Hands down the best Terminator sequel since 1991’s T2, James Cameron’s return to the franchise he created is everything we hoped it would be, as his story combines series veterans Linda Hamilton and Arnold Schwarzenegger with a fantastic cast of new characters.

Premise: The Rev-9 (Gabriel Luna), a terminator from a new future timeline, arrives in Mexico City in 2020 to target Dani Ramos (Natalia Reyes) and her family. Resistance soldier Grace (Mackenzie Davis) is sent back in time to protect Dani, but even with her augmented abilities, she may be no match for the Rev-9 … until unexpected help arrives in the form of terminator-killing veteran Sarah Conner (Linda Hamilton).

Review:

Okay, first things first, obviously Dark Fate is not as good as 1984’s The Terminator or 1991’s Terminator 2: Judgment Day. But given that those two films are cinematic masterpieces (T2 in particularly is still considered one of the greatest action films of all time), it’s really not much of a criticism to say that Dark Fate doesn’t reach the same heady heights as the first two films.

What I can say is that Dark Fate feels head and shoulders above every film in the Terminator franchise that followed T2. This is not intended to be damning Dark Fate with faint praise, although none of the later sequels have been particularly good. 2003’s Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines descended into self-parody (remember the Elton John sunglasses, and the “joke” cameo by Dr Silberman?), and 2015’s Terminator: Genisys was, with the greatest of respect, an absolute mess (even if the opening riff on scenes from T1 and T2 was fun). I do have a soft spot for 2009’s Terminator: Salvation, which at least tried to do something more original than simply rehash the earlier films by finally giving us a glimpse of the “Future War” we’d heard so much about, but it’s still a fairly flawed film.

“…the heart of the ‘Terminator’ series is Sarah Connor’s story…”

What seems clear is that the Terminator series unquestionably lost its way after T2, when creator James Cameron lost the rights to the franchise. Having directed and co-written the first two films, Cameron then had no involvement in the next three films – something which is abundantly clear when you see the end results. Thankfully, following the relatively disappointing performance of Genisys, Cameron was given the chance to return to the series that he created, and although he was unable to direct Dark Fate (due to his commitments to the Avatar sequels), he produced and co-wrote the story for this latest instalment.

James Cameron clearly understands one simple truth: the Terminator series is not John Connor’s story, or the story of the various incarnations of the T-800 – it's Sarah Connor’s story. What made T1 so memorable was watching Sarah’s metamorphosis during the course of the film, and what gave T2 so much emotional resonance was the evolution of Sarah’s character since the first film. Even the oft-forgotten 2008 TV spin-off Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles understood that Sarah’s journey was the central theme of the series. Which was why the decision to kill Sarah off-screen in T3 was such a terrible decision.

“…even at the age of 62, Linda Hamilton makes a formidable action heroine…”

Thankfully, because the Terminator series is all about time paradoxes and convoluted timelines, it gives Dark Fate an excuse the wipe the slate clean and come in as a direct sequel to T2, relegating the other three sequels to having happened in alternative timelines. As both The Sarah Connor Chronicles and Genisys also played with the concept of alternative timelines, this really isn’t such a stretch. So Dark Fate now exists in a timeline where the mission at the end of T2 to destroy Cyberdyne Systems and prevent the creation of Skynet was successful, and the future in which Skynet created the T-800 Model 101 (Arnold Schwarzenegger) was avoided. But, as Dark Fate’s shocking opening sequence shows, where time travel is concerned, questions of cause and effect are no longer straightforward. The theme that there is no fate but that which we make, so central to T2, is explored again in Dark Fate.

Understanding that Sarah Connor is the lynchpin of the series, James Cameron’s story brings Linda Hamilton’s iconic performance back to the big screen for the first time in 28 years, and it’s a joy to behold. Linda Hamilton brings the same fiery intensity to her portrayal of Sarah Connor, and even at the age of 62, she makes a formidable action heroine. But the strength of Dark Fate is that it combines Linda Hamilton’s returning Sarah Connor character with a cast of new characters that are equally engaging.

“…gives Arnie easily the most interesting material for this character that he’s had to work with since T2…”

Mackenzie Davis is the biggest revelation; she’s always been an accomplished supporting actress, but here she’s front and centre in the lead action role, and she’s electrifying, delivering an action performance as memorable as any I’ve seen recently. Making an impressive Hollywood debut is Colombian actress Natalia Reyes, who manages to make an impression playing the new terminator’s intended target. And then there’s the new terminator itself, the Rev-9, played with an entertaining blend of ruthlessness and charm by genre-favourite actor Gabriel Luna. It’s no secret that Arnold Schwarzenegger is also back, but he’s playing a much smaller supporting role in this film, definitely behind the four main characters. That said, the film gives Arnie easily the most interesting material for this character that he’s had to work with since T2.

One final lesson that the filmmakers seem to have learned is that the Terminator films do not work when they are “sanitised” to get a family friendly PG-13/12A rating. Director Tim Miller (who directed the first Deadpool movie) fought to make Dark Fate R-rated (or 15 in the UK), and that decision has paid off. The violence and bad language lend an emotional credibility to the film which was sadly lacking in the recent sequels, where their A-Team-style no-consequences approach to violence deprived the films of much of their emotional impact. The no-holds-barred action sequences in Dark Fate are in no way gratuitous or gory, but they do have an undeniable visceral quality (even with an increased reliance on CGI).

“…feels like a real return to form for this beloved series…”

Yes, if you want to nit-pick the general plot is broadly similar to the first two Terminator films, but perhaps a degree of familiarity was needed to “reboot” the series after its recent misadventures (just as The Force Awakens was so similar to A New Hope)? But the new and returning cast twist and tweak the existing formula just enough to keep things fresh, and the creative action sequences never become monotonous or repetitive. And perhaps most encouraging of all, this is the first Terminator film in a long time that has remembered that there needs to be some emotional weight and character development if you want to anchor the action. And by the time Brad Fiedel’s iconic score was playing over the end credits, Dark Fate felt like a real return to form for this beloved series.