terminator 2 : judgment day (1991)

james cameron's celebrated follow up to his 1984 creature-feature is regarded by many to be an example of a sequel bettering its original. i personally dont agree with that notion, but it is a great showcase of the evolution of character. sarah connor, potrayed by linda hamilton, is the real focus point of interest in this film as far as im concerned. the way in which the character has developed between pictures is genuinely interesting, but believable all the same. technically the film was a huge leap between the two, with the gritty future hinted at in the first film developed more fully in a brilliantly realised opening sequence. the development of arnold schwarzenegger's terminator from monster to hero works much better than one would expect, especially in the face of the the genuine terror that is robert patrick's T-1000, truly one of the great film villains of the late 20th century.

true lies (1994)

james cameron and arnold schwarzenegger's third collaboration is probably their most downright entertaining. "true lies", a remake of a french film, basically turns the conventions and expectations of the spy genre on its head, creating a film that comes off like james bond crossed with a sitcom. the film also has the unique selling point of tom arnolds finest moment, as arnie's wingman. sure the film is ridiculously over the top, but its a significantly more entertaining film than any of the pre-daniel craig bond flicks. interestingly i noticed the use of scope and depth that cameron seems to be keen on. perhaps this was an indication of the 3D-obsessed direction he would undertake in the years after.

the terminator (1984)

in light of the recent hype over next years terminator : salvation i decided to take in a light night re-viewing of the first terminator film. as a boy it was the OTT special effects of terminator 2 that excited me the most, overshadowing the fairly basic premise of the first film, but as iv gotten older the first one is the only one that i can bear (lets not mention the third one). i love the gritty nature of the flashbacks, the lower budget revealing a more basic setting that doesnt seem exagerated and is actually semi-believable. as far as eighties action films go, this is one of the stronger ones, and one that actually still has legs today, almost 25 years on from its original release.