Rating: 
Summary: T3 Rise of the Machines = Not as good as it could've been!
Review: My initial impression upon hearing that there would be a third Terminator movie was that it would be excellent, thinking that the majority, if not all of those involved the making of the first two films would be involved in making this third one. Upon hearing that James Cameron and many others from the first two films would not be involved, some of those expectations were dashed.When I saw this third film in the theaters there "was" an obvious letdown when considering that in "some" ways, the mythos that was established in the first two films seemed to have been forgotten. Upon watching this film a second time, now on DVD, I've changed my opinion somewhat. Taken as a whole, this film does extend upon the mythos of the futuristic battle between man and machine and gives an even greater impression of the "history" of events in the Terminator genre. Where the film takes some hits is it's few too many attempts at brevity, which are interesting the first time but they're so clichéd as to actually distract from the overall enjoyment of the film. Despite some of those misgivings about those "too many" trips to the humor well, I would still suggest to those that either saw the film in the theaters or have overlooked this film completely that they give this film an open minded viewing because in many ways it does develop the overall story of the Terminator! What can one say about Arnold Schwarzenegger and his past and present performances as the Terminator; he brings the character back fairly well in this third film. It is very interesting to see the T-101 model Terminator with a psychological profile but, as stated above, that is interesting but it also plays too heavily in the trips to the humor well. While Nick Stahl may be a good actor and may have done well in the other films he's been in, I thought his characterization for John Connor was more or less weak, they should've brought Edward Furlong in to reprise the character. Claire Danes does a good job in her first action role. The extraordinarily gorgeous newcomer, Kristanna Loken does an exceptional job as the Terminatrix, future performances by her should be looked forward to with great anticipation. Jonathan Mostow does an acceptable job as the director of this film, given the script that he had to work with but one cannot help but wonder how different and that much better this film might've been had James Cameron taken the job. The overall score for the film does an acceptable job in carrying the film along! The Premise: As we soon learn, Skynet, just prior to it's defeat sent back not two but three Terminators, The T-101 of the first film; the T-1000 of the second film and now the T-X Terminatrix of this third film. The T-X Terminatrix is sent to terminate John Connor's lieutenants but to her great luck she not only finds one of the lieutenants in Kate Brewster but she also finds evidence that John Connor himself is nearby and becomes locked on him. In comes Arnold Schwarzenegger as the latest T-101 sent to protect John Connor and his lieutenants and he is now not only a Terminator but also he's also a Terminator with a psychological profile, ready to dispense his "wisdom" at any time. What follows from there is a very good Terminator movie that is entertaining but doesn't measure up to its predecessors. I would still recommend it to fans of the series as it does do an acceptable job of advancing the Terminator story as a whole! {ssintrepid} Special Features: -Feature film with 2 commentary tracks with the stars and the director
-Movie and Video Game Trailers
-Introduction by Arnold Schwarzenegger
-Go on-set with the HBO Fist Look Making of Documentary
-SGT Candy Scene - This is absolutely hilarious and should've made it into the film!
-"Terminal Flaws" Gag Reel
-T3 Visual Effects Lab:
*Build Your Own Eye-Popping Action Sequences
*Skynet Database of Weapons
*Personnel Dossiers
-Terminator Timeline -Storyboards
-Dressed to Kill
-Toys in Action
-The Making of the Video Game
Rating: 
Summary: Even worse than I expected
Review: I say the original Terminator movie when I was 12 years old, and it shaped my perspective of life and the world. I've never been so afraid and exited since. I've refused to see T3 for a long time, for several reasons. However, this christmas my girlfriend placed the DVD in front of me and asked us to watch it. And I did yesterday. To my surprise it was even worse than I expected. Please don't support the stockholders attempt to ruin the Terminator-universe.
Rating: 
Summary: "I can't believe it's not Cameron!"
Review: Like everyone else, I had my doubts about this movie. Without James Cameron behind the wheel, it could never be as good as the first two, or so we thought. Well, we were wrong. With the director of U-571 in charge, T3 is every bit as good as Cameron's works, except that it's a lot more funny and the plot holds more surprises as it unravels. The whole thing with this Terminator being the same one that kills John in the far future is wonderfully ironic. Sarah's absence is explained beyond beautifully, and Dr. Silverman is back! I only have two complaints. The first is that it has a few clerical errors - for example, it says John Connor was 13 in T2, when in fact he was ten. The second complaint is that despite our computer technology being some ten or twelve years better than what was used for T2, the CGI actually looks WORSE. Of course, T2's CGI only had to make a silvery blob, and didn't try to make anything as complicated as the T-X. Make no mistake, this movie is definitely a legitimate and powerful extension of the Terminator saga.
