Terminator: Genisys
(2015)Reset the future.
The director of Thor: The Dark World helms this fifth entry in the Terminator franchise, following a new timeline where Kyle Reese (Jai Courtney, Divergent) goes back into the new past and teams up with Sarah Connor (Emilia Clarke, Game of Thrones) and an ageing Terminator (Arnold Schwarzenegger).... More
As Judgement Day looms, the group must do all they can to prevent the robot revolution. Co-stars JK Simmons (Whiplash), Matt Smith (Doctor Who) and Jason Clarke (Dawn of the Planet of the Apes) as John Connor.Hide
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Directed by Alan Taylor ('Thor: The Dark World', 'Palookaville')
Starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, Emilia Clarke, Jason Clarke, Jai Courtney, Matt Smith, Aaron V. Williamson, J.K. Simmons, Byung-hun Lee, Dayo Okeniyi
Written by Laeta Kalogridis, Patrick Lussier (based on characters created by James Cameron and Gale Anne Hurd)
On Demand, DVD & Blu-Ray
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Terminator: Genisys
BY thorinoak superstar
Solid action piece with some slightly confusing time travelling parts at times but overall an enjoyable film. Watched in the Rarotonga's Empire Cinema which was surprisingly good!
BY JohnboyDunedin superstar
The series continue. Confusing relationships, illogical story. If this stopped here then the other movies would now not exist. Not enough robots. Action scenes were ok if not predictable.
OMG that smile - eek. Is Arnie becoming human???
BY Jordan superstar
Judgment Day has happened. The world has been taken over by Skynet and the human race has been placed into slavery by it and its army of advanced cybernetic war machines known as Terminators.
With John Connor (Jason Clarke) fighting in the future to free mankind, they succeed at stopping Skynet but find it has already used its ultimate weapon; That of a... More time-travel machine which has sent a Terminator back in time to kill his mother, Sarah Connor (Emilia Clarke). With brother-in-arms Kyle Reese (Jai Courtney) nominating himself to be sent back, we find ourselves thrown into the start of the original Terminator film with a twist.
The rules have changed.
Sarah is now a soldier with a protector by her side that she's affectionately named "Pops" (Arnold Schwarzenegger).
A T-1000 (Lee Byung-hun) exists within the timeline.
And Skynet isn't even close to existing yet.
Interviews with the director of the original Terminator and its sequel have quoted James Cameron as saying that Genisys is the true third part to the franchise.
And it makes sense.
With a perfect bookend to part 2 and a fantastic link to the first part, Genisys ups the ante with time-travel wrapping itself throughout the story while our heroes battle deadly robots who are more deadly than ever.
Taking the normally flat cyborg killer and humanising him more than T2 did, this film has the T-800 walking away into the sunset like he's your favourite Uncle, you audibly announcing "He's so cool and funny...and he blows stuff up...cool".
The only setback this film suffers from is the marketing unfortunately taking away a twist that would have put this film into Sixth Sense territory, word of mouth no doubt growing it's legend for days to come.
But if that moment has been taken away from you, then you still get a great action film that puts the franchise back on the road to new territory that can only see it improve from here.
An upgrade, if you will.Hide
BY GrahamP superstar
Make sure you stay on until after the credits have finished as the movie carries on with an extra, short... More section. And yes the Terminator will be back!Hide
BY bigmrt grader
Cos there's not a lot else!
I saw this last night at imax 3d, and I reckon that's got to be the way to go. It was a huge amount of intense fun on screen, even though the story was a little poo, and the characters shallow and unbelievable sometimes.
Showing 5 of 8 reviews. See all reviews
The Press Reviews
26%
of critics recommend.
Rotten Tomatoes Score. More reviews on Rotten Tomatoes
Nervy, silly, almost admirably misguided attempt to give the 31-year-old franchise a massive cybernetic facelift. Full Review
This terminator is past its expiration date. Full Review
It's as if it has gone back in time to murder our memories of the ancestral first film and crush the series' reputation. Full Review
The film almost completely falls apart in the second half when it becomes as loud as it is tedious. Full Review
The problem is that nothing carries much weight - not the stilted romance between Sarah and Kyle, not the effect-driven action sequences, not even the threat of apocalypse, with billions of lives supposedly in the balance. Full Review
It somehow lovingly homages a great film while pissing all over it at the same time. Full Review
Schwarzenegger, 67, is, yes, back, because while the series thrill is lamentably long gone, franchises now apparently last forever. Full Review
The ending has one WTF moment that lacks credibility, even in this logic-defying loopy universe. But by then, you'll have most likely given in - and just accepted this as the barmiest Terminator yet. Full Review
Fans hoping to watch Schwarzenegger growl his catchphrases with a slight edge of shtick are underestimating the patience involved in sitting through a two-hour slog. Full Review
Part remake, part remix, part sequel. But it doesn’t add up to a worthy successor for the James Cameron originals. Full Review
BY Steve Newall Flicks Writer
Arnie’s back, finally in a role that’s befitting the concept of his comeback. Yes, there are a few too many gags about his advancing years, but his return to being the Terminator is a welcome sight. As for the rest of the film, it’s a decidedly mixed bag.... More
There are some neat ideas, including folding in iconic moments of the first two films in the series in interesting ways, but Terminator: Genisys lacks a suitable villain, a gripping story befitting its supposed status as the true spiritual Terminator 3, and frequently misses the point of what makes the first two, good, Terminator films tick.
Genisys struggles to find a version of SkyNet to pit against its “good” Terminator and re-cast, charisma-free, Kyle Reese (Jai Courtney). There’s a new half-man, half-magnetic creation (whose identity is given away in the trailers and ultimately contributes nothing of note) and then there’s a hologram. Pretty average.
On the positive side, seeing Schwarzenegger take on one of his own kind is pretty damn cool, and the liquid metal of a T-1000 is still a daunting opponent so many years after T2. Emilia Clarke acquits herself well as a different kind of Sarah Connor than we’ve seen previously, but once the rush of the film’s first act wears off, there’s not too much of note to take in.
Heavily overselling the dangers of global connectivity in a manner that is cringe-worthy even now, this element will be positively painful in years to come (not to mention the film’s worst line, as a CEO boasts of a truly “killer app”).
By the time the fourth wall is essentially broken as the lead characters have their mugshots taken, looking down the camera and sound-tracked by Inner Circle’s ‘Bad Boys’, we’re sadly a long way from James Cameron’s gripping, chilling, and adventurous creation – and there’s still the final act to go.Hide
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