Terminator: Genisys

He told you he'd be back. But that line is getting so old, it's almost embarrassing. So to continue the trend of unoriginality, the fifth Terminator film has arrived. The third and fourth were so bad that the franchise enlisted James Cameron (the original and T2) to publicly endorse this one and say that this is the one that should have been the third in the trilogy. Smart. But not genuine. And not quite consistent enough with the outcome to believe.

Genisys starts off with a monologue by Kyle Reese, the character that was sent back in time by John Connor to protect his mom, only to impregnate her and then die saving her life. If you have been away from media since 1984, Terminator is a time travel franchise where killer robots go back in time to kill a select few individuals in an attempt to protect the future that has been created out of artificial intelligence. Not a far cry from other dystopian stories, but Terminator is past its prime. More on that later.

The timeline of the films are concurrent, so this one doesn't actually pick up where any of the others left off. It's more of a narrative showing one of the other possible outcomes. John Connor (Jason Clarke) is the resistance leader after robots have destroyed Earth. He has intricate knowledge because of his upbringing, because his mother, Sarah Connor (Emilia Clarke, no relation) was privy to futuristic intel. John sends his lieutenant, Kyle Reese (Jai Courtney) back to protect her, which isn't anything new in these films, but the twist is that there is another Terminator already there (Arnold Schwarzenegger) in all his post-Gubernatorial, geriatric glory. The twist this time around is that the past isn't how the future Kyle Reese expects, and there is an opportunity through Arnold's eloquent explanation of quantum physics, a multi-path timeline via nexuses and pivotal historic moments that cause Sarah, Kyle, and Pops (Schwarzenegger, naturally) to avert the apocalyptic crisis before it occurs. Genysis being the pseudo-Apple product that connects all devices to the Cloud, thus giving the machines the access they need to launch Skynet. It's really a repeat of episodes two, three, and four.

The thing about time travel movies is that they are impossible to create convincingly or realistically. If you can stop your mind from thinking about the logic or sequencing and consequence, you might enjoy the film. The problem is that the Terminator franchise used up its cleverness in 1991. There is a staleness that comes from a fifth incarnation of the same basic story. We've seen John and Sarah Connor facing or allying with the Terminator four times already, and it might seem sneaky to make Kyle Reese the protagonist, but the lack of originality is very obvious.

Written by Laeta Kalogridis (Alexander, Shutter Island) and Patrick Lussier (nothing good), this story could have used a bit of writing talent, as it's a high profile franchise revitalization. I can't overstate how much potential this franchise has with the general public, and how disastrous the past three endeavors have been. I will say that this film, Terminator: Genisys, truly might be the third best of the five, but that isn't saying much. Anything short of James Cameron coming back would be a disappointment, so although Terminator: Genisys is destined to be a box office success, it is also resigned to be considered the afterthought of the genius original story no matter how well they craft the story or the delivery of performances.

Directed by Alan Taylor, who is coming off of a pretty successful television run (Sex and the City, Sopranos, Deadwood, Boardwalk Empire, Mad Men, Game of Thrones) and the recent Marvel smash, Thor: The Dark World, it is safe to say that he has moved on from quality television to blockbuster film.

Basically, it's hard to either rave or pan this film. They do a nice job of summer entertainment with some spectacular special effects and elaborate action sequences, but the story is recycled and stale. I completely understand the need to resurrect the franchise with Arnold Schwarzenegger reprising his role as the iconic robot, and a fresh, new take on the chronology of events complete with characters that make us forget about Edward Furlong, because let's be honest, it's time travel, so really anything can happen. What I can't respect is the lack of originality of story. Give me a million dollars, and I'll write the Terminator story to end all stories, without using material that has already been used.

Terminator: Genisys is a nice farewell to a beloved character (hopefully), but it is so blatantly unoriginal that I almost fell asleep in the process. Kudos for the action, and the efforts of Clarke, Clarke, and Courtney are commendable for a large-scale action film. I would be lying to you if I said this was going to be the last we see of the Terminator, even if, for the love of mankind, I wish it were true. 5/10.