Movie Review – Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003)
Twelve years after the release of the epic Terminator film Terminator 2: Judgment Day, Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines arrived in the movie theaters.
The ending of Terminator 2 concluded with the presumed destruction of Cyberdyne Systems along with its Skynet project. The research material was also destroyed and it was believed that Judgment Day was stopped. But as we see with Terminator 3, Judgment Day was merely postponed and Skynet still declared war on human beings.
Unable to locate John Connor as he’s been living “off the grid,” Skynet sends a new model of the Terminator machines back in time to kill future officers of the Resistance prior to Judgment Day. The Resistance is once again able to send a reprogrammed Series 850 Model 101 Terminator back in time to protect those targets including Kate Brewster and John Connor.
Directed by Jonathan Mostow, Terminator 3 stars Arnold Schwarzenegger in his classic role as the Terminator cyborg. Nick Stahl plays the role of John Connor this time, and Claire Danes plays Kate Brewster, Connor’s future wife. Kristanna Loken plays the role of the T-X, the superior Terminator sent back in time to kill members of the Resistance. Supporting actors include David Andrews, Mark Famiglietti and Earl Boen.
Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003) – (c) Warner Bros. Pictures
Set about nine years after the events in Terminator 2: Judgment Day, Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines begins with John Connor (Nick Stahl) being paranoid about Skynet and the future war against the machines. Although Judgment Day does not occur on August 29, 1997, John still isn’t taking any chances. He lives “off the grid” without a permanent home or credit cards or a cell phone. There’s nothing that can be traced to his constantly changing location.
Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003) – (c) Warner Bros. Pictures
On the night of July 24, 2004, a time portal suddenly opens in Los Angeles. Out steps the T-X (Kristanna Loken), an advanced Terminator made of liquid metal and also able to control other machines as well as firing a plasma weapon. The T-X kills and assumes the identity of an innocent woman and steals her car. She then kills a policeman who stops her for speeding. While driving away, the T-X uses a cell phone to hack into the Los Angeles public school database and find the pictures and current addresses of teenagers who would become future officers in the Resistance. Since Skynet is unable to locate John Connor in that time period, the T-X’s mission is to eliminate his top officers instead.
Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003) – (c) Warner Bros. Pictures
That same night in the desert on the outskirts of town, another time portal brings a machine back from the future. The T-850 Model 101 Terminator (Arnold Schwarzenegger) proceeds to the nearest bar to find some appropriate clothes. The bar turns out to be a male strip club, and the women attending it are thrilled when the T-850 walks in through the doors. He ultimately takes the clothes off a male stripper and then steals his truck. The T-850 heads into Los Angeles on its mission to protect future members of the Resistance.
John Connor is out riding his motorcycle when he suddenly swerves to avoid wildlife. The swerve crashes his bike and John is injured, forced to find medicine without checking into a clinic or hospital. He breaks into an animal hospital after they’re closed and takes some medicine, passing out on the floor after doing so.
Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003) – (c) Warner Bros. Pictures
Kate Brewster (Claire Danes) is asleep with her fiancé Scott Mason (Mark Famiglietti) when she receives an urgent call at the animal hospital where she works. She arrives to discover that somebody broke into the place and stole some medicine. John Connor confronts her but Kate fights him and locks him in a kennel. After answering the door and taking care of the urgent situation, Kate returns to the kennel and recognizes John Connor. It turns out that they were together at a house party nine years ago before John dropped out of sight.
The T-X has already killed a couple of the Resistance’s future officers and makes her way to Kate Brewster’s place of employment. She shoots and kills the woman who needed the urgent help, and after Kate runs away in terror, the T-X discovers a blood stain belonging to John Connor. His death becomes top priority for the T-X. Kate tries to flee, but the T-X stops her and questions her on Connor’s whereabouts. Just then the T-850 arrives and knocks the T-X off Kate.
Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003) – (c) Warner Bros. Pictures
The T-850 locks Kate in the back of a pick-up truck for her own safety and goes inside the building to rescue John Connor. Connor is freed from the container just before the T-X returns and attacks the T-850. The two Terminators have a brief fight and John Connor jumps into a pick-up truck and flees the scene.
