The UnPopular Opinion: Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines

Last Updated on July 30, 2021

THE UNPOPULAR OPINION is an ongoing column featuring different takes on films that either the writer HATED, but that the majority of film fans LOVED, or that the writer LOVED, but that most others LOATHED. We're hoping this column will promote constructive and geek fueled discussion. Enjoy!

****SOME SPOILERS ENSUE****

TERMINATOR 2: JUDGEMENT DAY was a landmark film for many reasons. From the cutting edge special effects to the brilliantly layered story that expanded James Cameron's original 1984 thriller, T2 was a movie that was going to stand the test of time. The fact that it debuted seven years after the first movie did not prevent it from carrying the franchise on and setting up a universe of sequels, comic books, video games, theme park rides and more. Eleven years after T2, we got thr third entry in the series and the first without any involvement from James Cameron. 2003's TERMINATOR 3: RISE OF THE MACHINES is the first sequel to be excised from continuity by TERMINATOR: DARK FATE. Despite being the second highest grossing film in the series, TERMINATOR 3: RISE OF THE MACHINES is often overlooked by fans as one of the weakest in the series despite solid FX, cool action, and a story that honors the legacy of the first two films.

Shockingly, most of the disdain bestowed upon the sequels to TERMINATOR 2 are the fault of SALVATION and GENISYS rather than RISE OF THE MACHINES. At the time of release, James Cameron called Jonathan Mostow's film "great" but has since backtracked on those comments multiple times. Critics were fair to the film (which holds a 69% on Rotten Tomatoes) but fans were left cold and often lump it in with the two films that followed it. With DARK FATE being called the best film in the franchise since JUDGEMENT DAY, it is worth revisiting the third entry since it is really not bad in any way. While it lacks the scale of any other film, that by no means makes it a failure. Rather, TERMINATOR 3: RISE OF THE MACHINES is the singularly most fun chapter in the entire franchise.

First off, there are complaints about the forced feeling of any humorous moments in the film. For example, when the T-101 takes a pair of sunglasses in a moment that echoes the previous film, the shades are child-like and silly rather than a pair of cool ones. It mocks the serious and emotionless nature of the Terminator while setting the moment apart from Cameron's film. These types of sight gags abound through RISE OF THE MACHINES and where you may deride them as cheap or unfitting the franchise, this film is nowhere near the seriousness of T2. Director Jonathan Mostow, who made a name for himself with the thrilling noir BREAKDOWN and the submarine film U-571, was handed a franchise entry that was bound to disappoint in the face of TERMINATOR 2. But Mostow takes it in stride and manages to deliver some action sequences that rival Cameron's work.

While the major sequences in TERMINATOR 3: RISE OF THE MACHINES are quite spectacular, namely the cemetery escape and the final battle between the T-101 and T-X, the performances here are what are surprisingly good. Edward Furlong's John Connor was a highlight of TERMINATOR 2 but Nick Stahl managed to carry on his performance and made a convincing successor. While Christian Bale and Jason Clarke took John Connor in a very different direction, Stahl echoed Furlong's performance enough that it helped keep consistency between the films. Claire Danes was also a welcome addition to the cast as Kate Brewster and injected some new blood into the franchise. Kristanna Loken, the first on-screen female Terminator, was an equally nice addition to the cast. Similar to Robert Patrick's stoic and emotionless T-1000, Loken's T-X is devoid of anything but what she is programmed to do and manages to portray a worthy for for Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Writers John Brancato and Michael Ferris, who were best known at that point for the Sandra Bullock hit THE NET and David Fincher's brilliant THE GAME, have not enjoyed much success since TERMINATOR 3. Their best known projects have been the maligned TERMINATOR SALVATION as well as the horrendous CATWOMAN,  but their prowess at balancing humor and action were on full display with RISE OF THE MACHINES. Where James Cameron's first two films looked at the hope in the face of an apocalyptic threat, the third film never aims to be a philosophical treatise on good, evil, and free will. By injecting levity into the mix, TERMINATOR 3: RISE OF THE MACHINES wallows in the B-movie goodness that a film about unstoppable robots should be. It is loud, violent, and never takes itself too seriously.

With a compelling score by Marco Beltrami (HELLYBOY, 3:10 TO YUMA) and cinematography by Don Burgess (AQUAMAN, SPIDER-MAN, CAST AWAY), TERMINATOR 3: RISE OF THE MACHINES looks and feels like a blockbuster. By taking us to Judgement Day, a fate presumably eradicated in the second film, we are left with a far less hopeful conclusion than in the previous film and the biggest downer in the entire franchise. It remains a shame that DARK FATE ignores these events, though once you see the movie you will understand why. The biggest achievement of this third film is the fact that it is the sole sequel after T2 to not have to reset in order to tell it's story and that is a success in and of itself.

TERMINATOR 3: RISE OF THE MACHINES fails as a capper to a trilogy and is the weakest of the first three films. But hindsight is a wonderful thing. While I feel that both SALVATION and GENISYS have redeeming qualities, TERMINATOR 3 makes the series fun in the face of the end of the world. It is brightly shot and vividly realized with solid special effects. While not ground-breaking in any way, TERMINATOR 3: RISE OF THE MACHINES furthers the franchise narrative and set up further sequels. While they may have dropped the ball, Jonathan Mostow's film is not at fault. TERMINATOR 3 could have been a very different movie had Linda Hamilton and James Cameron returned and may have looked a lot like DARK FATE, but as it stands RISE OF THE MACHINES is a competent and enjoyable entry in a franchise that has seen weaker days.