Terminator: Dark Fate

MFC Review

After almost three decades away from the franchise, Linda Hamilton returns to play Sarah Connor in Terminator: Dark Fate (2019), the sixth film in the science fiction saga Terminator, created by filmmaker James Cameron in 1984 based on the stories by author Harlan Ellison.

Terminator: Dark Fate was directed by Tim Miller under the creative control of James Cameron, the original director of The Terminator (1984) and Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991). The film’s story is set 25 years after the events of Terminator 2 and brings together Linda Hamilton and Arnold Schwarzenegger to play Sarah Connor and the cyborg T-800. The rest of the cast is made up of Mackenzie Davis, Natalia Reyes and Gabriel Luna in completely new roles.

As a direct sequel to Terminator 2, Dark Fate completely omits the events of Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003), Terminator Salvation (2009) and Terminator Genisys (2015), and seeks to redirect the future of the franchise towards new directions. However, the production found several difficulties in advancing the narrative style of the saga and making it feel original. The performances and physical feats of Mackenzie Davis and Linda Hamilton are undoubtedly the strongest points in the film, but the script feels inconsequential and repetitive, too similar to that of Terminator 2.

Although a new version of the saga is thriving, the production may find it difficult to leave behind what it once was and take it to a new era. Only time will tell if Terminator will once again regain the splendor it was known for during its beginnings.