Terminator Salvation - 5 Elements That Could've Taken It From Average To Great

 Terminator Salvation Improvements

Considering the high standards set by the first two movies in the series, fans had pretty high expectations regarding Terminator Salvation. What they got was a movie that was neither bad nor good, but average. Here’s what was wrong with it and what could have been improved.

Terminator

Allow the fans to feel nostalgic, but keep it subtle

Terminator Salvation has too many reminders of the previous films. When it comes to a series, it is perfectly OK and desirable to use the catchphrases that have become a trademark. The movie would seem incomplete without the famous “I’ll be back” or “Come with me if you want to live”. However, the mottos and subtle references to the previous movies was as far as the producers should’ve gone.

We could’ve managed without Arnie’s brief appearance

At the time Terminator Salvation was shot, Arnold Schwarzenegger was the Governor of California, a job he took very seriously, considering his very brief appearance in this movie and The Expendables. While many fans were happy to see Arnie’s name mentioned in the casting list, they only got to see three shots of him before his human face was blown off. Frankly, you don’t do that to a mug that is basically synonymous with the series. You either cast him properly or use another actor.

They could have worked more on the T-600 model

The references about the badass T-600 model are made from the first movies; because they were Skynet’s first attempt to replicate a human, these killing machines had rubber skin and cooler fighting techniques. What fans got in Terminator Salvation was second grade, to say the least. Considering that T-600 is supposed to be the scariest terminator of them all, you would expect a more convincing looking killing machine, such as the version presented in the Sarah Connor Chronicles for instance.

Wait, what? John Connor dies and yet he lives

The ending of Terminator Salvation was deeply disappointing. John Connor, the heart and soul of the resistance is wounded and dies. The shock of his death quickly dissipates, as Marcus decides to sacrifice himself and donate his heart to save Connor. With the scraps of a medical kit at her disposal, Kate performs a successful heart transplant and Connor lives once more. Not only is this a terrible ending, but it lacks credibility. Using some terminator tech to get her husband back on her feet would have been a far better ending with a lot more potential and definitely a more interesting character development, wouldn’t you say?

So, how or what is Skynet again?

OK, everyone gets that all drones and terminators are sent back in time on a mission for Skynet. Simply put, the only piece of information we have on Skynet is that it’s a network of AIs that has become self-aware and now perceives the human race as a threat. The big question here is simple: why are humans viewed as a threat to the AI’s existence? In the first two movies, there are vague mentions of it, while Salvation shows its activation. Considering that Terminator Salvation is all about the war against the machines, it would only seem logical for the producers to provide more details on the actual villain of this movie.
Disagree with me? Just catch the movie on Internet TV on your phone today and let's see who makes a better tech-film geek?

About

Mike Clark is a part of the team at V Media, providers of internet TV box. In his spare time, Mike loves reading and is a massive fan of Stephen King. 
photo credit: SebKe via photopin cc

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