The Cautionary Tale of Terminator: Genisys

: After two great films, a mediocre one, and an abysmal fourth outing, Terminator is trying one last time to win audiences over with their fifth attempt.

: After two great films, a mediocre one, and an abysmal fourth outing, Terminator is trying one last time to win audiences over with their fifth attempt.

Seth Anderson, Staff Writer

This is the year of sequels for movies, which is not a bad thing by any means. Avengers 2 and Pitch Perfect 2 are some of the major headliners coming to theaters this year, with Avengers 2 predicted to be the highest grossing movie of all time. However, we come to a sequel that people where excited for, but a slew of bad mistakes could terminate its success.

Terminator: Genisys (That is how you spell it) is the sequel to Terminator: Salvation, the poorly received 4th movie in the franchise. This movie is the planned first of a new reboot trilogy, leaving many fans excited since everyone’s favorite Californian Governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger, is back (He told you he would be back).

The movie’s first teaser trailer was not that bad; It shows people what they would expect in a trailer these days:  The basic plot of the movie. Skynet sends a terminator back in time to kill Sarah Connor, mother of resistance leader John Connor, so as a counter measure, John sends his trusted Lieutenant Kyle Reeves to save his mother.

Kyle goes back and finds that the timeline of all the Terminator movies of the past are no more. Sarah Connor meets with Kyle and explains that a Terminator was sent to kill her, but “We took care of him.” She explains, revealing an aged T-800 model, sent by the resistance in this new timeline to save Sarah. Then a few action scenes take place, showing off a T-800 and T-1000 sent back to kill Sarah. The final shot is of Arnold’s famous quote, “I’ll be back,” then him diving into an exploding helicopter.

This first trailer got fans excited. It seemed like a great action movie with a well thought out plot and the heart of the originals, something Terminator: Salvation severely lacked. So the start out the gate was good, and people where hyped, but then Terminator: Genisys tripped, broke a leg, and is now crawling to keep up with the other big films this year. Why? The second trailer, which makes the biggest mistake any movie could possibly make while still in development.

Ever heard of the Plot Twist? It is the biggest way to keep people hooked on a movie and a good one can add a lot to a story. Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back is one the best examples, with the iconic line, “No, I am your Father.”After this massive twist, people everywhere had a whole new understanding of the technological terror of Vader. But at the same time, it left questions. Obi-Wan said he was friends with Luke’s father, until Vader killed him. We now know that was a metaphor, but at the time of the twist we wanted to know what Luke’s father, Anakin, went through to become Darth Vader (Star Wars prequels answer that rather poorly).

So what did Terminator Genisys do? It shows off possibly the most ingenious plot twist of all time in its trailer: So for those who have not heard, do not worry, it will be refrained of mention here. Honestly, showing off the huge twist in a movie before it comes out is shooting its chances in the foot. It kills any suspense that the twist could have added to the movie, and now turns people off of the movie entirely, hurting sales.

Logically, if people do not know the twist, they will not see the trailer. “Why spoil a good twist?” they ask. But here lies the problem. Advertising is everywhere these days, and without a sharp eye and ear at all times, people are going to get spoiled. They will let their guard down during a TV show, and boom! the ad appears dragging the cat in with it. No matter how much people try, they can’t escape. There is no escape from Terminator: Genisys.