Dark Fate has some big successes; unfortunately, its failures, although few, are big.
First, the special FX: Some of the CG in this film is phenomenal. I mean terrific. But a few of the shots are so plastic that it detracts from the movie. I didn't see this film in theaters, but I can imagine that the audiences laughed at the low quality CG in some shots. They were really cringeworthy. It's such a shame because many of the special FX are terrific. Even from the beginning of the film when there's a big shot of Mexico City, it just looks so fake. If you contrast this with T1 and T2, those are real shots of LA. They look real; they feel real. Why do these filmmakers think the CG is going to fool us so they can save a few bucks with location shots? They look bad and they feel plastic.
One other minor criticism I have of the cinematography: I really hated the handheld camerawork for the closeup shots. It made me feel like I was watching an episode of 24 or something. Just doesn't fit in a Terminator film.
Arnold is terrific in this film and so is his character. I found this character's storyline to be very strong. He's very funny and there is some real depth to who he is.
Linda Hamilton is very good -- not great, but very good. She's a grieving mother who is pissed off at the world, so it's understandable that her character comes off a little unlikable.
Gabriel Luna: The villain. He's good. Not Arnold in T1 or Robert Patrick, but he does a fine job. He's not very menacing, but his capabilities as a terminator are menacing. There is a strong feeling throughout the film that he can track pretty much anybody anywhere in the world, and this builds suspense. I also very much liked how they explained his capabilities.
Mackenzie Davis: I was a bit worried about this character watching the previews, but she really is a strong actress and a good character. I overall think they handled this part very well.
Natalia Reyes: This character and her storyline are the weakest part of the film by far. Some of it is not her fault in that the film pretty much had to kill of John Connor in the beginning, so she had big shoes to fill. I frankly didn't buy this character at all. She's a beautiful actress and was fine in her role, but not anything close to great. The explanation for why her character is the driving force of the film just doesn't work. It's not believable. They tried everything they could to toughen up the image of this sweet, beautiful, petite Columbian actress, but they just couldn't do it. Her story was already weak on its own, and this weakness is compounded by her being terribly miscast. She's just the wrong actress for this film. Not an ounce of roughness in this woman. So it just fell completely flat. Unfortunately, she is supposed to be the main storyline. So all the strengths of this film get essentially wasted on this horribly thought-out plot.
So overall, it's far better than its three competitor sequels to T2, but it's not up to the task of being called a "worthy sequel." I'm not trying to be unrealistic here. It's hard to compete with T1 and T2, which are legendary films and T2 is perhaps one of the greatest sequels in cinema history. Dark Fate is just lacking. But it is strong enough for Terminator fans to enjoy if they are willing to accept that it has some major flaws. Watching the storyline of the T-800 is entertaining enough, and so is seeing Arnold and Linda back together again. Watch this with an open mind and you'll enjoy it. Going in expecting it to be as good as T2 will just make you pissed off. So do yourself a favor and go in with an open mind to have some fun. Arnold is terrific.
First, the special FX: Some of the CG in this film is phenomenal. I mean terrific. But a few of the shots are so plastic that it detracts from the movie. I didn't see this film in theaters, but I can imagine that the audiences laughed at the low quality CG in some shots. They were really cringeworthy. It's such a shame because many of the special FX are terrific. Even from the beginning of the film when there's a big shot of Mexico City, it just looks so fake. If you contrast this with T1 and T2, those are real shots of LA. They look real; they feel real. Why do these filmmakers think the CG is going to fool us so they can save a few bucks with location shots? They look bad and they feel plastic.
One other minor criticism I have of the cinematography: I really hated the handheld camerawork for the closeup shots. It made me feel like I was watching an episode of 24 or something. Just doesn't fit in a Terminator film.
Arnold is terrific in this film and so is his character. I found this character's storyline to be very strong. He's very funny and there is some real depth to who he is.
Linda Hamilton is very good -- not great, but very good. She's a grieving mother who is pissed off at the world, so it's understandable that her character comes off a little unlikable.
Gabriel Luna: The villain. He's good. Not Arnold in T1 or Robert Patrick, but he does a fine job. He's not very menacing, but his capabilities as a terminator are menacing. There is a strong feeling throughout the film that he can track pretty much anybody anywhere in the world, and this builds suspense. I also very much liked how they explained his capabilities.
Mackenzie Davis: I was a bit worried about this character watching the previews, but she really is a strong actress and a good character. I overall think they handled this part very well.
Natalia Reyes: This character and her storyline are the weakest part of the film by far. Some of it is not her fault in that the film pretty much had to kill of John Connor in the beginning, so she had big shoes to fill. I frankly didn't buy this character at all. She's a beautiful actress and was fine in her role, but not anything close to great. The explanation for why her character is the driving force of the film just doesn't work. It's not believable. They tried everything they could to toughen up the image of this sweet, beautiful, petite Columbian actress, but they just couldn't do it. Her story was already weak on its own, and this weakness is compounded by her being terribly miscast. She's just the wrong actress for this film. Not an ounce of roughness in this woman. So it just fell completely flat. Unfortunately, she is supposed to be the main storyline. So all the strengths of this film get essentially wasted on this horribly thought-out plot.
So overall, it's far better than its three competitor sequels to T2, but it's not up to the task of being called a "worthy sequel." I'm not trying to be unrealistic here. It's hard to compete with T1 and T2, which are legendary films and T2 is perhaps one of the greatest sequels in cinema history. Dark Fate is just lacking. But it is strong enough for Terminator fans to enjoy if they are willing to accept that it has some major flaws. Watching the storyline of the T-800 is entertaining enough, and so is seeing Arnold and Linda back together again. Watch this with an open mind and you'll enjoy it. Going in expecting it to be as good as T2 will just make you pissed off. So do yourself a favor and go in with an open mind to have some fun. Arnold is terrific.