Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003)

User Rating:

6.7/10   

Director:

Jonathan Mostow

Writers (WGA):

James Cameron (characters) &
Gale Anne Hurd (characters) ...

Release Date:

2 July 2003 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Tagline:

The Machines Will Rise

Plot:

John Connor is now in his 20's, and a female terminator, called T-X or Terminatrix, is after him. Another T-101 is sent back through time to protect John once again on the verge of the rise of the machines.

Plot Keywords:

Future | Machine | Terminatrix | Drifter | Computer System

Awards:

1 win & 17 nominations

US TV Schedule:

Sat. July 4

11:00 PM

AMC

Cast

Arnold Schwarzenegger	...	Terminator
Nick Stahl	...	John Connor
Claire Danes	...	Kate Brewster
Kristanna Loken	...	T-X
David Andrews	...	Robert Brewster
Mark Famiglietti	...	Scott Petersen
Earl Boen	...	Dr. Peter Silberman
Moira Harris	...	Betsy
Chopper Bernet	...	Chief Engineer
Christopher Lawford	...	Brewster's Aide (as Chris Lawford)
Carolyn Hennesy	...	Rich Woman
Jay Acovone	...	Cop - Westside Street
M.C. Gainey	...	Roadhouse Bouncer
Susan Merson	...	Roadhouse Clubgoer #1
Elizabeth Morehead	...	Roadhouse Clubgoer #1

Also Known As:

T3 (USA) (promotional abbreviation)
T3: Rise of the Machines (USA) (trailer title)
Terminator 3 (USA) (working title)
Terminator 3 - Rebellion der Maschinen (Germany)
York Square (USA) (fake working title)

MPAA:

Rated R for strong sci-fi violence and action, and for language and brief nudity.

Runtime:

109 min

Country:

USA | Germany | UK

Language:

English

Colour:

Colour

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS (8 channels)

Certification:

Iceland:14 | Malaysia:U | Italy:T | South Korea:15 | Iceland:16 (video rating) | Canada:14A (Canadian Home Video rating) | India:UA | Netherlands:12 (TV version) (slightly cut) | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Brazil:14 | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:14A (Alberta/British Columbia/Manitoba/Ontario) | Canada:14 (Nova Scotia) | Denmark:15 | Finland:K-15 | France:U | Germany:16 | Hong Kong:IIB | Japan:PG-12 | Netherlands:16 | New Zealand:M | Norway:15 | Peru:14 | Philippines:PG-13 | Singapore:NC-16 | Singapore:PG (cut) | Spain:13 | Sweden:15 | Switzerland:14 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:14 (canton of Vaud) | Switzerland:14 (canton of Zurich) | Switzerland:16 (canton of the Grisons) | UK:12A (original rating) | UK:12 (video rating) (2003) | USA:R (certificate #39974) | Ireland:12PG (original rating) | Ireland:12 (video rating)

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

C-2 Pictures

Trivia:

When shooting the cemetery scene where the Terminator shoots at the SWAT team, it was impossible to wield the machine-gun with one hand. A Steadicam harness was attached to the side of Arnold Schwarzenegger to enable him to hold the gun with one hand. The harness was erased digitally in post-production.

Goofs:

Factual errors: Having control of a vehicle’s computer would not allow the car to be driven remotely, as the steering is completely mechanical (even power steering), and although some modern cars have a computer controlled throttle (not the cars in the movie though), the pedal would not depress (same goes for the brakes, clutch and gears).

Quotes:

[first lines]
John Connor: [voiceover] The future has not been written. There is no fate but what we make for ourselves. I wish I could believe that. My name is John Connor, they tried to murder me before I was born, when I was 13 they tried again. Machines from the future. Terminators. All my life my mother told me the storm was coming...

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Another Gay Movie (2006)

Soundtrack:

Dat Funky Man

T3 is a solid follow up to a classic

T3 was actually very good. Put it this way, if we had never been treated to the classic and innovative T2, I believe a lot more people would have been in love with T3. T3 was looking at some serious obstacles: 1.) following up T2, a monster success 2.) an aging Arnold Schwarzenegger 3.) making a cohesive story that wouldn't contradict the former Terminators 4.) making a better terminator than the T-1000.

As I said before, they followed up T2 respectably enough. There were good fight scenes with the T-800 and the T-X (I particularly like the fight in the bathroom), and there was an excellent car chase scene near the beginning. The action was good and plentiful, the effects were nice, and there was some good humor in the movie as well.

Arnold was still in shape enough and made up enough to be believable. Of course he wore the leather jacket the entire movie. Not only that, he was an older Terminator model anyway, so any signs of stiffness or slow wittedness could easily be blamed on that.

The story flowed well. John Connor (Nick Stahl) was again the focus except he is now a bit more subdued and scared. In his attempts to stay out of any electronic systems, he chooses a horrible life of joblessness, homelessness, and just plain bumming it. He was complimented by a much smarter, cleaner, and stronger partner, Kate Brewster (Claire Danes); she was tied into the story rather well. They stayed true to the Armageddon type story line and even had a bit of misdirection at the end to make the movie even more interesting.

The T-X model terminator (Kristanna Loken) was nice. Sure, they chose a beautiful woman for the T-X, but she was not to be trifled with. The T-X had the same shape shifting abilities as her predecessor (the T-1000) but she also had abilities to control anything that had a CPU and she could form her hand into a variety of weapons. Similar to the T-1000 (Robert Patrick of T2), the T-X (Loken) took the T-800 (Schwarzenegger) to town, but she was a bit more dangerous even than the T-1000.

T3 was a solid movie for a third installment. Usually by the third sequel you are begging Hollywood to stop, but I can't say that about this movie. This movie is good enough to watch more than once.