn’t work. For example, the T-X inflates her breasts to get the attention of a cop who pulls her over. This was unnecessary as the cop didn’t even seem to notice.

Besides some minor complaints, there are many things that work for the film. The fact that Jonathan Mostow makes this his own film instead of just trying to copy what James Cameron did in T2 is fabulous. The action sequences were well done and the special effects were just absolutely amazing especially at the very end of the film. Speaking of the ending, it was a little disappointing that the film makers ended the film the way they did but that allows them to follow up with a fourth Terminator film and not give away too much. T3 may not be the best film out there but it is still a great film to enjoy over the holiday weekend.

I have had no desire to see this movie. I have not heard many good things about it, but I did decide to see it when I saw that it was at the dollar fifty theater. Yes, my town has a theater that only costs a dollar fifty to see a movie. No, they aren’t new releases that show at this theater, but they aren’t super old. Usually they are around three or four months old by the time they get there. Anyway, I decided to see it when my friend told me it was at this theater.

I expected a lot of cheesiness and some mediocre special effects. I must say that I was very pleasantly surprised when I saw this movie. The special effects were much better than I expected, and the cheesiness factor was cut down a bit. Were there cheesy parts? Of course there were, what movie doesn’t have some cheesy parts? But they weren’t overly cheesy. The special effects are pretty neat, especially near the end when there are a lot of explosions and such.

This is actually a really funny movie. Some of the humor is subtle, some humor a lot of people won’t get, but it is quite funny when you know what’s going on. The actors do a decent job as well. Arnold doesn’t need to act because he is a machine, which is good because he can’t act anyway. Oooh, did I just say that?

If you want a good laugh go see this flick. It’s a fun action movie, and it isn’t as violent as Terminator or Terminator 2. No it’s not a movie for young children, so don’t take them to see it if you go. If you haven’t seen this movie and enjoyed the first two movies of this series, you will probably like this one. It isn’t as bad as many people say it is.