True Lies

Rating:
Summary: Good action movie, nothing more
Review: Arnold Schwarzenegger is one of those names interchangable with action movies. I've never seen him star in anything that wasn't filled with violence and mindless plots, save Terminator and T2, which did have a great story. 'True Lies' is nothing different than the rest of his work: thin plot, thin characters and enough bullets flying to think you're actually in a war.

In this movie, Arnold is attempting to stop a massive terrorist attack on America, which includes nukes, of course. However, there is a catch: his wife has no idea he's a spy and believes he is a simple computer salesman. When she is pulled into the story, the action thickens and we're given fight after fight until we forget the plot that seemed tacked on.

Tom Arnold provided some comedic relief to this film, as did Bill Paxton as a spy-wannabe, probably the best part of the film overall.

So here's the basics of this film: If you're into Arnold movies, rent it and watch it; it's not so bad. If you're like me and can barely stand his poor attempt at dialogue, you might want to look elsewhere for an action flick with a plot that is a little more sound. I recommend 'The Rock' with Sean Connery and Nicolas Cage.

All in all, not a bad movie, but nothing great. Probably one of his funnier films. It would've been better if the film didn't come to such a quick and perfect ending, but who am I to say anything: It's Schwarzenegger!

Rating:
Summary: Trite, but Entertaining
Review: True to his previous hits "Aliens", "Terminator 2", and the "Abyss", director James Cameron brings a lot of ambition to this action-oriented spy thriller. The scale and technological complexity of the action sequences are both exciting and awe-inspiring to watch. Unfortunately, the plot (involving Ahh-nuld as a top secret spy juggling his double life as a married man with an international terrorist arms smuggling case), is rife with cliche. From Jaime Lee Curtis' enthusiastic, but often embarrassing turn as a mousy-yet-frustrated housewife, to Tom Arnold's role as the out-of-shape, wise-cracking sidekick, no stereotype is left unexplored.

However shallow, the movie is tongue-in-cheek enough in both dialog and style to wipe the cynicism from all but the most stubbornly stiff of moviegoers.

Those viewers looking for an exciting popcorn film with lots of eye-candy could do much worse than "True Lies".

Rating:
Summary: Wide Screen Stinks
Review: Very good movie but again there is to much blackout on the top and bottom of film, twice as much as usual wide screen movies, again the consumer should have a choice of wide screen formats, this was a great movie, Tom Arnold helps carry the plot, I enjoyed it but with a 20 inch tv there is not much picture to view...

Rating:
Summary: The best Scharzenegger/Cameron movie
Review: True Lies is the third James Cameron/Arnold Scharzenegger colaboration, and is by far the best. All of James Cameron's movies before True Lies (The Abyss, Terminator 1 and 2) weren't action movies. They often had to do with things that could really happen and were very dark and gloomy. Finally, True Lies came along, which was James Cameron's first movie to be created soely for action and humor purposes. So with True Lies, you just sit down and enjoy the ride instead of having to think.

The plot is simple: Harry Tasker, played by Arnold S., is a secrety agent for the Omega Sector, a secret anti terrorist organization. But his wife, played by jamie Lee Curtis, thinks he's a computer sales man. Soon enough, Harry ends up traking down terrorists with nuclear weapons. Also, there are a few subplots, one in which Harry thinks his wife is cheating on him with a used car salesman (played brilliantly by Bill Paxton) Anyway, the action gets fast and furious when Harry's wife finds out that he's a secret agent.

The acting is great in this movie, as are the action scenes (which include a bathroom fight which leads to a huge chase, a scence where jets fire upon terrorist trucks who are on the bride from the Florida to the Florida Keys, and much more) The action scenes I just mentioned are just SOME of them. There are a lot better ones that you have to see for yourself. So the point here is that action fans will enjoy.

ALL IN ALL: See this movie. A fan of any genre will like this movie (action, romance, comedy). Just pop some corn, dim the lights, put the disc in your DVD player, sit down, and enjoy the ride.

