Critic's Grade: A

With "Terminator 2: Judgment Day," moviegoers and fans saw the introduction of not one, but two terminators, two members of the Connor family, and two times the action, special effects, and science fiction hoopla of the original 1984 predecessor. Once again we're thrust back into the plight of Sarah Connor (reprised by Linda Hamilton), now incarcerated in a Los Angeles mental hospital while her rebellious son, John (Edward Furlong), resides in the care of foster parents. Meanwhile, within the city limits, strange electrical storms bring about the presence of two terminators: one a replica of the original assassin that once hunted Sarah (also reprised by Arnold Schwarzenegger), the other a liquid metal prototype (Robert Patrick) with metamorphic capabilities and regenerative functions.

If you're familiar with the previous film, then odds are "T2" isn't going to seem that out of the ordinary as far as its plot is concerned. We get the expected chase sequences, the random one-liners that have since become classics in the world of cinema, and the tricky, thought-inducing time-travel/future-vs-past structure that still remains something of a mystery as far as logic is concerned. But writer/director James Cameron, who's no stranger to one-upping himself with his films, goes for broke with it all, riding to success on sheer filmmaking energy that comes as a result of his adept use of sophisticated special effects- the most prominent of their time- and an homage-like tone that pays tribute to the original film while building on its established tone of dread. Hamilton remains as invigorating an actress as she was seven years prior, and Schwarzenegger makes the most of his character's learning the ways of the human. While in my book it's not quite up to par with the original, there's still more than enough here to make "T2" the classic that it has become.

Copyright @ Hauntnut.com

All Reviews by David Litton [Home page]
If you are the author of this review, you may edit it by signing in.