Terminator 3 - Just terrible...

[Goliath]

But then Skynet becomes like an undefeatable slasher movie killer.

Oh, we assume Kyle Reese's "we won" is still valid. But given timeline changes...not so. IIRC, the "Arnold" Terminator in T3 is the one who kills Connor; it was reprogrammed after the deed. So that puts into doubt what Reese said.

Does he kill Connor before or after Skynet is defeated? I don't remember T3 all that well.

So, when it seems like the baddie wins regardless...what's the point besides shoot-outs and car chases? (Yes, I know, mindless entertainment. )

Got it in one.

But beyond that--a comment on the human condition? Our hopeless yet gallant struggle against inevitable death--the foe that even the mightiest warrior cannot defeat? The need to fight the good fight, finish the race, keep the faith, and avoid despair?

One could argue that the whole Terminator mythos has deeply Christian roots. Skynet is sin, and the world it creates is death. The terminators are Satan, prowling about like a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour. John Connor is a Christ figure, the savior of humanity, and his mother Sarah a sort of Virgin Mary: the first terminator's killing spree was a sort of massacre of the innocents.

I guess that would make future-John God the Father, and Reese the Holy Spirit. Or the Archangel Gabriel. Or something. Anyway, you get the idea.

From this perspective, the inability to prevent Skynet from happening would represent our fallen nature, our inability to save ourselves by our own righteousness, and our need for Grace.

 

[Pilot Ace]

You should look into a "fan-edit" called The Coming Storm, I found it really brought out the best in that movie.

I haven't seen Terminator 3 in years, 'cause I more or less hated it, but I went ahead and found this... I'll try to check it out this weekend.

 

[Sephiroth]

... I watched it recently for the second time last week and noticed a TON of stuff, if editing/finalizing a film was my job, and I had done that, i'd keep it off my resume

What exactly are you referring to? The slithering snake on the soundstage, I'm sorry, desert, with the bad matte background, perhaps?

well, there is missing audio in places, like when the terminatrix gets pulled over, you can clearly see her ask "is there a problem, officer?" but you hear nothing so you have a few seconds of akward silence, he could have either dubbed her voice in, or snipped the question

there are a few spots (like in the cemetary) where you can easily see tape on the floor where ate actors are supposed to stand, small things like that that point to a hurried editing process (I won't even go into the obvious oversights in some of the visual effects)

 

[Flying Spaghetti Monster]

please do... I want to hear those mistakes

 

[Sephiroth]

off the top of my head..in Arnie's "terminator vision" there are a few spelling errors, the window the TX appears in has a vanishing logo in the corner, the crane truck cant decide weather it wants it's sabilizers in or out, and the hearse keeps regenerating hubcaps, off the top of my head

 

[davejames]

While it's not in the same realm as the first two, I find T3 enjoyable on its own merits. Had some nice action scenes and a pretty cool twist ending.

Agreed. The story was way too thin and weak for a proper Terminator movie, but as just an action movie I think it works pretty well.

It's certainly more solid and well-constructed than most action movies you see nowadays, and thankfully doesn't rely on the same kind of huge, overblown action sequences or nonstop CGI like you see everywhere else. It's just a straightforward, old-fashioned action movie, which I find really damn refreshing.

My only real gripe is with the pacing in a few spots (like how Arnold and the gang suddenly just appear in the heart of a military installation with no explanation given! lol). Cameron was so much better at laying things out and making the story really FLOW from scene to scene, and this movie could have used that.

 

[Flying Spaghetti Monster]

I heard there was a mistake when T-X is trying out ehr new weapon... a lot of "filler text" in her vision.

I kind of found it hard to believe that this 19-year-old girl is stronger than Arnie. I mean and villain that needs to tie her hair in a bun can't be too scary. I hated her awkward line deliveries, and her "erotic reaction" to John Connor's blood.

If they were going to send a girl Terminator, they should have her seem more vulnerable

 

[Flying Spaghetti Monster]

While it's not in the same realm as the first two, I find T3 enjoyable on its own merits. Had some nice action scenes and a pretty cool twist ending.

Agreed. The story was way too thin and weak for a proper Terminator movie, but as just an action movie I think it works pretty well.

It's certainly more solid and well-constructed than most action movies you see nowadays, and thankfully doesn't rely on the same kind of huge, overblown action sequences or nonstop CGI like you see everywhere else. It's just a straightforward, old-fashioned action movie, which I find really damn refreshing.

My only real gripe is with the pacing in a few spots (like how Arnold and the gang suddenly just appear in the heart of a military installation with no explanation given! lol). Cameron was so much better at laying things out and making the story really FLOW from beginning to end, and this movie could have used that.

I agree that this was Cameron's gift. I mean look at the opening, where the Terminator's arrive. In both of his films, Cameron had a method that was VERY percise as to how this was shown. At first glance, Mostow reproduced this method, but checking again he didn't. How so/
1) there were still credits on the screen during the T-X's arrival (Cameron dispenced with all credits before showing these scenes)
2) Once showing an arrival, Cameron did NOT cut to another plot before a Terminator (or Kyle) actually DID something. In T3 after Arnold arrives, we cut to John and back to Arnie.
3) No actual violence was shown in these scenes.


Also the first two films, the meeting of the two time travelors was filled with tension.. but in T3, their meeting wasn't something to brag about

 

[Rygel XIX]

I have seen this movie for sure, but for the life of me, can't remember the ending...Can anyone help?

