"Terminator Salvation" Blu-ray review

I've been spinning my way through the Terminator Salvation Blu-ray disc, mostly intrigued by the R-rated director's cut, which is a mere three minutes longer than the theatrical cut. Many of these additions are just a few seconds of extra violence (e.g., a knife thrust into a body then pulled out), but there are a few more-substantial sequences: A longer conversation in Resistance Command Headquarters; a brief topless scene by Moon Bloodgood when her Blair Williams character and Sam Worthington's Marcus return to her base (it reminded me of Kelly McGillis and Harrison Ford in Witness, and yes, I did just date myself); an extended conversation between those two characters afterward (Blair: "You can focus on what you've lost or you can fight for what's left"); and a longer radio address by John Connor in which he mentions his mother. Even though it's not all that different, it should be the preferred way to watch the movie.

The big extra feature, Maximum Movie Mode, is only on disc 2's original theatrical cut (seems like it would have been more appropriate on the director's cut). In front of two large TV screens, director McG introduces the movie then makes periodic appearances to discuss key concepts (this will look familiar if you watched the same feature for Watchmen). Interspersed along the way are various pop-ups with the Terminator mythology timeline, picture-in-picture with cast and crew interviews and behind-the-scenes footage, and stills galleries. You can also, when prompted, exit out of the movie to watch any of 11 Focus Points, which are two- to three-minute featurettes. Conveniently, you can also access these from the main menu. Two other features are watchable separate from Maximum Movie Mode: "Reforging the Future" (19 minutes), discussing the new film's take on the Terminator legacy, and "The Moto-Terminator" (8:33), focusing on the motorcycle-like robots. --David

Comments

[EdenR on December 05, 2009 at 03:26 AM]

Sam Wellington? I expect guys in my office to get the star of "Avatar" wrong but your DVD reviewer....
How do I get his gig?
EdenR

[David on December 06, 2009 at 12:32 PM]

Whoops, you're right. Corrected it.

[A.W. on December 11, 2009 at 12:27 PM]

i watched it last night, and i was pleasantly surprised. i had heard a rumor about a very bad original ending to the movie and having watched it i concluded that 1) the rumors were probably true at the time, but 2) someone had the good sense to change the end to something better. The giveaway is that the actual ending didn't actually make medical sense.

So i found it to be pretty enjoyable. it avoided the usual "hey, here comes another terminator to kill john connor" formula that had become stale, and actually told a decent story.

Exit question, though, did McG mention the aborted original ending?

[joesen on November 01, 2010 at 12:12 AM]

The big extra feature, Maximum Movie Mode, is only on disc 2's original theatrical cut (seems like it would have been more appropriate on the director's cut).

[xiao on November 16, 2010 at 05:17 PM]

here comes another terminator to kill john connor" formula that had become stale, and actually told a decent story.