Terminator 2: Judgement Day

Lately I've really been meaning to catch up on some iconic franchises that I haven't experienced fully. By that I mean that I've either never actually seen the films or I've seen them highly edited on television to the point where they are somewhat dulled and not strong representations of the original film.

"Let's play hand tennis!"

One of these franchises would be the Terminator franchise. I generally know what happens throughout, mainly because of the pop culture references and more modern films, but I'd never actually watched the first three in full. In a combined effort to satisfy my curiosity, catch up on iconic films, and prep myself for this summer's newest Terminator (that I'm truthfully not too excited for), I decided to start up Netflix and check out Terminator 2: Judgement Day. 

Now, before you gasp that I hadn't yet seen the film, I basically had through several patched-together television viewings. As I'm sure most of you know, that's never the best method to have "seen" a film, especially one as iconic as T2. 

Lucky for me, watching T2 in its full capacity was highly entertaining, and despite decades of hype behind it, I could very well see why it had such an impact on the film industry. As is the case with many "older" films, parts of it don't quite hold up today, but I would argue that most of T2 does -- it's a film that seems to have aged very well in multiple regards and it's kind of a bummer that the franchise as a whole hasn't aged as gracefully. 

The poster child for "determination"

T2, as I'm sure most of you already know, is about humans from the future sending a Terminator back to protect John Connor from a Terminator sent back by the machines trying to kill him and prevent the human resistance. While the time travel aspects are glossed over pretty quickly, it's a hell of a premise and one that makes for a riveting showdown to prevent an annihilation that the audience is already aware of. While in 2015 this isn't exactly uncharted territory, I would imagine that it was in 1991. And although the premise seems complicated on paper, director James Cameron does a great job at keeping it simple and boiling the film down to its basic plot themes. There is a drive to the film that is rarely achieved and it barely slows down and when it does, it's usually for a good reason. From beginning to end, it holds your attention.

This is going to make Arnold's
"special time" fairly interesting...

T2 is one of those blockbusters that not only has some phenomenal action (that is still mightily impressive today), but one that has a certain amount of heart. Sure, some of the robot-bonding-with-child scenes might fall a bit flat, especially in this day and age, but for me, the crux of the emotion of the film really came full circle during the fantastic ending. No, I won't even spoil a 1991 film, but let's just say that the ending sat really well with me and it's truly one that the film builds to for its entirety. 

Speaking of action, I was thoroughly impressed with the production values and organization of the action. It's mostly in the vein of "chase" sequences, but damn are they impressive! The film "opens" (it's about 20 minutes in) with a pulse-pounding semi vs. dirtbike chase that immediately lets the audience know how relentless the Terminators are. Most of the action afterward is still strong and greatly helped by some fantastic visual effects that, again, still hold up today. Seeing a liquid metal Terminator's head split open by a shotgun blast and put back together may look a TINY bit dated, but I imagine that in 1991 it was mind-blowing. This is no surprise coming from Cameron, who is basically the king of special effects and production values. Kudos once again to him for this fantastic example of that. 

Got a migraine? Take some Tylenol!

Talk about a nasty sunburn...

My few issues with T2 lie in the cast. Arnold, of course, is iconic in the role that he was basically born for. His acting is somewhat robotic, so for him to be a Terminator works well and he is even able to give some heart to, what I would call, one of his best performances. Equally as impressive (and robotic) is Robert Patrick as the T-1000. He's an iconic villain through and through and the conflict between these two machines is really what gives the film its pulse. Linda Hamilton is good as Sarah Connor, but I would argue that she overacts many of her scenes, especially outside of the psychiatric ward. In other words: she tries too hard to be a badass when it's clear that she already is one. Additionally, as strong as a debut as this was for Edward Furlong, his voice cracking was starting to drive me up a wall. A small complaint, trust me I know, but when you have a character who is entering and exiting puberty within almost every other line he says, it gets old. 

Clearly, my complaints with the film are minimal. I really enjoyed the second Terminator film and it's easy to see a lot of its influence on today's films. Out of many of the retro reviews that I had previously unseen, T2 gets very close to living up to the hype which is impressive when you consider it's been over 20 years after the fact and I've had a few TV viewings that diluted my "new" experience. It's an exciting, well crafted, fun blockbuster that delivers on almost all fronts. 

Despite my apprehensions, hopefully the newest film can recapture some of the magic this summer. 

CONS:

• Some of the robot bonding segments fall flat
• Linda Hamilton trying too hard
• EdWARD FurLONG's voice CRACKing!
• Time travel aspect/technology is barely discussed

PROS:

• An awesome premise that is both complicated and simple at the same time, organized for our viewing pleasure magnificently by James Cameron
• The "rivalry" that builds between Schwarzenegger and Patrick is riveting and their battles are awesome
• Some amazing action sequences that make good use of practical effects and some sweet special effects
• Great performances by Schwarzenegger and Patrick who portray iconic heroes and villains, respectively.
• Strong performances by rest of cast
• The film's ending is well orchestrated and really made it come full circle for me, and gave it a measure of heart that I wasn't quite picking up on during the rest of the film
• A great, iconic blockbuster

Retro Rath's Review Score: 9.5/10