Let me firstly state that I really enjoyed Terminator Salvation. I want to get that out of the way, because I have a feeling this is going to read negatively. I really thought it was a nice, fun thrill ride, and a great summer movie, with all the whiz and bangs you’ve come to expect. The sound is impressive and when the T-800’s show up with their iconic look, you know what your in for.
That all being said, I can’t help but feel like I wasn’t watching a Terminator film. Throw T-3 out and what you have in the first two movies is some amazing world building, within our own plausible universe. The mythology of John Connor and the future war loses so much of it’s mystique when you actually get to live in that world. What you have is a very Mad Max, run, fight or die mentality that doesn’t lead to strong storytelling, unless your plan is to blow stuff up. Which McG does remarkably well.
And then then the morality and dare I say true sadness that we get in T2 with John’s and Arnie’s Terminator is not really that important here, as you really don’t care what happens to anyone including the one who sacrifices the most.
I think I’ve been spoiled by the second season of Sarah Connor Chronicles, in the fact that I now want to know why skynet thinks? What motivates them besides the easy obliteration of the human race? And what do all the individual terminators think? Are they all just cogs in the machine?
So I guess where this movie will rock you for two straight hours on a non stop thrill ride, it won’t leave you thinking of very much at all, or leave you with anything close to that classic scene of Arnold lowering himself into the lava at the end of Terminator 2. Which is o.k. after all.
Remember Judgement Day has already happened.

A plus on the visuals, the music(GUNS and ROSES!), Anton Yelchin and his kid sidekick, those classic Stan Winston designs.
B plus overall and in the franchise behind 2 and Sarah Connor, and tied with 1. Far better than 3.