Remember the first time James Cameron made the most expensive movie of all time? That was this baby: $90 million-worth of crunching metal, doom-laden plot conundrums, and Arnie in shades and leathers saying "Hasta la vista" in Ronseal tones. It was a landmark in action filmmaking, if not plot subtlety.
T2 was summer moviemaking in an age when the term 'event picture' meant just that. Cameron, while busy gnawing away at the threshold of special effects, wrapped it up in an inventive plot loop.
This time, as we all know, there are two Terminators (actually, the director claims three - Sarah Connor being the third). Of the main pair, one is set to kill John Connor (Furlong), one to protect him. Meanwhile, Sarah (Hamilton, pumped like a Russian swimmer) comes over all gloomy about the approaching apocalypse.
This is the Special Edition of the movie, which means there are a host of added scenes. While these donít really do much for the film as a whole (they actually tend to slow the pace too much, which explains why Cameron ditched them in the first place), they're an eye-catching bunch.
Of course, it still rocks (and makes you feel all nostalgic for Arnold's heyday), but inevitably, those groundbreaking effects are hardly up to smacking any gobs by current standards. In contrast, however, the stuntwork hasn't aged at all, Cameron's furious machismo hardwired into exploding buildings, unbelievable chopper stunts and his big man on a Harley. T3 without him? Unthinkable.