One of the most intelligent sci-fi action thrillers ever made

Rating: Null/10 (2 September 2014)

I gave the first film full marks as it works brilliantly on its own merits but this film is on another level entirely. It's one of the best sequels of all time. The action scenes are fantastic and the visual effects were utterly groundbreaking in their day and still hold up remarkably for a film which is almost a quarter of a century old. While the first half of the film is extremely strong, it reaches new heights in the second half with the character development, the Cyberdyne subplot and the spectacular finale in the factory. The turning point is Sarah Connor's dream about the nuclear holocaust, which is my favourite scene in the film.
Arnold Schwarzenegger is no Laurence Olivier but the excellent script works around his limitations as an actor and creates a fascinating character in the Terminator, who is far less one note than his counterpart in the first film. He begins as a remorseless killing machine, no better than the T-1000 in that sense, but due to his relationship with John Connor, he develops senses of morality, sympathy and humour and even affection for John. His acting in the final scene is probably the best of his career.
Linda Hamilton is excellent as Sarah Connor, who has changed almost beyond recognition since the first film and I mean that in the best possible way. It perfectly illustrates the impact that the events of the first film had on her life in a way that many sequels fail to do. When we're first introduced to her, we learn that she stabbed Dr. Silberman in the knee with his pen. Contrast this with the slightly ditzy, disorganised young woman who couldn't balance her cheque book that we met in "The Terminator". Edward Furlong plays the crucial role of John Connor very well and he has great chemistry with Arnie. It's a shame that his acting career has floundered in the past decade or so.
Robert Patrick is suitably intimidating as the T-1000. Leaving aside shape shifting abilities, he's the only Terminator in the first three films whose baseline appearance actually works as an infiltrator since he's a normal looking person whom you wouldn't look twice at as opposed to Arnie or Kristanna Loken in "Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines". Out of the supporting cast, the strongest performers are Earl Boen as Dr. Silberman, reprising his role from the first film, and Joe Morton as Miles Dyson. S. Epatha Merkerson, Xander Berkeley and Jenette Goldstein are extremely good in small roles as well.