Terminator Salvation (2009)
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In a post-apocalyptic 2018, a resistance fighter and a cyborg must navigate a deadly landscape to stop Skynet's machines.
The story
In the year 2018, the world is a wasteland following a nuclear holocaust. The remnants of humanity have formed the Resistance to fight against Skynet, a self-aware machine network. John Connor, a key figure in the Resistance, leads an assault on a Skynet facility. During the mission, he discovers that the machines are preparing to manufacture the T-800 model. Amidst the chaos of the conflict, John must navigate the dangers of the battlefield while the Resistance attempts to find a way to shut down the machine network before they are eliminated.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
In 2018, John Connor leads an assault on a Skynet facility and discovers they are preparing to build the T-800. He survives a blast and meets Marcus Wright, a cyborg who is also a target of Skynet. John and Marcus form an uneasy alliance to rescue prisoners, including a young Kyle Reese and a mute child named Star. They infiltrate a Skynet base in San Francisco while the Resistance launches a diversionary attack. During the infiltration, Marcus is revealed to be a cyborg and is initially ordered for execution by John. However, they eventually work together to fight off a T-800. In the climax, Marcus sacrifices his heart to save John's life after John is fatally wounded. The base is destroyed, and while the immediate battle is won, the war against Skynet continues.
- Original title
- Terminator Salvation: The Future Begins
- First release year
- 2009
- Runtime (minutes)
- 115
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- McG
- Writers
- John Brancato · writer; Michael Ferris · writer
- Cast and characters
- Christian Bale · John Connor; Sam Worthington · Marcus Wright; Anton Yelchin · Kyle Reese; Moon Bloodgood · Blair Williams; Bryce Dallas Howard · Kate Connor; Common · Barnes; Jane Alexander · Virginia; Helena Bonham Carter · Dr. Serena Kogan / Skynet
- Genres
- military; science fiction; action; war
- Themes
- man vs. machine; sacrifice; survival
- Tone and mood
- gritty; action-packed
- Premise and plot tags
- post-apocalyptic; cybernetic; war
- Franchise connections
- Terminator
- Content notes
- violence
- Reception
- The film received mixed-to-negative reviews from critics and underperformed at the box office.
- Reported review scores
- Rotten Tomatoes · score: 33% · scale: percentage · review count: 279; Metacritic · score: 49 · scale: 100 · review count: 46; CinemaScore · score: B+ · scale: A to F
- Production trivia
- The film is the only Terminator movie to date not to feature Arnold Schwarzenegger.; The original title was 'Terminator Salvation: The Future Begins'.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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