There are some wonderful works given by Arnold Schwarzenegger, I can't say I've seen the entire oeuvre of Schwarzenegger so you might be shocked to know I just saw True Lies for the first time a few months ago! It's essentially what Mr. and Mrs. Smith wished it was. It's one of the few films of the actor that presents a decent romance and who doesn't love Jamie Lee Curtis who lets loose (literally in one scene) and plays up the scared housewife to a T. It makes me sad that director James Cameron is moving firmly into the Avatar universe, because he had a knack for blending the ordinary with the extraordinary and True Lies is proof!
I'm not sure where Eraser rates in others views of the best Schwarzenegger films but I've grown to love this each time I watch it; which is a lot considering this is always on TNT or TBS. The film tells of an US Marshal (Schwarzenegger) trying to relocate a witness (Vanessa Williams) into Witness Protection. There's just something so intelligent (okay not literally intelligent) about how intricate the world of the film is. There's double and triple crosses, people making copies of things, and a pervasive feeling of not knowing what the hell is going on. It all comes together to make the most prototypical of Schwarzenegger's films and yet I can't get enough of it.
When I heard they were planning to remake this I wept, I mean you just can't remake this film (and from what I read they're remaking the book so we can say this is safe right?). Director Paul Verhoven takes his amazing blend of sci-fi and schlock to create a sci-fi adventure that's never been seen. I still don't truly understand Total Recall but I love it. The different disguises, the world of Mars, Sharon Stone playing a totally kick ass villainess in 80s aerobics wear! It's cheesy like a delicious mac and cheese dinner! This is also the movie that made me realize Schwarzenegger tries REALLY hard to make you believe he's lived in America his entire life! I mean from the name of his character, Douglas Quaid, to how he chats with his friends, this movie especially tries to make you forget that accent and everything else about him.
The placement of the Terminator films is debatable. Some will say I made the right choice placing this second and others will say it should be first. I switched this between one and two for a good ten minutes before deciding to stick it here. Really you could tie one and two for first in my book. Either way what is there to say about Terminator 2 that hasn't been written? The action, the special effects, Linda Hamilton as Sarah Connor, it all comes together with its finger pressed firmly on the trigger of Judgement Day. Robert Patrick as the new Terminator is great and this is also the movie that inspired the ride at Universal Studios (which I love purely because it's connected to this franchise). This movie is epic, but it doesn't seem to have the heart of my number one.
I had to put the original Terminator at number one. This is the first film in the franchise I saw and really it's the first franchise I ever came to love. I've seen all the Terminators since (and sobbed my eyes out at how atrocious 4 was) and really have a connection to this first movie. It's also one of the first movies I had to go buy on Special Edition DVD. I mentioned Terminator 2 not having the heart as this one and I believe that. Sarah Connor (Linda Hamilton) learns that she's meant to be killed and about her life as the mother of a resistance leader, that's some heady stuff to realize and we see that realization throughout the first film. She's no longer an average woman and she has to deal with that. The love story is cute (albeit mind-boggling and possibly creepy) and at the end there's the aura of hope somewhere at the end where two doesn't seem to have that as much. Again, this can be tied for first with the second but I love one a tad bit more.
