Terminator Genisys just debuted its first trailer and it… actually looks quite good! It’s also rife with little nods to the first two movies of the series. Let’s take a look, shall we?
Ruined L.A. and Hunter-Killers start it off, just in case you thought they were changing that whole post-apocalyptic thing.
Two points of interest, here. The first is that John Connor’s facial scars line up with the damage the T-800 takes in the first movie; this will be the first of a lot of references. Secondly, the resistance’s uniforms are similar to those we see in T2.
Jai Courtney, who really should have at least grown a facial scruff if he’s going to play Kyle Reese.
ED 209 finally got hired by Skynet after mastering stairs! Joking aside, this resembles the gigantic tanks Reese fought in the original movie, except, y’know, it’s got legs. And it knows how to use them.
And, twenty-four seconds into the trailer… our first actual Terminator! It looks good!
Then we get a series of shots basically explaining the plot of the movie to the five people who’ve never heard of the concept, which is mostly cool for demonstrating just how slick their Ahnuld simulation tech is. Also there’s this rather odd moment:
Shaking hands with your naked father whom you know dies seems like an awkward experience.
Anyway, he goes through the time machine and winds up in late ’80s Los Angeles. Interestingly, this bit is an almost note-perfect, shot for shot imitation of Reese’s introduction in The Terminator.
Right up until Sarah Connor drives a car suspiciously like a SWAT van through the store and tells Reese to come with her if he wants to live. Why? Well, here’s the next T2 reference.
We have to say, Byung-hun Lee does an excellent job of imitating Robert Patrick’s movements and mannerisms from T2. Like, to an almost creepy degree, helped considerably by the fact that he’s in virtually the same uniform.
They even do the eye gag as Sarah and Kyle escape, as you can see. Anyway, we continue to have the plot explained. Sarah’s a badass, Kyle is very confused, and then a bit that had been rumored to happen unfolds:
Yep, Old Ahnuld and Young Ahnuld get into a fight. Again, it’s a near-perfect imitation of the original introduction in The Terminator. Still, the most awesome moments belong to Lee. Here he is in yet another T2 reference, although this time the spear isn’t just lying around an ironworks:
You’d think that’d be it, but there’s a pretty large plot point that flashes by…
That sure looks like a time machine to us. We’re assuming it’s not there just to look pretty; we suspect it might “restore” the original movie plotline at some point.
There’s also Sarah Connor’s past, in a few quick shots; we have to admit, we’re looking forward to the inevitable cosplay reenactments of this shot.
Of course there’s a motorcycle…
…and a True Lies reference. That said, the trailer ending with this?
That gives us hope. We’ll see if it’s justified July 1st.
