Note: I discuss Terminator Genisys below, though I do not mention any of the film's plot points. If you want an analysis of the film, check out the essay I wrote for the Washington Post this week about the Terminator films and abortion. My review of the movie will be published tomorrow.
Did you see that James Cameron professes to be a big fan of Terminator Genisys?
There was some discussion on the Internet about how much he was paid to endorse the film; the producer claims no money changed hands. I tend to believe him. Cameron had nothing to do with the last two Terminator flicks and I see no reason why he'd sign on to a flick he hates just for a few bucks. Dude's still swimming in Avatar cash.
What I found most interesting about the endorsement was that it came from a vocal proponent of 3D despite the fact that Terminator Genisys has some of the worst 3D effects I've ever seen. Here's the closing paragraph from my review:
Do not under any circumstances see this movie in 3D. The screening I was at was blurry and out of focus, creating a headache-inducing double-vision effect. Though it’s impossible to say whether or not this was a mistake on the part of the Regal Majestic in Silver Spring, Md., or the filmmakers themselves—who used the vastly inferior conversion process in order to squeeze a few extra bucks out of you—I wouldn’t risk it.
Who knows, maybe Cameron didn't see the flick in 3D. Indeed, I have to assume he didn't. Because if he had, he would've been extremely disappointed.
Then again, maybe Cameron has simply given up on 3D as an artistic endeavor altogether. A couple years back he was nearing despair regarding the format:
"I do not think Hollywood is using the 3D properly," said Cameron, speaking to Children of Men director Alfonso Cuarón at Mexico City’s technology forum TagDF last week. "The reason I say that Hollywood is not doing well is because it is automatic."
He explained, "[it's] one thing [to shoot] in 3-D and another to convert to 3-D," adding that it's a matter of studios "[trying] to make money," "pushing 3-D to directors who are not comfortable or do not like 3-D."
OK, fine: I'm sure Cameron hasn't given up on the format entirely, given reports he was waiting to film the sequels to Avatar until he could perfect the technology to shoot 3D motion capture scenes underwater. But Terminator Genisys falls nakedly into the "studios trying to make money" category. It's a shameful cash grab, one that I couldn't have imagined Cameron lending his name to in the heady days after Avatar showed the world would could be done in the format. It just goes to show how far the concept has fallen. Even the format's most ardent boosters realize that it's worthless garbage 99 percent of the time.