With no fear....I will go on record saying that I loved it. Easily the most fun I have had at the movies yet this year. As good as T2...probably not...but also not necessary. The action sequences were superior, successful humor was there, and the biggest surprise of all the characters and story worked.

No overkill on the special effects (ala The Matrix) and what people might call a ripoff I call the screenwriters paying homage to the first two films.

Finally, a worthwhile score (though the Terminator theme was missed throughout the film...the John Conner theme was a serviceable replacement) and thank Jonathon Mostow for keeping the run time under 2-hours.

Though I would pose that the same is true of Fiedel's scores...useless outside of the film.

I don't know whether this is an incredibly unpopular opinion, but I'm not a big fan of the second film, mostly because Edward Furlong and Linda Hamilton both annoy the heck out of me (in that specific film). T3 is basically a remake of T2, but with the absense of Sarah Connor, the inclusion of Kate Brewster, and the improvement of John Connor in Nick Stahl, it worked much better for me in this one.

The ending was great, too. I was hoping it was going to go in that direction, but I didn't actually expect them to do it. The only problem now is that if they do another sequel my expectations are going to be much higher.

My only major gripe is the absense of the Terminator theme. I thought Beltrami did a good job, but the scene of Arnold's return to the present really NEEDED that theme. I was glad to hear that they did indeed use Beltrami's excellent arrangement of the theme in the end credits, contrary to what I had read previously.

I've gotta hand it to Mostow for resurrecting the lasting charms of dumb-ass B movies of old. It was as if though I were watching a flic made in the get-to-the-point 80's. Jurassic Park 3 was enjoyable for the same reason.

I can't believe some of you guys liked this waste of $170 million.

Like Jurassic Park III, this film's dialogue could've consisted of "Blah-blah-blahs" and nobody would be any the wiser. "Me rikey fings go boom" and whatnot.

Cameron's second film works because it gives you the story, THEN gives you the action. He makes the wait WORTH it, whereas Mostow just bombards us with pointless, money-wasting action scene after action scene. Say what you will about Cameron, but the man just KNOWS how to stage an action setpiece. Quill, I really hate to call you an idiot here in front of everybody, but to call the action sequences in Terminator 3 "superior" in any way (superior to death, perhaps?) makes this fact go without saying.

I was bothered by the following things:

a.) Marco Beltrami. Jesus, when has anyone had to say "Where's Brad Fiedel when you need him?" This was one of the worst scores for a summer movie in years. Boring and themeless, Beltrami finally proves he was a one-hit wonder with Scream.

b.) Don Burgess. After watching Spider-Man, the powers that be at WB permitted this man on the set. I'm not saying that each film has to have a constant look, but NOT making it look like the previous Terminator films makes it look even MORE like a pathetic attempt to milk a cash cow before the plug is pulled on another action star's career. After next weekend's box office tally, I predict Arnold's next film will feature him getting sucked out of an air shaft in the first reel.

c.) The idiots who came up with the "story" and "screenplay." I was one who thought Terminator 2 didn't need to be made, until I saw it. A logical next step for the story. At the end of this film, what did we learn that we didn't already know at the end of the second one? That Clare Danes is his girlfriend? And those one-liners that you guys thought were so funny: what were they? Here are the one-liners I remember:

"Get out."

"Get out."

"Talk to the hand." (Was this script written when "Buffalo Stance" was a hit?)

"You're terminated." (How much did these guys get for coming up with THAT zinger? I would've gladly re-accepted "You're luggage." Maybe when it comes out on DVD, I can just dub that line in.)

This is a stupid fanboy complaint, but where was John Connor when the Terminator said, "Hasta la vista, baby" in the second film?

Honestly, this was the worst sequel I've seen since Jurassic Park III.

To qoute my favorite movie character, Corky St. Clair:

"Screw you, and your ass face!!
I'm gonna go bite my pillow!"

