Written by: James Cameron & William Wisher
Starring: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Linda Hamilton, Robert Patrick, Edward Furlong, Earl Boen
Rating: [4.5/5]
When one attempt does not work, perhaps another will yield different results where the fluid future can still change. An idea humans can comprehend and also evidently androids in their attempt not to allow resistance against them to even start. With Terminator 2: Judgement Day, we get a feature utilizing everything that worked well in the previous film but amps up the action and innovates in a brilliant manner.
Eleven years following her knowledge about the future, Sarah Connor (Linda Hamilton) is now incarcerated for her attempts to stop the inevitable judgment day where the androids take over. With her son, John (Edward Furlong) under the care of foster parents, a new model of Terminator (Robert Patrick) arrives in their timeline set to kill the future revolutionary leader while a child. Additionally, another previous model (Arnold Schwarzenegger) gets sent back with explicit instructions to protect the child.
The shuffling around of characters in for this sequel following the first feature is nothing short of brilliant in the way it brings back Arnold Schwarzenegger and continues to develop Sarah Connor into an all-out action icon. The build-up to the ultimate reveal in which the T-800 model terminator enters the fray in an equally menacing manner like in the first feature shows that it could be a repeat. However, when he unloads his shotgun it appears he’ll try to murder John Connor but aims behind him for the real android sent to do the deed allowing Arnold to serve as a hero on this occasion where we get two terminators fighting each other in epic fashion.
The look of these two terminators says plenty about the way James Cameron wants to depict them as opposites. Arnold has the classic look of the leather jacket and the sunglasses as the first feature and with the T-1000 we have Robert Patrick almost exclusively donning a police uniform. As Cameron has alluded to in interviews, this choice came with plenty of intentionality, especially when this feature was filmed and the major cases of police brutality running rampant, especially in Los Angeles. Having this ultimate force of evil choose to look like a police officer in the current timeline and how they can serve as an arm of violence towards others. This creates quite a contrast and one that becomes quite strident in the feature.
With two terminators facing off, the film still belongs solely to Linda Hamilton as Sarah Connor. No longer unaware of what will transpire in the future, she must contend with trying to stop the future even if it makes her seem crazy to others. Quite honestly, I would not blame anyone who thought she was not in her right mind when trying to convince others to rely on artificial intelligence because it could lead to the end of the world with androids mercilessly killing people. However, she knows what will come and she adequately prepares herself. From the meek and frightened woman we saw in the first feature and the absolute badass we encounter in this one displays quite the difference and one that matches the tone. She no longer has fear in how she fits into this story but only in how she can ensure to stop what can come and the muscle she puts on and her demeanor well and truly says it all. It also demonstrates that it takes her at her full strength and a T-800 model to take out this new T-1000 Terminator showing just how much these androids continue to advance.
On top of Sarah’s journey, this feature also highlights a loving relationship between the T-800 Terminator and young John Connor. Now in this feature, he does not exist as the hypothetical leader of the future but rather as a teenage boy trying to come to grips with the the future his mother has warned him about. The rapport he builds with the Terminator sent back in time by his future self becomes quite sweet but also integral to the plot. Their conversations display the pure humanity John conveys as opposed to the android that only knows one purpose, which is to search and destroy, or in this instance, protect. The way this android changes because of his interactions with John therefore punctuates Sarah’s belief for the future and what it means for the way humans can care for themselves if an adrdoid can. Also, the thumbs-up the T-800 gives John will never not be awesome.
Conversations can be had about whether or not Terminator 2: Judgment Day serves as an improvement to the first feature or not. For me, personally, it depends on the day which one I feel accomplishes what it seeks to do better but we can easily state they’re both quite sensational. This feature doubles down on the action of this story as a whole and optimizes it to its full potential. Not only do we receive Terminator-on-Terminator action in the way the two models combat each other but we see the rise of John Connor as the future leader of the resistance and the crystallization of Sarah Connor as one of the most iconic action icons in all of film. Everything about this feature works so well and the layers it builds into this story mark for more enjoyment to be had than just the spectacular action on display. The king of sequels, James Cameron, strikes again, and with style.
Films with Josh 
