by Darren Greetham

Created on: July 08, 2010

Terminator Salvation is the latest instalment in the phenomenally successful Terminator series, Terminator has long been one of my favourite franchises and I'm glad that the films have been renewed after the poor Terminator 3.

Terminator Salvation takes the story on from the third in the original trilogy, now John Connor has become the resistance leader prophesised by his mother (and the terminators sent to kill him). John

Connor (Christian Bale), here in Terminator Salvation is viewed as a prophet against the machines but his views are only partially accepted.

So we are given the view of the not too distant future, the film is set in 2018 and machines have the humans on the run, but there is resistance from Command. Skynet who controls the machines is looking for the Command headquarters as well as the termination of John Connor and Kyle Reese. Kyle Reese is John Connors future father; John will send Kyle back to counter the first terminator in the classic Terminator.

There is however, an enigma at the start of the film set in 2005; a serial killer is killed by Marcus Wright played by Sam Worthington. Marcus has given his body to science and he awakes disjointed and confused by the world he encounters. His role in the film is of course deliberately vague at the start.

Marcus encounters a T-600, but is saved by the teenage Kyle Reese, the pair along with a mute Worthington; he gives a performance almost identical to the one he gives in playing the injured marine in Avatar. It’s very much stoic and with a lack of any facial movement.

There are others in the film but the central characters are John Connor, Kyle and Marcus, John Connor is played as with all his characters in a stern rather severe way by Christian Bale, you'd be hard pushed to spot the difference between John Connor and Bruce Wayne. However, Bale seems to be the man who can be relied upon to revive a slightly tired franchise, he's all stern glances, pursed lips and granite jaws. The dialog doesn't give him a huge amount to work with but he handles the physical side of the role well.

Kyle is a more human character, he clearly impressionable and Anton Yelchin gives a nice performances showing the changes in a man from follower to leader.

The roles are set and now the film can move towards a climax, this is a film which rarely stops to take a breath; it drives itself along at a breakneck pace. The viewer has to take the film with a huge pinch of salt, man against the machine is a fight you suspect

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