Terminator, The Next Generation (Dark Fate Spoiler Review - Movie)

I kinda like one or two of the other Terminator movies after T2 more. Some might consider the Terminator movies are about action and killing machines, but for some others like me, Terminator is about time travel and the consequences of actions. Despite reviews, I like the idea of both John Connor and T800 going back in time more than once in Genisys producing a very different 'Present'. I also like the idea of one character having these unreal 'visions' that turned out to be caused by shifting of the timeline as a result of an action in the past/future in one of the other movies. Can't remember which.

Dark Fate started off with that T2 feel. At one point in the movie I thought, "Oh, no. They made the same movie with a different recipe." Fortunately, the movie changes course after the first act. During T2, I was torn from choosing a favorite Terminator, T800 or T1000. Both were cool to me. The Rev 9 puts the two into one. Now it is clear, Rev 9 is my favorite Terminator. Great performance by Gabriel Luna. For me, he wins this one, considering the different accents he needed to do to deliver an effective Rev 9, aside from the base ruthless killing machine persona.

This movie scores points for its nostalgic elements. Rev 9 reminds us much of the T1000. The first act when Rev 9 meets Grace feels familiarly like T2. I have to say Mackenzie Davis playing Grace is impressive to see, towering head to head with Schwarzenegger. Having both Arnold Schwarzenegger and Linda Hamiton in the movie basically made some of us sealed this movie as the proper sequel to T2. Dani basically plays the young John Connor. And then, there's the 'I'll be back' by Sarah Connor.

A fitting ending, though. I got dust in my eyes when T800 sacrificed himself. From the movie point of view, it is the ultimate redemption for him killing Sarah Connor's son in the past. From the movie watcher point of view, it is kind of a symbolic end of an era for the franchise, passing of the torch to the next generation. Despite all that, I felt that a lot of plots in the movie seems convenient. Everywhere the party go, there seems to be a constant supply of weapons and vehicles. I leave it at that. On the other hand, the twists in this movie are quite predictable or maybe they were deliberately done as such. Probably they were trying to hide one grand twist. I actually guessed most of these twists correctly, except for the fact that Dani is not a Sarah but actually a John. But then maybe I wasn't paying attention.