Rating:
Summary: ok yeah........
Review: ok yeah it couldve been better with james cameron directing it.but really this movie rocks.and the reason i read for eddie furlong not reprisng his role as john was because he has had a bad drug problem.and the casting director and everyone thought he would have been too much of a risk.alot was riding on this movie and everything had to be just right.i also heard that james cameron thought this movie was still brilliant.
Rating:
Summary: Not a total loss...not James Cammeron though..
Review: All I have to say is what if you gave the Terminator franchise to a direct to video action director...that's what Terminator 3 is. The acting ...you can't blame the actors. They could only work with the lines they were given. The special effects were not too bad. The ending does make it worthwhile though. The effects in some of the scenes are good and advance what we saw in T2. I was hoping that Stallone would be a cybernetic rival to Arnold..but I don't think they could agree on who would get more screen time.
Rating:
Summary: A Rousing Finish. Period.
Review: Okay, I'm going to get one thing clear right now. I KNEW that James Cameron wasn't involved in this flick before I saw it. I KNEW that Arnold Schwarzenegger was starting to show his age (a little). I KNEW the she-Terminator (Kristanna Loken, though her name is hardly going to be considered important in the final analysis) would do little more than look pretty while she was ripping people in two. That said, I had zero expectations for anything that could match up with the first two films in this series. As a result, I was pleasantly surprised by how much I actually enjoyed this one.
First off, director Jonathan Mostow and the cast do a commendable job picking up where Cameron left off. Ahnuld is still cool as ice, and heck, it's not like this character ever required HIM to express any emotional range (The scene where he puts on the stripper's Elton John sunglasses is priceless). Nick Stahl, in my opinion, is far more capable of his role than Eddie Furlong ever was - AND he does sport something of a resemblance to Michael Biehn, which makes him more qualified physically for the role of John Connor (see the first film for the whole story on the Reese-Connor connection). In the noticeable absence of Linda Hamilton (the movie is admittedly naked without her, so to speak), Claire Danes is top-notch as the general's daughter who expresses everything from rage at her apparent 'kidnappers' to grief over...well, I don't want to spoil that for those of you who haven't seen it.
Then there's Ms. Loken. Yes, she pops up naked at the start of the whole affair (it's explained in the first flick that the time-travel device used by Skynet won't accept inorganic material, hence the Terminators' outer 'flesh' shell), but her parts are conveniently obscured. THEN she assumes the first female form she can rip open and goes on a killing spree, doing away with Connor's future lieutenants quite tactlessly. This must be the bloodiest film in the trilogy; the Terminatrix character uses everything from tearing people's chests open with her bare hands to having her hands turn into laser cannons and buzzsaws to get the job done. There's minimal gore, but a lot of blood; obviously Mostow didn't want to overplay his hand on the violence, knowing there would be a healthy dose of it, and he deserves credit for that.
THEN there's the actual chase/fight sequences. WOW!!!!! For lack of all that liquid-metal/morphing in T2, T3 instead gives us wild, incredible fight scenes between the Terminators that look far more realistic than most comic-book-based films can provide. Some folks might complain about Arnold slapping around a woman (at least in a non-suggestive manner, but I digress), but believe me, HE ends up taking more damage for it. The special effects are outstanding...and that doesn't even cover the bit with the crane. Let's just say you have to see that one to believe it - words fail me there.
And, yes, the ending is a bit of a downer, what with Judgment Day finally, truly happening and half the human race being atomized as a result. Some of you may complain about me spoiling the end of the movie for you, but when you think about it...with all of the stupid religious and political power-play crap going on in the world presently, is seeing a sci-fi movie end with Armageddon really something to be whining about right now?
One last thing I loved about T3 - Earl Boen reprising his role from the previous films as Dr. Silverman, the psychiatrist who interviews Reese in T1 and Sarah in T2, seen here consulting Ms. Danes's character after she (briefly) escapes Terminator and John. You can tell the poor shmuck is still shaken up by the events of T2 even as he tries to console Kate; even more so when he sees that big guy in the leather and sunglasses wading through relentless gunfire yet again. Placing him in this film, even for a few minutes, was a stroke of comedic genius.
In the end, T3 has a big legacy to overcome. And while it has its faults - and yes, it is INCREDIBLY violent - it still refuses to turn away from the challenge of its story, and in that right is, in my eyes, a rousing finish. Period.
Rating:
Summary: Arnold's back!