Rating:
Summary: Probably Arnold's last mega-hit.....
Review: Although released in 1994, This is Arnold's last movie to pass the 100 million mark, not sure Eraser did, I could be wrong, anyway this film has enough action to satisfy most, but in my opinion has a weak story, the concept of Arnold being a spy & concealing it from his wife(Jamie Lee Curtis) is out there, but a neat concept nonetheless, I don't hate this film, but I don't feel like it is his best work,i mean, do Arnold & Curtis actually have chemistry??, I'm not sure, & Bill Paxton who has done better films is totally out of place here, I mean this film gets off to a good start, but loses credibility once he is introduced, I know director James Cameron was trying to show Curtis' secret life too, but it just doesn't seem to work, Arnold's growing fustration about her possible affair is out of place for a character who just escaped being killed numerous times, I don't know what Cameron & Schwarzenegger were trying to accomplish with this part of the movie, it just doesn't fit in my opinion, there is one scene where Arnold & sidekick Tom Arnold, who is surprisingly funny capture Curtis & Paxton, under disguise of course & interrogate Curtis in a sealed room with a two-way mirror, Curtis unaware of Arnold's secret life is asked all kinds of personal questions about her love for her husband, a situation every man probably wishes they could do every once in awhile, but the scene drags!!!, eventually Curtis discovers the truth & naturally the fun begins, the last 45 minutes are the best this movie has to offer, with explosions, Rambo-like action & cliffhanging sequences, the best being the very end when Arnold pilots a Jet plane to Miami to rescue his daughter who has been kidnapped by (ike!) terrorist(the villians of this movie)although their deaths are somewhat funny, it is hard to watch given recent events, but it is satisfying watching them get kicked by Arnold, not a bad film, just uneven!!!!

Rating:
Summary: a gargantuan thrill machine
Review: this is one of my all time favorate movies of all time. when james cameron directs a movie you know he will give you something on the screen that you have never seen before. and this no exception. i think this is arnold's best movie ever,his second best being eraser. this movie has comedy,lots of action and special effects. what more could you ask for. james cameron is directing the sequal to so that should be no exception either. the plot;arnold has been married to his wife for almost 20 years. then suddenly after 15 years of marrige he finally tells her he is a spy in the omega sector. she always thought he was a boring computer salesman played by jamie lee curtis. this is an outstanding movie. rated r for violence and language

Rating:
Summary: James Bond is a sissy...
Review: ...just kidding...But after True Lies, there is a new standard in spy actioners.
This is a James Cameron special-effects mega-blockbuster with a smart script (Ok, there are a *FEW* holes), lots of laughs and great performances....
Scarily prescient, the plot involves these terrorists stealing some nuclear warheads and shipping them to the Florida Keys, from where they intend to fan out across the country and threaten to blow up American cities. Never mind that these terrorists are alternately extremely smart and extremely dumb, the movie moves along at an extremely fast and entertaining pace, with more explosions and chase scenes than ANY MOVIE EVER. Perfect for testing out your Dolby Digital surround sound setup, too.
My wife also really enjoyed this movie, and she NEVER likes action movies, so that's another endorsement for ya.

Enjoy!

Rating:
Summary: A Good Movie!
Review: This was a good movie from Arnold. You add in Jamie Lee Curtis and Tom Arnold who had good performances,you wind up with a good viewing for all. There was an excellent plot. The story line was also great. Add in good acting as well. The action in this movie
were top notch as well. Arnold managed to do battle with all of the forces of evil in this film. Jamie Lee Curtis played his wife who also gets involved in the action and spy mayhem. The scenery and special effects were outstanding as well. All in all
a great movie to see. Buy this movie and watch it. You will not be dissapointed.

Rating:
Summary: Fantastic!!
Review: One of the best films that I have ever seen, a definite thumbs-up.

Rating:
Summary: The Rodney Dangerfield of the Cameron flicks
Review: You know, I gotta be one of the biggest action-flick geeks out there. How do I know this? Well, every time I fire one up on the DVD machine, I break out my two little analog hand-held clicker-counters (one for the heavies, which tends to overheat quickly, & one for the good guys, which usually collects more dust than digits) to keep track of the body count! Pretty extreme, huh? Sadly, most of my fanboy buds think my keeping track of the survival-challenged is kinda pathetic. But they're just jealous 'cause they don't know all the lines to every 'Dirty Harry' sequel like I do! Yeah, who's the pathetic one NOW, you posers?