What it is about though, is giving yourself the credit to recognize a dumb, old B movie when you see it, step aside, and just delight in the mayhem, titillation, irony and, yes, corny humour, as it gamely rumbles by.

There are good B movies Shaun, and there are bad B movies. T3 is a good B movie. In fact, some of my favourite movies are dumb old B flics, many of which most cineastes would simply shudder at.

So, here ya got a movie franchise about cyborgs from the future returning to the past to kick ass. How serious am I supposed to take this? How serious should the filmmakers have to take it?

Sure, T3 was a remake of T2. Once upon a time, this would have been a lame movie for me.
But given how much trash we've had to endure over the past couple of years, T3 really wasn't that bad.
You're comparing T3 with all the good flicks you've seen in the past. We're comparing T3 with all the garbage that's now playing.

Maybe he's right. You know, as one actor put it at the T3 premier "who wouldn't want the Terminator elected?" (for California state governor). That statement says it all: He'd be elected based on his superstardom, no matter that when it comes to politics, Arnold's a total creep (just look at that racist American garbage, True Lies, in his film politics, yikes!).

This score and film is dry. I'm not sure if it was the projection or the "style", but the film was really grainy, and in fact, I don't think this film had style; anyone could have directed it and edited it. Don't praise Jonathon Mostow for it, I mean, does this guy have a "style"? Can we say, "Oh, that's obviously a Jonathon Mostow film"? Didn't think so. I don't think he's even heard of a steadicam, the photography in the car chase was awful, but the absence music in that sequence was excellent, a good sound editing choice. It was also neat how Terminator turned into Django at the cemetary shootout (and if you're clever, you'll know what I'm talking about).

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It was also neat how Terminator turned into Django at the cemetary shootout

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Funny isn't it. Here's a pulp interpretation of a revered genre classic refererencing a pulp interpretation of a revered genre classic (A Fistful of Dollars). Now, if you get a handle on that, then you pretty well know where this film is coming from and what it's aiming for.

Posted at Joblo:

Very good movie. The ending left me sad for some reason. Nick Stahl is good. Claire Dane was more prominent a character than I had previously thought. Arnold is cool as always. That "talk to the hand" joke was FUNNNNAY. Not cheesy. All and all, this movie makes me want to see T4. T-X wasn't as cool as Robert Patrick's T1000 but she did look better

Marco Beltrami score was serviceable. Only at the hangar sequence where the T-X controlled Arnold tries to restrain himself where the music really supported the movie.

1. I decided to watch the first two Terminator films this weekend. Both are excellent in their own right (for the original one must consider when it was made and the budget.) While I will always hold T2 up on a pedestal, I did notice this time around that it is a very talky film...which lends to the overly robust runtime. I think such similar exposition would not have worked for T3. In the end I think T3's resolution does keep in form with the series...while it does negate some of the efforts of the characters in the previous movies (particularly the second half of T2) the overall inevitability of judgement day works. One can debate the implications of time travel until they are blue in the face...however, the approach of fate/destiny in the story (specifically for John Conner) makes sense in that in truth he would never have existed had judgment day not occured. And in the end, the ultimate goal for Sarah & John Conner (and the mission of Kyle Reese and the T101) was to survive. That resolution is still in tact for T3.

2. On the score front, I have also listened to them all in the past few days, and I think some of the comments about Beltrami's entry are a bit unfair. Let's review:

Terminator: Other than the theme, the music in between in throw-away. Sure, the bump-bump-bump-bump for Terminator is classic...but it is really just noise.

T2: Fiedel manages to get more oomph out of the synthesizers, but honestly, the best moments from the score revolve purely around the theme. Some of the quieter moments (with the guitar) are a nice also, but the action music is pointless thumping or hollow synth that most folks arouund here detest.

T3: Beltrami's action pieces are far away superior to anything that Fiedel did for the first two films. I love the fatalistic feel of the JC theme...it fits the tone of the film perfectly.

