“I’ll admit, the Terminator franchise isn’t one that crosses my mind often. Well sorta. There are other scifi movies that come to mind first when I think of that genre, or other action movies when that’s on my mind. But the warm fuzzies all come rushing back whenever I hear the score. Universal Studios Hollywood has a Terminator show that I’ve wandered into the past two years. I always kinda think “”eh, what the heck”” and then as soon as I hear that music, I’m lost in it.
Actually where this does cross my mind often is whenever Apple or Google or Facebook reveal yet another feature or addition to their mega empire. I keep wondering which is gonna go SkyNet on us. My money’s on Google.
While the whole franchise has a special place in my heart (the 3 pre-judgement day movies, the post apocalyptic one, and the tv series), it’s really T2 that I hail as a favorite. The first was a good set up, but Judgement Day is what really hit it home. The general consensus in Hollywood is that sequels suck as a rule. This is one of the few exceptions that is universally agreed upon.
For one, Sarah Connor works infinitely better as a bad ass babe. Sure, she could hold her own the first time around, but she toughened up into one of the last gals you’d ever wanna meet in a fight. Linda Hamilton plays her with such a strong combination of motherly love and determination for the world’s survival. I also much prefer Arnold playing for our team. Yeah he was one of the greatest robotic villains in movie-dom for the first movie, but bringing him to our side was brilliance. When you’re first watching, the change up in the game is a big surprise, and as it plays out, his relationship with John (especially seen thru Sarah’s eyes) is incredible. He too is the great protector, but they have such a buddy relationship that has led to some of cinema’s most iconic lines of dialog. I won’t even bother typing them out here. Besides, the liquid metal T-1000 is even scarier. The shape shifting thing gets me every time. *shudder*
I also adore young John Connor, played by Edward Furlong. Furlong actually has a few other appearances on my list, but this is his biggest claim to fame. He’s such a little tough guy, punk kid, but sometimes you can see thru that wall to see he’s just a vulnerable little boy in way over his head.
What also makes this superior to the rest of the franchise is that given when it was made, it still fits in with the original Judgement Day timeline. Playing with time travel is tricky, and difficult to avoid glaring butterfly effect plotholes. T2 worked within the originally set parameters and made it work. Fulfill the past, not change it. Well maybe we don’t have that concept down perfectly, but it’s good enough.”