A plasma blast from the T-X temporarily knocks the T-850 out of commission. It lies on the floor as police and firemen arrive at the scene. The T-X walks around and activates each vehicle, using her ability to control them remotely. She has the emergency vehicles drive away and chase John Connor as she finds herself a bigger vehicle to drive. The T-X settles on driving a massive crane and joins the chase.
Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003) – (c) Warner Bros. Pictures
John Connor discovers that Kate is locked in the back of the truck, but he’s not stopping to release her. This distraction causes him to crash into an innocent driver. The other driver wants to fight Connor, but the emergency vehicles arriving on scene stop him. John restarts the engine and tries to flee the emergency vehicles. They’re controlled by the T-X and try to ram him and crash his vehicle.
Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003) – (c) Warner Bros. Pictures
As the chase continues, the T-850 reactivates itself and takes a policeman’s motorcycle. He then follows the emergency calls on the radio and catches up to the T-X as she pursues Connor. The T-850 ultimately fights his way into the crane truck and drops the hook into a storm drain, making the mighty vehicle crash spectacularly. The T-850 was able to jump onto John Connor’s pick-up truck, and they drive away from the crash and out into the desert. The T-X emerges from the wreckage and watches as her primary target gets away.
Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003) – (c) Warner Bros. Pictures
The T-850 was damaged from the T-X’s plasma blast and needs to remove one of the hydrogen power cells. He tosses it out the window and moments later the hydrogen power cell explodes in a tremendous explosion. They drive away and the T-850 tells John Connor about Skynet and that Judgment Day is only hours away. His mission is not to stop Judgment Day but merely ensure that John Connor and Kate Brewster both survive the event.
Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003) – (c) Warner Bros. Pictures
They stop at a gas station for supplies and the clerk sees Kate try to escape from the pick-up truck. When she’s restrained and forcefully kept in the truck, the clerk calls the police and reports the kidnapping along with the woman’s description. Back at her home, the T-X kills Scott Mason and assumes his identity. She then goes with the police when they inform him about Kate’s kidnapping and possible whereabouts.
Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003) – (c) Warner Bros. Pictures
The T-850 drives John and Kate to a cemetery and they enter a mausoleum. Inside is a grave for Sarah Connor. We learn that Sarah died a few years ago from leukemia, and inside her casket is actually a small weapons cache in the event of Skynet’s attack. Sarah was cremated and her ashes were scattered elsewhere.
Still thinking that this is an elaborate kidnapping plot, Kate grabs a pistol and shoots the T-850 in the face. To her horror not only is the cyborg still alive and functional, but it actually caught the bullet in its mouth. Suddenly the police arrive and surround the building. They launch tear gas into the mausoleum and Kate runs out to their protection.
Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003) – (c) Warner Bros. Pictures
Once clear of the building, Kate sits by an ambulance and is visited by Dr. Peter Silberman (Earl Boen), the psychologist for the sheriff’s department. He tries to console Kate when he begins having flashbacks to the machines that she talks about. Dr. Silberman watches in horror as the T-850 emerges from the mausoleum. The killing machine from 1984 and 1991 was back again!
Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003) – (c) Warner Bros. Pictures
The T-850 carries John Connor in a casket and shoots at the police officers, distracting them and clearing a path for their escape route. No officers are injured and the T-850 is able to get the casket into a hearse. Kate runs away from the chaos and finds her boyfriend arriving in a car. Her joy turns to horror when her boyfriend is actually the T-X. The T-850 arrives and fires an RPG at the T-X, knocking her down so that he, John and Kate could escape. The T-X manages to jump onto the hearse, but she’s ultimately knocked off when the T-850 drives underneath a tractor trailer, slicing the roof off the car.
Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003) – (c) Warner Bros. Pictures
The T-850 drives the three of them to a safe location, and Kate learns more about her role in the Resistance. Sure enough, she’s married to John Connor in the future. She also learns that it was her future self who had the T-850 reprogrammed and sent back in time after it killed John Connor in 2032. Unlike listening to John’s commands in Terminator 2, this time around the T-850 only listens to Kate Brewster’s commands.
