"Terminator: Salvation" Review

I went into this movie not expecting much, save a hale of explosions, a really intense performance from Bale and for Common to do something that would not allow me to take him seriously. Well I got all that and much,much more.

The film begins in the year 2003 as we meet Sam Worthington's character, Marcus Wright, who is on Death Row & agrees to donate his body to science right before he is executed. It turns out, the whole movie is really about his character and asks the question where does humanity lie, they just also happened to throw in some guy named John Connor and a whole mess of explosions to tie it all together. Since this movie is really about the hero's journey, albeit a formerly murderous hero, Marcus Wright is the main character of the movie and they kill him in the first 2 minutes. The movie than jumps to 2018, machines and humans are still at war and Judgement Day has already come to pass.

While director McG does a fantastic job of placing you immediately within the action with a helicopter crash from Christian Bale's point of view in the pilot's seat, making you feel as dizzy as John Conner in the desolate abyss that has become America, the movie then takes a while to become cohesive and is very disconnected for about the first 20 minutes.

All in all the movie is utterly preposterous, but entertaining enough, it's the 4th movie (& there are potentially 2 more on the way) of an action franchise that's been around for over 2 decades, so if you don't know what you're walking into, it's your own fault. Anton Yelchin who plays Kyle Reese (who will grow up to be John Connor's dad...yeah don't ask,) Moon Bloodgood & Sam Worthington really make this movie worth while (aside from the explosions) but if you're indifferent about it, just go see Star Trek.

My rating: 8.3/10

Hotness rating of the cast: 9.8/10 (Namely Sam Worthington, Anton Yelchin, Moon Bloodgood & Christian Bale in that order)

trailer trash - Public Enemies

I've got to thanks Aasbo, for sharing this with me, as well as this, because I was looking for it last Monday and it wasn't up yet. If the video below doesn't load check it here.

The Christian Bale Freakout Dance Remix

Crazy controversy aside, he's still an incredibly talented actor and undeniably badass. Now dance to him going apeshit on a DP.

Batman Blows up on the "Terminator: Salvation" set

Holy bejeebus, Christian Bale went bezerker on a DP who wandered into a shot on the Terminator: Salvation set and it's totally ridiculous. Bale's always been known to throw himself into his rolls and generally have a prickly personality during production, but oh my wow this was pretty nutso.

trailer trash- Terminator:Salvation

I've adored Christian Bale since "Little Women," so I'll basically sit through anything he's in. Conveniently he's fantastically talented and generally stars in great films. So when I heard he was going to be in the new Terminator: Salvation I was really excited, until I saw that Common was it. I literally went flaccid. Don't get me wrong I like Common enough, and understand why so many people find him so darn wonderful, but almost every movie he has been in has sucked donkey balls (Street Kings, Wanted & Smoking Aces) in one way or another. I trust McG's directorial vision, because he can handle bid budget action, plus Anton Yelchin is so flippin adorable I want to ask him out on a date, share a banana split and strictly enter into PG-13 territory with him. But like I said, Common is in this movie, so I'm pretty damn hesitant, hopefully Sam Worthington is as hot/talented as studio heads thinks he is and cancels out the whole Common factor.

the grove on a thursday night...

it never gets old sadly. if it did i would have been in bed 7 hours ago. didn't make it to the GEN ART screening of "August," but whatev Josh Hartnett will suck me into something else he's in soon enough and i am not ashamed to admit it. random but relevant tangent- "the black dahlia" sucked, i couldn't get through it and I ADORE Aaron Eckhart (i made my mom rent "In The Company of Men" for me when i was home sick with the flu for 2 weeks in middle school and have loved him ever since.) everyone keeps talking about the brilliance that is Heath Ledger's performance as The Joker in "The Dark Knight." i adored, respected and admired Heath since "10 Things I Hate About You," because not only did he help to reinterpret a great Shakesperean play, but he gave an entertaining and believable performance in a "teen movie." but it legitimately shocks me that no one is talking about Aaron Eckhart's performance as Harvey Dent/ Two Face. Anyone who is a fan of the comic of the film series knows that in "Batman Forever" Tommy Lee Jones played the same role. i understand the media's obsessive and even more relentless "relationship/fascination" with an unbelievably talented artist that died well before anyone wanted him too, and that we'll never fully comprehend what he was going through. but i hope people also take the opportunity to respect The Dark Knight as a whole and not just focus on one man's performance, because film is a collaborative art and heath, christian, aaron, maggie, morgan, michael, gary, christopher and the entire crew are responsible for this oeuvre and let's not forget that.

anyhoo i hope that mr. eckhart gives a stellar and exciting performance and acts his pants off (literally and seriously. i know this is a dark movie but i want to see something hot.)

....and i can't think anymore