Score

First of all when reviewing a Terminator film, one should keep in mind just that. It's a Terminator film, not Gone With the Wind or Tarkovsky. In short, from a 1 to 10 scale, Genisys is a pure 11! To quote James Cameron, "in my mind it's the third film".

Expectations

For anyone who grew up with the first two films, there are insanely high expectations. Genisys is mostly directed to that generation. While managing to breathe fresh air to a franchise that sadly people were hoping would be put to rest. Now it's almost unfortunate Paramount will be losing the Terminator rights in 2019. But hey, if Cameron stated that he feals the franchise has been reinvigorated, it's highly unlikely he will be discarding this new "soft reboot".

Story

The writers managed to bring the stereotypes upside down, come up with brilliant twists to a tired, done to death recipie, while still servicing the fans with just the right winks to the first two epic parts. If you think about it, it's a no brainer, make Sarah Connor a warrior instead of the damsel in distress, Kyle Reese the noob and *SPOILER* John Connor the villain. It was a surprise ride all the way through. Finally the story expertly managed to avoid answering the big question it sets, why is all this happening, leaving room for quality sequel material.

Acting

Arnold is at his finest. Forget what people say, thank God he's back! His acting is better than ever, there's subtext in every single terminator look of his. It's no longer a mindless robotic glare, it screams of worry, fatherly caring, loneliness. The rest of the ensemble did a great job, reprising established roles in very tight contexts. Emilia Clarke and Jai Courtney brought something new to the expected familiar. But the unsung hero is J. K. Simmons, the much needed comic relief to decompress the far fetched exposition. He was funny but definitely not comical. Just brilliant.

Action

From a person who is real bored of mindless and endless explosion rides (think Mad Max: Fury Road), this movie rocked! There were the familiar chases but brought to a whole new level, the blazing gunfests, the titan hand-to-hand fights, more than enough to leave you satisfied. AND it all looked dazzling and modern. CGI at it's finest, the villain really pushed the bar high. And the young Arnold? Just awesome!

Favorite Moment

Seeing the young Arnold Terminator while stepping into the time machine in the future, kneeling down in the iconic pose he appears in the present... that gets you goosebumps. It's the moment you know this was no quick buck before Paramount loses the rights. It's respectful to Cameron's vision and a brilliant breath of fresh air.

In a nutshell, give us the sequels already!