My thoughts.

Rating: Null/10 (25 October 2001)

When I was young and I first saw this film, I absolutely loved it. But then again I was easily impressed by anything that was science fiction. After all, another favourite film of mine at around about the same time was Lawnmower Man, and when I recently watched that again I wasn't very impressed. (Why couldn't that guy just close his eyes?)
I watched Terminator 2 with pretty much the same expectations, but found that the movie was both better, and not as good as I remembered it. For someone else who is a first time viewer of the Terminator franchise, this movie would seem great, but others may notice that it is a general revamp of the themes (and ideas) of the first Terminator in 1984.
I watched it and was given the impression that the film was made largely for special effects rather than storyline. The storyline was good, especially with a Terminator playing a central role, giving its points of views and behaviour towards a human world. My problem is that it seemed to have many of the story components of the first film. For example...
1. The Terminator wears 'tough guy' clothing - however a Terminator wearing a priests uniform, or a bright green jumpsuit with sandals would look stupid.
2. Mimickry of the main characters parents - This of course is what the T-1000 was built for, but mimicking Johns foster parents was just too close to the mimicking of Sarah's mother.
3. The tanker chase - Very obvious parralel.
4. Terminators running a rampage in a police station/criminal hospital.
5. The bike crash/helicopter crash leading on to the tanker chase.
All this gave me the impression that James Cameron was using Terminator 2 as a means to do what he wished he could have done in Terminator 1 if he had a much bigger production budget. I don't think he needed to do this, as Terminator 1 stands on its own two feet very well, especially for such a small budget.
Of course, there are many Terminator fanatics out there who would fervently disagree with everything I say. That is the problem when you give criticism to a cult film. You can attract some whackos, who don't seem to realise that it IS just a film, no matter how much they enjoyed it. There is nothing wrong with being a big fan of a movie, even to the point of obsession, but defending it like it is a religion is not healthy.
I will say what I liked about it, however.
There were parts in it which were exceptional, especially with the paradox regarding technology from the future being used as a template for SkyNet - the creator the the technology in the future. I loved Sarah Connors dream sequence, which was very disturbing. And verbal exchanges and behaviour of a (mildly) benevolent terminator - I loved that. It's pedanticly malevolent attitude towards the value of human life, and its final appreciation for it by committing suicide (self-termination) was excellent. Arnold Schwarzennegger really did give one of his best performances in his movie career. And his dialogue was very well thought out, giving authenticity to his robotic mind.
I feel that this film could have done more. It could have had a better plot. Apparently, Cameron was going to have an elaborate beginning sequence set in the future, with the actual raid on SkyNet time-displacement facilities by John Connor, the transportation through time of Kyle Reese and the discovery of a second terminator being sent through time. He should have filmed this - This would have helped set apart the first film from the second. It certainly would have given the die hard fans a lot to cheer about, including myself.
I can't get used to the change in Sarah Connors character and behaviour. Although she was obviously affected mentally from the first attack in T1, at the end of the film she seemed calm and resolute. In the second she was barely sane, and foaming at the mouth half the time. This was novel at first to see such a change, but it did wear a bit thin. I don't think Linda Hamilton is suited for Tough-Girl roles, like, say Sigourney Weaver. She should have played the quiet intelligent type... Yes tough, but not so bezerk and wild eyed.
This Terminator 3 business is, sadly, more than likely going to be a big joke. Johnathan Mostow is a good director, so there is hope there, but the scriptwriters have written some real garbage in the past. If you don't believe me, hire 'The Net' and watch for the microwave scene. If it's going to be as bad as I think it will, what it will do is cheapen the first two movies. It will probably do well in the first week or two but (like Jurassic Park 3), fall in popularity as word spreads that the movie is just popular science fiction trash. What a shame... I have my doubts about T4 - unless Roger Corman buys the rights to it when they are selling at bargain basement prices.
Can I quantise how much I enjoyed T2???
7.8 out of 10 (9.3 out of 10 for T1)
Worth the hire - maybe even to own.