Terminator Genisys (2015) - Movie Review

Whoah! There's a hell of a lot of negativity surrounding this movie! Okay, first thing's first - ignore the haters and go see 'Terminator Genisys'. It deserves a good box office and probably needs some sequels if its going to to stand up to the criticisms its been getting since its release.
Right, getting on with the review...

'The Terminator' in 1984 set a landmark in Science Fiction, and, followed by 'Terminator 2: Judgement Day' in 1991, became a classic film series - only to be ruined by 'Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines' and 'Terminator Salvation' in fans' eyes. So, here we are in the year of sequels (also known as 2015) with the fifth installment of the franchise, which hopes to set the stage for at least two further sequels to come. It does so by re-booting the franchise through some complicated time travel milarky that, lets face it, isn't worth focusing on. Basically, time has changed, and the future could become much darker than the 2029 that we previously thought was inevitable.
The plot follows Kyle Reese (played by a rather wooden Jai Courtney) being sent back in time to 1984 by the leader of the human resistance John Connor (an excellent performance from Jason Clarke) after they realize that Skynet has sent a T-800 (Arnold Schwarzenegger) back to 1984 to avert the machines' defeat at the hands of humanity. When Reese arrives to protect Sarah Connor (Emilia Clarke) - John's mother - he finds that an older T-800, nicknamed "pops" or 'The Guardian', has killed Sarah's attacker, and that time as he knows it, has changed. The answers lie within Genisys...
To say much more would not only confuse you, but also spoil the film. The 'spoilery' second trailer only reveals one part of the plot previously unknown, and while it does, in typical movie trailer fashion, show off some of the final fight, you'll find loads of new elements and plot twists unspoiled in the finished film.
The finished product of 'Terminator Genisys' is an ultimately fun film, with some cool action, good performances and a worthy successor to its predecessors. Its by far nowhere near as good as 'Terminator 2: Judgement Day', but how could it be? Its a modern Terminator for a new generation, and I really, really enjoyed it.
That said, several plot threads are left unsolved, providing a terrible excuse for sequel baiting, and the ending falls a little flat for my liking. The whole thing is a bit too overcomplicated as well, and despite this being a new timeline, very little is actually different - the whole thing boils down to a re-tread of T-2 in the final act, just with a more intimidating evil Terminator and some complex time travel milarky thrown in for good measure.
Arnie was great in this film, and had some cracking lines, and Jason Clarke did a pretty good job too. Matt Smith (credited as Matthew Smith) did well in a small, but pivotal role, and its difficult not to have a bit of a crush on Emilia Clarke's Sarah Connor. Otherwise, the acting was...mixed. Hey, Jai Courtney (the DC movie Captain Boomerang) was in this....and JK Simmons was...
The visual FX all looked great (certainly better than 'Jurassic World''s) and the make-up looked fantastic all the way through. It was also awesome to see a T-800, T-1000 and T-3000 in one movie, and the opening future battle sequence was brilliant.
Overall, 'Terminator Genisys' is fun, popcorn entertainment that shouldn't be over-analysed. Have fun with it and you'll be in for a good film. Its probably an unprofessional review of the film, but in all honesty, I don't want to hate on this film. "I'll be back" says Arnie - I really hope he will.