2003, R, 119 minutes

For as long as I can remember, I have always been in love with The Terminator. The Terminator and Terminator 2: Judgment Day are two of the prime examples on why I watch movies; both are adrenaline rushes while providing an emotional punch. On the other hand, both are easy classics, so Terminator 3 had a lot to live up to. I honestly didn't have high hopes for this film, but I was wrong. Terminator 3 is one of the funnest movies I've seen all year.

Ten years after the events of the second movie, John Connor (Nick Stahl) is underground. No credit cards, phone, or a home (making him impossible to trace). He's still haunted by nightmares of a Judgment Day and the resistance he's supposed to lead, even though he supposedly averted Judgment Day when he destroyed Cyberdyne. Sadly, this is not the case. A new threat has come in the form of T-X (Kristanna Loken), the most powerful machine to be created yet. She's originally going after Connor's future lieutenants, but she happens to come across Connor while after veternarian Kate Brewster (Claire Danes). Once again, the resistance sends the Terminator (Arnold Schwarzenegger) to protect both John and Kate.

Allow me to get the negative part out of the way first. Terminator 3 doesn't really hold your emotions as well as the first two films. The Terminator is just there to do his job, and doesn't show much emotion. Previously, John looked up to the Terminator as a father-figure, and we don't get the same feelings here. However, we still care about what happens because of the powerful effect of the first two movies.

Other than that, Terminator 3 is an awesome ride. There's a car chase that rivals the one in The Matrix Reloaded, and the whole movie is one big adrenaline rush. I have a feeling I'll be watching this a few more times once the DVD hits stores. Arnold once again proves he can still kick some serious ass, even at his old age. The very beautiful Kristanna Loken definitely holds her own against Arnold. She always walks slowly when the protagonists are in trouble, and that just elevates the tension. She also doesn't say a whole lot, and brings a scary menace to the role (just like Robert Patrick did with the T-1000). Nick Stahl and Claire Danes both provide solid support as John and Kate, respectively. There's even a little spark between them, but the movie doesn't dwell on that too much.

While not quite as good as the first two, Terminator 3 succeeds at providing plenty of thrills. It's one of the best popcorn movies to come out all year, and it's definitely worth checking out, although you really should see the first two movies (if you haven't already) if you want to completely understand what's going on.