John and Kate learn that after Cyberdyne Systems was destroyed, the U.S. Air Force took over the Skynet project and it was under the command of Kate’s father, Lieutenant General Robert Brewster (David Andrews). General Brewster works at an R&D station that controls the military’s cybernetic infrastructure as well as designing prototype robotic weapons. Her father’s station isn’t far away, and knowing that Judgment Day is merely hours away, Kate orders the T-850 to take her to her father so they can warn him about Skynet.
Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003) – (c) Warner Bros. Pictures
At the military research station, General Brewster is growing concerned as the military’s communication system continues to receive virus attacks from an unknown attacker. Soon, communications with other bases and systems are lost, and General Brewster is ordered to activate the Skynet system. Skynet was designed to not only take the military’s defense network out of human hands, but it could also seek and destroy any computer virus that tries to attack it. The military will be in Skynet’s control, but General Brewster’s staff will still be in control of Skynet. Knowing it’s the last option, General Brewster activates Skynet.
For the first minute everything seems fine as Skynet re-establishes communications with the entire defense network. And then the computers fail. Nobody knows what is happening as Skynet becomes self-aware and has complete control of the military. General Brewster is surprised when his daughter suddenly appears in the control room. It’s a trick and she’s really the T-X. The T-850 also arrives with John Connor and the real Kate, but the T-X is able to shoot and critically wound General Brewster. There’s chaos at the research station as the experimental robots come to life, shooting and killing all of the humans in sight.
Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003) – (c) Warner Bros. Pictures
General Brewster has John and Kate help him back to his office. They need to reach the office for the access codes to shut down Skynet. The only problem is that the hallways are being patrolled by T-1s, the first-generation terminator robots complete with twin gatling guns. The T-850 defeats the two T-1 robots and clears the path to General Brewster’s office.
Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003) – (c) Warner Bros. Pictures
In the general’s office, John Connor finds the folder that supposedly contains the codes for Skynet. But they can’t shut down Skynet from here. As he’s dying, General Brewster tells John and Kate that they need to reach Crystal Peak, a military base in the Sierra Nevada mountains.
Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003) – (c) Warner Bros. Pictures
General Brewster dies from his wounds and the trio heads to the airfield on the other side of the research station. But the T-X finds them in the hallway. John and Kate run away as the T-850 stays and fights the T-X. There’s a big fight and the T-X ultimately defeats the T-850. She then reprograms the T-850 and sends it to attack John and Sarah. Meanwhile, John and Kate are attacked by a prototype Flying Hunter-Killer. Kate uses a machine gun and destroys it.
Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003) – (c) Warner Bros. Pictures
Trouble continues as the T-X is spotted on the surveillance cameras heading in John and Kate’s direction. John activates a particle accelerator to hopefully trap the T-X. He and Kate run along the outside of the accelerator and head for the airfield. The T-X pursues and nearly catches them until the accelerator’s magnetic field stops her progress. She becomes trapped as the magnetic field slowly destroys her metallic body.
Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003) – (c) Warner Bros. Pictures
John Connor and Kate make it to the airfield and are joined by the T-850. But something doesn’t seem right about him. The T-850 grabs John and tosses him across the hanger. He grabs him and chokes John until John reminds him that he’s about to fail his mission. Despite the T-X’s re-programming, the T-850′s primary objective is still to protect John Connon and Kate Brewster. The T-850 shuts himself down and John and Kate are able to fly themselves to Crystal Peak. Just after they depart, the T-850 reboots itself and restores its original programming. Meanwhile, the T-X cuts into the particle accelerator and stops it, preventing it from destroying herself.
Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003) – (c) Warner Bros. Pictures
John and Kate arrive at Crystal Peak but the place is deserted. There aren’t any killer robots or any living people anywhere. At the end of the hanger is a massive security door. Kate activates the security panel and John uses the codes in the folder from General Brewster’s office to answer the security questions. They succeed and the door starts to open, but the T-X arrives by crashing a helicopter into the hanger.
Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003) – (c) Warner Bros. Pictures
John Connor tries shooting the T-X, but the bullets don’t stop the killer cyborg. What does stop her is when the T-850 arrives and crashes his much bigger helicopter into the T-X. The crash triggers the security door to close, so the T-850 runs underneath the door and holds it open for John and Kate. Both of them crawl under the door to safety. The T-X tries to crawl after them, but the T-850 grabs what’s left of her and stops the robot. He then takes his last hydrogen fuel cell and uses it to destroy himself and the T-X.
Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003) – (c) Warner Bros. Pictures
John and Kate escape the explosion and make it into the heart of Crystal Peak. To their horror this isn’t the mainframe for Skynet. Crystal Peak is really a Cold War-era fallout shelter designed to protect high-level government officials. John Connor is furious as Judgment Day is literally moments away, and despite everything they’ve done there’s nothing he can do to stop it. Kate tells him to accept it as the T-850 completed his mission of ensuring their survival. He reluctantly accepts the reality of the situation as radio calls report chaos and ask for his assistance. John Connor picks up the microphone and assumes command of whatever forces he can contact.
Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003) – (c) Warner Bros. Pictures
Sure enough, Skynet launches ICBM nuclear missiles at countries around the world just as the Terminator warned would happen. Those countries retaliate and billions of people are killed worldwide. Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines ends with the opening stages of the war versus the machines.
So is Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines any good?
As a whole, Terminator 3 is a great action film with the second half of the movie being a terrific science-fiction film.
Like the first two Terminator films, part three follows the basic storyline where both Terminators arrive in the past, they simultaneous arrive at their target, and then there’s the chase, the part in hiding, and then the final confrontation at the end of the film. While this general storyline was fine the first two times, it became a bit repetitive in Terminator 3. It would have been better if T3 had more of a difference in the sequence of events versus the first two films.
The first half of Terminator 3 is fun and the massive chase scene through the streets of Los Angeles is quite entertaining, but it seems a bit over-the-top and excessive at times. One would expect assassin cyborg robots to keep their actions cleaner and more discrete, even when participating in a car chase.
It’s the second half of the film including the haunting ending where Terminator 3 really shines. For starters, I love the concept of Skynet being out in cyberspace and not having a system core, making the system virtually unstoppable once it’s activated. It’s fascinating once Skynet becomes self-aware and all hell breaks loose as machines and security systems turn against the humans, attacking everything deemed to be a threat against Skynet.
Despite most people on the planet dying in the initial wave of attacks, it’s refreshing seeing Judgment Day actually take place in this third Terminator film. It ends the whole “we need to stop Judgment Day” routine and forces future films (such as 2009′s Terminator Salvation) to continue with the actual war against the machines.
Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003) – movie trailer
As a whole, Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines is a great Terminator movie and worthy addition to that film series. The action is solid, the science fiction elements are great, and the special effects are top quality. The first half of the movie is a little bit slow, but the second half of it just plain rocks.
John Connor – “Tell her who I am.”
Terminator – “John Connor is the leader of the worldwide resistance and last hope for mankind.”
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Robert Brewster – “Skynet? The virus has infected Skynet?”
John Connor – “Skynet IS the virus. It’s the reason everything’s falling apart!”
T-850 Terminator – “Skynet has become self-aware. In one hour it will initiate a massive nuclear attack on its enemy.”
Robert Brewster – “What enemy?”
John Connor – “Us! Humans!”
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John Connor – “By the time Skynet became self-aware it had spread into millions of computer servers across the planet. Ordinary computers in office buildings, dorm rooms; everywhere. It was software; in cyberspace. There was no system core; it could not be shut down. The attack began at 6:18 PM, just as he said it would. Judgment Day, the day the human race was almost destroyed by the weapons they’d built to protect themselves. I should have realized it was never our destiny to stop Judgment Day, it was merely to survive it, together. The Terminator knew; he tried to tell us, but I didn’t want to hear it. Maybe the future has been written. I don’t know; all I know is what the Terminator taught me; never stop fighting. And I never will. The battle has just begun.”