The real problem (and I suppose my only complaint of Mostow) is his implementation of the score in the film. Yes, the movie could have used further use of the original theme, but the wider use of the JC theme would have worked also. Track 12 on the CD (for the moment when the Terminator has been corrupted) is a good example where the theme and score worked well in the film. More of the same would have been welcomed. I think Beltrami did a good job bringing a new voice to the series, while also paying homage to Fiedel's work. Track 3, which I think contains the despised garbage-can banging moment, that was referenced earlier is actually the closest thing I can find to a Fiedel action cue from the first two films.

Enough rambling...guess I've made my stance on the film and score fairly clear at this point. Have a good week everyone.

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Very good movie. The ending left me sad for some reason.

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Originally posted by Lancelot:
The Terminator series doesn't seem to be so much about Man vs. Machine as it does Man vs. Man...that's probably the most chilling thing....

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Here's a good B-Movie THE BLOB from 1988.

THE BLOB has just about the same feel and score that T3 does...with one major difference. THE BLOB was a remake of a cheesy 50's drive-in film making 88's THE BLOB cheesy and fun.

T3 is a rehash of a good almost trendsetting science fiction film series. T3 is what BATMAN AND ROBIN was to the BATMAN franchise. Awful awful awful. It showcases what little respect for the mood that has gone before. Even the comic-book prequels T3:BEFORE THE RISE series shows more promise than the actual film does. It was a waste of money and time...namely my money and my time.

He'll be back (no doubt).

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Originally posted by Shaun Rutherford:

I was bothered by the following things:

a.) Marco Beltrami. Jesus, when has anyone had to say "Where's Brad Fiedel when you need him?" This was one of the worst scores for a summer movie in years. Boring and themeless, Beltrami finally proves he was a one-hit wonder with Scream.

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I agree with the first bit.

Beltrami did have some other great scores though. What about "CROW SALVATION" and "MIMIC"? I thought they were great.

Anyway, I just wanted to chime in and say that over the past 2 weeks I watched Terminator and the extended version of Terminator 2 (which I admit to not having seen before). So I was in quite a Terminator mood when I walked in to see T3 yesterday....

Movie
I loved it. 2 hours of good entertainment. The action was great, the effects were great but not the highlight, and the story tied in really well with the other 2. The ending was the high point in my opinion, and I'm glad they had the guts to make such an unconventional ending. Good stuff

Arnold
I think he should just quit doing non-Terminator movies, cos this is the only character he's good in. It doesn't say much for his acting skills, but Arnie is just perfect in this role. His one-liners in this one were great, and it's good to see the film not taking itself too seriously. I laughed out loud at least 5 times.

The Score
Nothing special here. I personally think Fiedel came up with one of the greatest themes around, but otherwise his first two scores were synthesiser trash. The only scenes I liked in the first 2 movies (score-wise) were the Main Titles, the Love scene, and the ending of T2 - all scored by the theme.

Why Beltrami snobbed the theme is beyond me, but I still think he came up with a good theme for Connor. Sadly, you only notice it towards the end when Arnie is having his little-Gollum moment in the hangar.The 'Radio' cue was also scored wonderfully, and really made the scene.

All the non-score-fans I was with really loved hearing the Theme in the End Credits, which is a testimony to it's popularity.

Terminatrix
She sure is a peach.

Nick Stahl
I liked his John Connor. Edward Furlong used to slightly annoy me too in T2, but Stahl was just right.

f)I liked his John Connor
[QUOTE]

a) I did that too ... but in one day. I had a bit of an overdose.

b) I only had 1 1/2 hours. You saw a longer version?

c) I hope he starts doing some mean 80's stuff again. No remorse whatsoever. (e.g. Commando, T1, Predator, ...)

d) I liked the cue "T3". Otherwise I missed the Fiedel Terminator sound.

e) A peach? Yes. A Terminator? No. I hope they come up with more than one Schwarzenegger in the next one, i.e. if he does not become governor.

f) Fully agree. Good actor.

[Message edited by Kris on 08-15-2003]