Terminator: Dark Fate

Terminator: Dark Fate

Starring Linda Hamilton, Mackenzie Davis, Natalia Reyes, Arnold Schwarzenegger

Directed by Tim Miller

Retconning long-running film franchises seem to be all the craze lately, as it helps serve to eradicate the terrible sequels from becoming holy canon.  Last year's "Halloween" managed to erase every "Halloween" sequel and make itself the sequel to the classic original, and much like the tagline of the Servpro restoration services, made them "like it never even happened."  So far be it for a film franchise whose literal bread and butter deals with altering the future by changing the present to retcon their own franchise, sending their worst entries into the abyss of nothingness and providing a true sequel that's nearly every part as respectable and entertaining as its sister's predecessor.

That's what "Terminator: Dark Fate" attempted to do.  The first film in the franchise since the second film to involve the brilliant mind of James Cameron, the film takes place in the same universe where "Terminator 2: Judgment Day" ended, and made it so the events in "Rise of the Machines," "Salvation," and "Genesys" took place in some alternate, forgotten universe - if only it was that easy in real life to not remember seeing those subpar sequels.  Perhaps it's the bad blood that viewers received from those three lackluster sequels that kept them away from theaters in droves for this one - it's already listed as one of the biggest box office bombs of 2019 - but they're missing out on something...fun (I was going to say special, but that's giving "Dark Fate" too much credit).

This film takes place in 2020 in Mexico City, where mild-mannered girl Dani Ramos (Natalia Reyes) lives a typical life with her brother and father, until one day the REV-9 Terminator (Gabriel Luna) teleports from the future to kill her.  At the same time, Grace (Mackenzie Davis) - an "augmented" human - also arrives from the future set to protect her at any cost, since she will herald the salvation of mankind in the coming years after a new strain of robots attempt to take over the world.  This Terminator is no T-800 - or even T-1000 - as it has the ability to basically regenerate after any sort of attack, and even according to Grace, the only way to stop him is to run.

When all hope seems lost, in comes Sarah Connor (Linda Hamilton), bazooka in hand, as she obliterates the REV-9 - at least for the moment, giving the three women enough time to escape.  Grace tells Sarah that she was sent to protect the girl, and Sarah tells her the story of when she WAS that girl, and now she sets out to destroy all Terminators.  The women head to Texas to find aid from a mysterious helper, who turns out to be the T-800 (Arnold Schwarzenegger), who has adapted to humanity and wants to help, despite Sarah's strong desire to kill him herself.  The group go on the run as the REV-9 hunts them down, and they realize the only way to truly stop him is to make one final stand.

The original two "Terminator" films are cheesy, flashy, popcorn-action films that've found their way into cinematic history, filled with quotable lines and now-famous characters.  "Dark Fate" does well in bringing back the beloved Linda Hamilton and Arnold Schwarzenegger, and the film would've been a total disaster without them.  Hamilton is a breath of fresh air as she returns to the character she's most well-known for, giving Sarah Connor a new demeanor - as a total BA whose sole purpose is to exterminate all Terminators and offer darkly humorous one-liners and expository dialogue, and you can tell she really enjoyed returning to the beloved franchise over thirty years later.  I'd love to see an eventual film featuring herself, Jamie Lee Curtis, and Sigourney Weaver - because I think they'd really be able to provide something amazing.

Schwarzenegger serves more as a cameo, but his brief time on screen is extremely memorable and his rapport with Hamilton hasn't lost anything in the decades past, giving his T-800 a new name (Carl) and even shreds of humanity.

The newbies to the group also add their own sense of empowerment and would serve well if the film franchise would continue (although with the poor ticket sales, I don't see that happening).  Mackenzie Davis steps into an action role as Grace, the augmented future human sent back in time to protect the salvation of the future world, and she blends sarcastic humor with heart as she protects young Dani at all costs, and even offers some motherly advice.  Newcomer Natalie Reyes (who's best known for Spanish television shows) plays the tough-as-nails Dani, who begins the film as an innocent girl but transforms into a butt kicker all her own, someone who could easily hold a franchise.

No one goes into a "Terminator" film expecting to find compelling dialogue or Shakespearean-like sonnets, but instead for the nonstop action and top-notch effects, and "Dark Fate" has both in droves.  However, the film does become a bit tedious as the story pushes itself forward just to introduce the next big action shot just because.  Grace can see when the REV-9 is coming, so the film is filled with her repetitive phrases like "he's coming," or "he's here," and since the REV-9 basically cannot be stopped, that's what the film does - feels like it never stops.  Whether they're running from him on a busy highway, a detention center, or even a C-5 Galaxy, it's pretty much the same thing each time: they fight, the REV-9 takes a licking but keeps on ticking, and they run to the next event.  Yes, the action and effects are still stellar, but the film could've done better if it eliminated one of the middle ones to make it a bit more lean, as there's not a whole lot of actual story to be told.

Despite the three previous outings, "Dark Fate" returns to its "Terminator" roots and provides an adequate predecessor to the historic "Judgment Day," but is sometimes pulled down by its repetitive action nature.

The Score: A-