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Terminator and Star Trek: the franchise returns

Written by Sean Jordan
Thursday, 30 April 2009 00:00

This summer sees the revival of two of Hollywood’s biggest franchises. One is set in a future where mankind has put aside its differences and united in peace to explore the galaxy. The other also presents a future where the human race is united; unfortunately, in this case, to fight against a race of sentient machines trying to destroy us all. The two films may seem worlds apart, but Star Trek and Terminator Salvation share a good deal of common ground; they both re-introduce characters and stories many of us grew up with and loved, and they are both contenders for blockbuster of the year.

When it was announced that the fourth instalment in the Terminator series would be helmed by McG, fan boys rushed to internet forums, criticising the director’s back catalogue (Charlie’s Angels) and demanding to know what kind of a name McG is anyway. Since then, the director has gone to great lengths to prove his integrity, bringing on board Christian Bale as hero John Connor, and employing the writing talents of Paul Haggis (In the Valley of Elah) and Jonathan Nolan (The Dark Knight). McG met with Bale while he was filming The Dark Knight to discuss the possibility of his involvement. Bale was initially reticent, and would only be interested if the emphasis was on the story and the characters rather than special effects. After extensive discussion, he agreed. They proceeded to work on the story and brought Nolan on to write a draft of the screenplay. A few good trailers later, and the fans seemed to have warmed to the idea, with some even getting used to the director’s unusual name.

With the same star and one of the writers on board, it’s easy to make comparisons with another franchise revival featuring a certain masked vigilante. Christopher Nolan’s take on Batman revived the character for a new generation, creating a darker and more thematically complex portrayal of the caped crusader than had ever been seen. It also pulled in a colossal $155 million in only its opening weekend, the biggest ever opening for a blockbuster, and went on to make over $900 million worldwide. Unlike previous instalments, there were no camp one liners or rubber nipples on show in Nolan’s films, which took a more gritty and realistic approach to the character’s origin. As with Bale’s vision for Terminator Salvation, this was character driven, more interested in Batman’s psychology than his gadgets. It was a completely fresh approach, telling the origin story from scratch, the same mission statement employed for the upcoming Star Trek. J.J. Abrams has said openly that he was never a big Star Trek fan, although he enjoyed the original series. This might make him the perfect man for the job, staying true to the idea of Star Trek while creating a new iconic adventure much in the vein of Star Wars, which he was a fan of.
In other words: this is Star Trek, but not as we know it. So cue a young Iowa-born James T Kirk staring misty-eyed at half built Enterprise beneath a sunset, a la Star Wars, and space battles that are truly breathtaking. On top of this, writers have included a time travel twist in the story, giving them free rein creatively, also enabling a cameo for original star Leonard Nimoy. The same technique is employed for Terminator Salvation. As Bale’s gravely voiceover tells us in the trailer, “This is not the future my mother warned me about; something’s changed.” Both films are set in alternate timelines to the previous films in each series, meaning that all bets are off in what we can expect. Mr Spock himself would approve of the logic at work here; keep the trekkies happy while making the sci-fi adventure accessible to newcomers and watch the money roll in quicker than you can say warp speed. The tagline for Star Trek (and curiously, Terminator 4’s original title) sums it up; for each franchise, it’s here that the “future begins”.

The plot of each movie features themes of destiny and the nature of humanity itself. Where Terminator is bathed in a chrome filter and set in a hellish dystopian world, Star Trek is bright and primary-coloured. The Terminator franchise started out as a techno-horror thriller, spawning two action films. It’s no criticism to say they had their feet firmly planted in B-movie territory. The new film boasts reputable stars and writers, known for artistically-minded, intelligent storytelling. In interviews, the director makes references to Apocalypse Now and even The Odyssey, in describing the war between humanity and the machines and John Connor’s journey to the heart of the enemy’s territory.  McG has yet to prove himself to naysayers, but the artistic intentions are clear and present. Ironically, Star Trek is said to have lost the politically-minded storytelling that was so groundbreaking in the original stories. Empire magazine gives it an all round good review, but says that “this Trek is physical and emotional, sexy and vital even, but it is not cerebral.” It does add that everything is set up for it to achieve this in later volumes. It also appears to have achieved the infectious optimism so important to creator Gene Roddenberry’s vision. Terminator Salvation, despite its new direction in the series, also appears to have stayed true to what came before. Linda Hamilton will be returning for the opening voice over, linking it with the introduction to the second instalment. Whether they are re-hashes of old stories is too early to tell, but early publicity suggests otherwise. Either way, as a fan myself, I expect to get swept away in the fun along with many others.