Anyway, on with the review. I found 'True Lies' to be yet another memorable actioner from the mind of a guy who's no slouch when it comes to the action/adventure genre. His writing and/or producing and/or direction of such memorable shoot-em-up fare as 'Rambo II', 'Aliens', and the two 'Terminator' flicks will attest to this fact. When it comes to flyin' metal and/or energy-based projectiles, nukes goin' off, pioneering new computer-generated imagery techniques, blue-filtered night scenes, and utilizing spare-no-expense budgets to their maximum potential, James Cameron is a filmmaking god!

'True Lies' is one of the best examples of comic-book-style action cinema around, with a little bit of James Bond thrown in for good measure. It doesn't disappoint in providing those moments of pure implausible silliness that action flicks have in spades, and then some! The best example of this being the discharge of the MAC 10 (or was it a MAC 9? Uzi? I'm not sure) taking out a dozen Middle-Eastern terrorists as it rolls down a stairway. Talk about a hair trigger! Then there's our main baddie Aziz doin' the cross-skyscraper motorcycle jump. The pelican that literally tips the scales against the terrorists gained a pretty hearty guffaw from my ample belly. And when Aziz gets his-- well, you'll hafta see it for yourself. (Hee hee... 'You're fired'... I get it! Bwahhh-hah-hah-haaa!)

Now it's time for a little feature I try to include in all of my video reviews- the disclosure of the big flub. Although most of the CGI & matte work done here isn't as absolutely convincing as it could be, overall I found it to work fairly well. But there is one moment where the 'seams' in the magic can be perceived, albeit only very slightly with careful inspection. It happens following the opening at the Swiss lakeside mansion. When Arn's making his climb up to the top floor from the second-story terrace, there's a barely-perceivable shift in the height of the wall he's scaling. I never noticed this on VHS before; the superior picture clarity of DVD makes the moment a bit more apparent. Just goes to show you that the digital video format isn't all it's cracked up to be...

But, at least the movie has some pretty good comedic elements to get my mind off its shortcomings. Although I'm no big fan of Tom Arnold, I thought he did a pretty good job in his role as Arn's backup man. And of course Bill Paxton's at it again, playing the kind of part he's good at- a smarmy, oily, cowardly little git. Although I thought his character's posing-as-a-secret-agent-to-pick-up-chicks schtick was rather unconvincing, he definitely steals the show in the comedy department. His 'little' revelation at the aqueduct is one of those great comedic moments I like to rewind and watch three times in a row before I let the movie play on.

Aside from the myriad CGI renderings & bluescreen moments that didn't always fit, my only gripe with this disc is this: there's almost no extras or bonus material. Just one theatrical trailer's included, and that's it. Now normally this wouldn't bother me too much, but this is a James Cameron flick we're talking about here. When was the last time you recall one of his big-budget/big-studio films NOT getting the fully loaded treatment on DVD?

(brief pause)

Yeah, see what I mean? Oh sure, 'The Abyss', 'Aliens', 'Terminator 2', and-coming soon- the original 'Terminator'- all get their just respects on the digital format: restored footage, running commentary tracks, trailers, endless behind-the-scenes looks, ete., etc., ad nauseum. Heck, even 'Titanic' has more extras. But when it comes to loadin' up 'True Lies', does it get any consideration? No! What it gets is a swift kick to the curb! If ever there was a Rodney Dangerfield among the Jimmy-C blockbuster series, this is it!

Then again, it's highly likely that Fox is goin' for the DVD double-dip. You know the scene: they offer you this stripped-down model, and being one of those 'I-just-gotta-have-it!' type DVD nuts, naturally you buy it. Then a few months to a few years later, the studio rolls out the Super-Duper-Top-Of-The-Line 2-disc version with all the bells, whistles & assorted tchotchkes! Hey, it worked for the 'Die Hard' trilogy, right?

Anyway, I gotta go. I've a few other Arnie flicks cued up for viewing, & my clicker-counter's gettin' anxious...

'Late!