 

[Sephiroth]

I heard there was a mistake when T-X is trying out ehr new weapon... a lot of "filler text" in her vision.

I kind of found it hard to believe that this 19-year-old girl is stronger than Arnie. I mean and villain that needs to tie her hair in a bun can't be too scary. I hated her awkward line deliveries, and her "erotic reaction" to John Connor's blood.

If they were going to send a girl Terminator, they should have her seem more vulnerable

the filler text (complete with more spelling errors) was another, and the TX holds the cell phone she uses in the beginning backwards

having good eyes + a film I'm not really getting into means I notice alot of small things

also the T-1's are almost carbon copies of the ones from the Sega CD terminator game, nice refrence

 

[Aragorn]

I think they missed a chance to make Arnold the bad guy again.

I have seen this movie for sure, but for the life of me, can't remember the ending...Can anyone help?

Judgment Day happens. The best thing about this movie.

 

[Sephiroth]

I have seen this movie for sure, but for the life of me, can't remember the ending...Can anyone help?

John and Catherine are told of a secret bunker where they can stop skynet, they fly there, Arnie sacrifices himself to destroy the TX, when Catherine and John get to the heart of this bunker they find out that it's a place for VIP's to wait out a Nuclear War, Judgement day happens (who knew that nukes wouldn't disturb trees, another effects flub BTW) the future is set

 

[Ethros]

It's easy to pick out the bits like "talk to the hand" or whatever, but then the same fanboys who blast it for that seem to forget moments in T2 like "I need a vacation" or the Terminator badly trying to immitate a smile or cheesy lines like "why do you cry?" etc

Not that I'm criticising it, T2 is one of my all-time favourites, just saying

 

[Flying Spaghetti Monster]

Can I ask a question:

If Cameron was directing it, anything significant that the Terminators do, (such as obtaining a vehicle, weapon, or new piece of information) he's show it, like he did in the first film. So why didn't Mostow show how both his Terminators get their respective helicopters at the end of the film. And why oh why did the Terminator have to Crash though the mountain with shopper instead of landing it. And why of why did the T-X have to crash her chopper two minutes later instead of landing it. this scene irks me to no end, it just seems so silly!!!

 

[Ethros]

^ It's a lot quicker to crash it?

 

[Pilot Ace]

It's easy to pick out the bits like "talk to the hand" or whatever, but then the same fanboys who blast it for that seem to forget moments in T2 like "I need a vacation" or the Terminator badly trying to immitate a smile or cheesy lines like "why do you cry?" etc

Not that I'm criticising it, T2 is one of my all-time favourites, just saying

Forgive me, because it has been years since I've seen Terminator 3, as I said... But, T2 had a subplot about this machine taking on a sort of human nature or consciousness itself, learning to understand and adapt to humanity as a protector, rather than a assassin. He was being taught by the child that he was protecting.

Terminator 3, as far as I recall, completely lacked this aspect. That's why the cheese in Terminator 2 works because we're watching something analogous to "baby steps" towards a being discovering humanity, someone outside trying to look and step in.

Terminator 3 was only trying to be funny, there was no emotional build-up or relevance to those cheesy moments.

Then again, maybe I'm not remembering T3 correctly.

 

[Darth_Pinche]

The movie was bad, but I did like two things. The unhappy ending (Skynet wins and how Connor starts connecting with the survivors), which was uncharacteristic of usual hollywood movies. And number two? C'mon. A female terminator with infinitely variable boobies.

 

[davejames]

It's easy to pick out the bits like "talk to the hand" or whatever, but then the same fanboys who blast it for that seem to forget moments in T2 like "I need a vacation" or the Terminator badly trying to immitate a smile or cheesy lines like "why do you cry?" etc

Not that I'm criticising it, T2 is one of my all-time favourites, just saying

Forgive me, because it has been years since I've seen Terminator 3, as I said... But, T2 had a subplot about this machine taking on a sort of human nature or consciousness itself, learning to understand and adapt to humanity as a protector, rather than a assassin. He was being taught by the child that he was protecting.

Terminator 3, as far as I recall, completely lacked this aspect. That's why the cheese in Terminator 2 works because we're watching something analogous to "baby steps" towards a being discovering humanity, someone outside trying to look and step in.

Terminator 3 was only trying to be funny, there was no emotional build-up or relevance to those cheesy moments.

Then again, maybe I'm not remembering T3 correctly.

Plus those little moments were woven into a story that was a lot darker and bleaker in tone. You REALLY got the sense in T2 that the coming apocalypse was right around the corner, so any small amount of levity and humor was welcomed.

T3 had a little bit of that feeling, but not enough to justify the cheesy humor.

 

[davejames]

The movie was bad, but I did like two things. The unhappy ending (Skynet wins and how Connor starts connecting with the survivors), which was uncharacteristic of usual hollywood movies. And number two? C'mon. A female terminator with infinitely variable boobies.

Boobies aside, the other reason I like her is because she actually made for a really good Terminator. I thought the actress totally nailed it, and was just as intimidating and badass as she needed to be.

For some reason I had no problem buying that she could hold her own against Arnold in that movie.

 

[Captain Craig]

Terminator 3 is a good film, I can agree it has some flaws that keep it from greatness but overall its a good film.

Bad films are films like Highlander: The Source or Dungeon Siege: In the Name of King.

So when I hear T:3 is terrible I can respect that 'x' individual likes it less than the other installments however I have to file that comment under hyperbole cause terrible films exist and T:3 is far from that.