Review: T3 is awesome. The woman terminator always has a straight face. She really put up a fight with arnold. I think is its tight when he outsmarts her when he puts that hook thingy in the sewage hole ( talk about getting her face inplanted ) but always..... she is TERMINATED
Rating: 
Summary: Franchise Terminated
Review: What a piece of crap. It's easy to see that the budget went to salaries and not to plot or dialog. She'll be back! Give me a break. The movie has five main problems.
1.) You don't care about the characters. John Connor is awful. No arc, no character development and no redemption. He looks like some wino the studio pulled out of its dumpster. Acts that well too.
2.) Mind numbing action sequences that go on and on and on and on and on and on and on. Yes, there was a killer sequence with a crane, but it was POINTLESS!!! You know John Connor and his soon-to-be wife are going to get away. There is no dramatic tension, no sense of danger and no excitement. Yes, it is nice to see the crane smash cars and telephone poles andd storefronts and more cars and more telephone poles and more cars and other things.
3.) Unbelievable plot (?) developments. The 101 has a tantrum and destroys a truck rather than kill John Connor. Why? Well it sure ain't because of his logic or articulation. 4.) No HOPE. The first 2 films were all about hope and prevention. This loser director went for the dark Alien Cubed ending. Here's a piece of advice, pal. You don't kill the audience at the end of the film. This isn't that awful mini-series, the Day After, or V or whatever. It's the terminator franchise, and man, did you ever terminate it.
5.) Special f/x that come straight out of Robocop. So did the T1, from the film. Booooooooooooring.
6.) Dialog from a fortune cookie. A stale one.
What an awful piece of crap. Awful, awful, awful.
Rating:
Summary: Cameron-less "T3" still good fun
Review: I was pleasantly surprised by "Terminator 3:Rise Of The Machines", especially with it's eerie, yet oddly poetic,ending. It also leaves the door open for future sequels, though I think it's time for Arnold Schwarzenegger, who simply looks too old and tired to be in this role, to annoint a new CSM-101(would The Rock be perfect, or what?)should there be a "Terminator 4". Overall, this film is the weakest of the three, but that's not necessarily a bad thing, given the earlier two films fixture as science fiction classics, not to mention introducing some of the greatest one-liners in movie history. The "Talk To The Hand" line in "T3" is humorous, but may have been more relevant circa 1996 than 2003. Schwarzenegger is still a fine cyborg, but it's hard to get past the fact he was 55 when "T3" was filmed (nor is any explanation offered in the film as to why the CSM-101 appears so much older than the previous incarnation). The supporting cast is solid- Nick Stahl's performance as John Connor is better than Edward Furlong's in "T2". Claire Danes-all grown up since most of us last saw her in the TV Series "My So-Called Life"- plays the part of damsel in distress-turned tough chic as well as Linda Hamilton did in the 1984 original. The evil terminator- known alternately as the "Terminatrix" or "T-X", isn't as convincing, although actress Kristanna Loken looks nice. She just doesn't have much to do, except occasionally harass Ah-nold and crew. Robert Patrick's "T-1000" in the second film was far creepier. Without James Cameron(who apparently thought executive producing the TV show "Dark Angel" was a better idea than directing this film), Jonathan Mostow does a pretty good job of keeping a balance between the action and comedic moments, as well as overseeing a climactic end which I did not see coming. I would be ok with Mostow directing "T4", should there be one. Think of "Terminator 3" as "Terminator Lite"- looks great but a bit less filling than the previous two.
Rating: 
Summary: Decent, but I liked Terminator 2 better
Review: Terminator 3 does an average job of attempting to explain itself. There is both a prologue and epilogue that attempts to explain and link this movie with the other Terminators. We get to learn of how the world came to be in the future, and how, after visited by another T-101, John Connor is now the new leader to try to save the world from the rise of the machines. He meets up with Kate Brewster (Clair Danes) through a series of events and she also learns her role in the future of mankind. I didn't really go into this movie believing it would be much, but was pleasantly surprised with some of the acting, action sequences and plot. However, as usual in action movies, some of the chase scenes were dragged out incredibly long. I think if this movie would have focused more on building a solid story line through building the characters it would have made for a more effective story. One thing that definitely was a negative was the character of John Connor. He comes across as a whiny, Generation X slacker type that no one watching feels sorry for. He seems to spend his time feeling sorry for himself and complaining about having to lead mankind. He tends to become an irksome point of the movie, and hardly fits the description of "hero." If they would have made him a stronger character I think it would have vastly improved the script. Still, Terminator 3 is a fun movie. Sequels are definitely one of the hardest types to make successful, and I believe that Terminator 3 succeeds, albeit in a "ho-hum" way. Recommended if you take it in with a relatively open mind.
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