(film review) - Terminator: Dark Fate

Ok ok ok...first of all, wow.  Secondly, Tim Miller....My Guy! I wasn't that keen on watching this one but I am a Terminator fan from when I was little.  I've seen all of them.  And while some are not great at all and some are better than others, none really captured tension like Terminator 1 or 2 did.  Don't get me wrong, Terminator Genisys wasn't terrible, captured tension to an extent, but it felt more like bigger and grander in explosions and action etc, atthough I manage to enjoy it, apart from the twist at the end among the other things that let it down.  But for the most part, to me, it was better than Salvation and definitely better than Rise of the Machines.  This one, not only gave you vibes of the first two, this one had me under soo much stress.

Dark Fate picks up 27 years after the events of what would have been Judgement Day.  Robots in the future are losing the fight against humanity in the future, so once again, they send a Terminator back to the past to kill whomever it is they see as a threat in their timeline, Dani Ramos (Natalia Reyes), by wiping them out in the past.  Ultimately, this leads to the return of Sarah Conner (Linda Hamilton) continuing her fight for a better future with the help of an advanced human named Grace (Mackenzie Davis).

Thirdly, the movie starts immediately in the opening credits where talking is being heard and it is soon to be revealed that this is the interview scene from T2 where Sarah Conner flips out.  Mild spoiler, but I feel it is justified in saying this to let you know that James Cameron is fully invested and involved in this movie, although he isn't directing it.  The explanation of Sarah Conner being back was great and made sense to the overall story.  The storyline itself actually made sense to me which led to some of the most touching and greatest moments in the movie involving the T-800 (Arnold Schwarzenegger) and Sarah Conner.  The new Rev-9 (Gabriel Luna) is a sight to behold.  Sometimes when I watch these advancements, I wonder how far they can actually take it, I mean, after liquid metal, what else can you do?  How about liquid metal which can split into two Terminators? (relax, it's in the trailer - Sorry if you haven't watched it)  I mean, technology and society has advanced and these Terminators sure have too.  This leads me onto Gabriel Luna as the Rev-9, who is just as menacing as Robert Patrick from Terminator 2 but has more charm to him.  One of the main stars in the movie Natalia Reyes did a great job as Dani Ramos and although there was a moment in the movie where she actually had a little moment, the film had a very steady/fast pace that kept you on edge.  The quiet moments are slim to none, but when you have a killer robot named a Terminator, Rev-9 Model, I mean, those quiet moments are going to be very, very small considering the world we live in now.  Arnold was excellent in this too.  His relevance was good for the story and if they DO think about doing a sequel, this could possibly be the last we see of him.  He looks GREAT in the role and he also reminds us how robotic, funny yet dangerous he is as the T-800, Model 101.  Mackenzie Davis is just as badass as Linda back in the day and playing an enhanced human (super soldier if you will), was good to see and her moves and fighting skills were great.  She proved to be a great foil to the Rev-9, it is unfortunate, the character has a great shortcoming that, to me, made her trip back to the past, irrelevant to an extent.

Also, just so you are not confused to whether this is a kids movie or not, swearing, blood it's all there.  The swearing (in which I don't mind), although more than what I'd normally hear in movies that are produced for children for toys etc, this movie does not hold back.  There was a moment where I blurted out a few expletives when the action sequences ensued.  Tim Miller didn't hold back and this made me happy.  I would say the visuals were good and there was a water scene I wasn't 100% on, but by that point, I was already sold on the movie.  Maybe there is an explanation to the scene and how it played out but meh, whatever.

If you are a fan of Terminator and Terminator 2: Judgement Day, I cannot see why you'd dislike this because to me at least, we are back on form, but where we go next, is a mystery.  Enjoy

(film review) - Deadpool

Deadpool. What the hell is a Deadpool? Well the answer to that is actually explained in the film.  I'm not 100% if this is correct to the comic book universe which has been retconned over the many years after the character was conceived, but like Deadpool, he derives from the Marvel comic book universe and is a genetically modified person.  Think of Captain America.  Think of Wolverine's adamantium covered bones and healing factor.  Think Spider-Man (A character they modelled Deadpool off of fusing him with Deadshot from DC. Comics).  The point I am trying to make here is that, Deadpool is an experiment and not necessarily a Mutant although he has the Mutant healing ability Wolverine has as he was also a part of the Weapon X program Wolverine was subjected to.  A point that was slightly/briefly covered in the terrible film, X-Men Origin: Wolverine, a film that brought us Deadpool as Wade Wilson and completely butchered his character and appearance.  This film basically gives you a better and more correct telling of Wade Wilson, the merc with a mouth who is a completely self-aware character and how he becomes Deadpool.

Wade Wilson (Ryan Reynolds) is a Mercenary.  He will kill people for money and he has no problems with that.  A bit of an arsehole and a bit crazy (messed up in the head), he eventually meets a woman who he then falls in love with, Vanessa (Morena Baccarin).  Whilst in this relationship, Wade is diagnosed with terminal cancer which forces him to leave her to seek treatment at the hands of Francis/Ajax (Ed Skrein).  However, as the deal does not pan out to be exactly how it was initially intended, Wade must now correct the outcome of the experiment and save his girlfriend at the same time.  To add to Wade's troubles, both Colossus (Stefan Kapičić) and Negasonic Teenage Warhead (Brianna Hildebrand) join him on his quest.

First of all, this is a hilarious movie.  Maybe for some of you, some of the jokes may not hit, but there are soo many jokes throughout this film, you'd be forgiven if you thought this film was a comedy.  To be precise, this film is a revenge movie infused with a love story.  About a man trying to get his girl.  But as well as being a revenge story, a superhero comic book movie as well as one, NOT FOR KIDS, this film is firing on all cylinders.  If you have seen the marketing, the lewd/sexual jokes and the violence (including blood) in the trailers, this film basically spells out ADULT in every single way possible.  This is a character for adults with adult themes, although a superhero movie.  You will see the contrasts of his character and the X-Men characters when you watch the film which makes the movie work soo well.  Another element to this movie that makes the movie work soo well is that, Wade is a very self-aware character.  In the comics, he is THE ONLY CHARACTER in comic book history (I think), who knows he is in a comic book.  He would often approach subject matters outside of comic book lure and also address his readers.  This film does the same thing.  They stick soo close to the comics with this, the results are hilarious.  Poking fun and making jokes about anything and EVERYTHING! Blink and you will miss it, but there is a moment #Spoilers (I guess), that Deadpool actually moves the camera for the audience and at times he would randomly address the audience where the other characters won't have the foggiest of whom he is talking to.

Brilliantly executed by director Tim Miller and excellent acted by Ryan Reynolds.  With other actors doing a great job such as the main villain Ajax, his "sidekick"/Bodyguard Angeldust (Gina Carano), this film is bound to entertain.  The fact that they made this film for $58m dollars, which sounds like a lot, but in comic book movie standards is, peanuts, this film does not come off as sloppy, badly edited nor cheaply made.  I guess there is an argument to made in regards to a few shots but...$58 million? X-Men Origins Wolverine was made for $150m and the last X-Men film, Days of Future Past was made for $200m. How is that for context?

Have a watch, i'm sure you will love it.