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65% Gross Racist Dad Joke, 35% Spy Shit, 5% Paxton—True Lies: Cameron's Worst Film

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Saw this backfire coming. Sorry, Bobby! A lot of people still love this movie.

I don't know that it's a backfire. I knew a lot of people here really, really liked this movie. And I put it on thinking I'd get a fresh run at it what with Paxton's death and my not having seen it in awhile.

But while it was still entertaining - I seriously did not remember how full of fuckin' corn it was. And the pacing is really bad. It just became very apparent that James Cameron does have some weaknesses, and a light touch and comedic sensibilities are two of 'em.

So I thought I'd bring it up.

Some people are talking about the movie! Some people talking about my hoodie! It's okay. There's good stuff in here.

Sorry, what is wrong with being 40 and wearing Old Navy hoodies?.

I guess at least it's not Aeropostale?
 

Syriel

Member
I remembered this movie being more of a spy movie than it actually is. There's not much spy shit here at all. It's closer to fuckin' Austin Powers than Bond.

True Lies is an American action-comedy remake of a French film that was an action-comedy.

Comparing it to Austin Powers is giving it a compliment.
 
True Lies is an American action-comedy remake of a French film that was an action-comedy.

Comparing it to Austin Powers is giving it a compliment.

I was misremembering it at first, is what I was saying. Which threw me a little.

(Also, the first Austin Powers is still a pretty decent spoof)
 
Ah, I thought you were complaining about it being a comedy. ;)

Nah. I mean, I complain that the comedy isn't done very well outside of people like Paxton and Curtis selling the hell out of their characters, but those early paragraphs were more to show that I remembered it being way more spy movie than it actually was. I knew it was comedic, I just didn't remember that it was a full-on comedy.

I forget things more frequently now, being a 40 39 year old dude.
 
WTF a True Lies hate topic. What the hell is this? It's a fantastic movie all around, then and now.

I know, right? People don't like this movie enough to create a "this sucks" thread? Damn. Wow. I just rewatched part of it with my dad. It holds up surprisingly well. The Brad Fiedel soundtrack is amazing.
 
True Lies is Cameron's second best movie, after Terminator 2.

I love Edgar Wright, but True Lies is better than anything he's ever done (I know I'm going to get a lot of shit for saying that but oh well).

The fact that's is so cheesy and hammy and blah blah blah are what make it so good.
 
T

thepotatoman

Unconfirmed Member
I happened to watch it last night for the first time.

The scene where the Harry and Gib jail Helen and with a deep voice modulator bully her relentlessly until she admits she did not have an affair and did love Harry and threatening her into prostitution is the worst. It's always terrible when something so uncomfortable gets portrayed as being possitive and romantic.

It would have been so simple to at least edit the script to make the one way glass interview less hostile, and make the prostitution mission her choice without the threats. It's one of those things that only works if you assume sexual abuse can't exist between a married couple that otherwise loves each other.

It's definitely a little racist too, but didn't stand out to me as any more racist than all the other action movies with middle eastern terrorists of the era.

Action was great though. The motorcycle and horse chase scene was particularly good, and l liked the cheese of things like easily taking over all the resources of their fake NSA for dumb personal use without consequence and Helen killing like 10 guys by dropping an uzi down the stairs. Some whiplash between the James Bond action scenes and the Arnold Schwarzenegger action scenes, but nothing that really bothered me. Probably even made it better.
 
True Lies is Cameron's second best movie, after Terminator 2.

I love Edgar Wright, but True Lies is better than anything he's ever done (I know I'm going to get a lot of shit for saying that but oh well).

I take just as much issue with your first statement as I do the second lol. Putting True Lies above Aliens, Terminator, and Hot Fuzz all in one post in one big mess of bad.
 

karasu

Member
giphy.gif

hahahaa I love that shit. Probably the best side-eye of all time.
 
I take just as much issue with your first statement as I do the second lol. Putting True Lies above Aliens, Terminator, and Hot Fuzz all in one post in one big mess of bad.

I know what I signed up for.

And yeah, True Lies is better than all those movies. Aliens and Hot Fuzz are uneven movies; the first half of Aliens was boring, Hot Fuzz went on for too long, or at least it felt like it did.
 
Cameron's worst movie is Terminator 2
Battle Across Time 3D
.

True Lies has been on tv a lot lately and I've sat through it a few times. It makes for a good background noise movie nowadays but I honestly do kinda cringe at everything about the Crimson Jihad. JLC, Paxton (RIP), and Tom Arnold are honestly why I even sit through it now.
 

GraveRobberX

Platinum Trophy: Learned to Shit While Upright Again.
Bobby has too much time on his hands deconstructing True Lies

For its time, fun movie
Still enjoyable to many people today, I'm Muslim/Pakistani, didn't find it offensive at all
It's shut off your brain for a few hours and go along for the ride

Some just want to be so fucking PC for the thought of being looked and portrayed as PC
 

mantidor

Member
Cameron worst movie is still Avatar, specially if we are weighing in modern views, True Lies has a couple of "problematic" moments, Avatar is the white savior trope to a T.
 
Bobby has too much time on his hands deconstructing True Lies

I mean, it's a Sunday afternoon. Obviously I have spare time on my hands. I'm at GAF. How much spare time you got that you're responding to the fruits of my spare time? I'm nowhere near the first to have deconstructed (if that's what you'd call the train-of-thought I put on a gaming forum on a Sunday afternoon) the film, either.

But this:

Some just want to be so fucking PC for the thought of being looked and portrayed as PC

is kinda horseshit.

Why everyone wanna talk about my clothes and my ulterior SJW motives for sharing thoughts on an action comedy from 1994? I don't get it.

Pick a more recent movie. Hard to argue or even add on to your points when I'm sure a lot of people haven't seen True Lies in many a year.

Then they should go rewatch it! Especially if they dig it that much! I think it's cool people in here are like "I'm gonna go rewatch it right now!" Yes! Do that shit. Lemme know what you thought after that rewatch.
 
I think this film is pretty fun. Arnold & Curtis have great chemistry, and Paxton is good in his role. Also, it's one of Tom Arnold's better part. Yeah, it's of its time, but it still works. My biggest issue is that it's a bit overlong, but the big set-piece at the end is worth it.

It also is one of Arnold's best roles as he actually tries to play an average joe and a super secret spy, and pulls it off quite well.

But Nicholas cage's comedy lines all fall flat. Cringe all up in that movie, but I'll watch it in spite of that.

Yeah, but they work because Cage is delivering them.
 
Hated it even back then. It's not just that a gun falling down the stairs wastes bad guys, the protagonist straddles a fucking jet, or that the main bad dude is strapped to - then launched with a missile. No. It's that on top of all that it's a painfully boring 90s-era terrorist plot where the daughter is kidnapped and the bomb has to be defused before time runs out.
 
Nah, I like Big Trouble way more than I like True Lies. Big Trouble is also nowhere near Carpenter's worst movie.

I really like Temple of Doom, and have argued for it on this board multiple times. Still think it's the 2nd best Indy movie.

Amazing John Williams score, too. I mean, Amazing-er than usually.
Okay, good to know. Temple of Doom is awesome and it seemed like you were on the verge of trashing it.

I actually think BTiLC is overrated and not that great, though, so most people probably don't care about my opinion.
 

Thaedolus

Gold Member
I'm fine with racist stereotype jokes. Because they're jokes. Where you lose me is when dumb fucks take them seriously.

This movie is a self aware comedy. The racist shit doesn't bother me.
 

Aske

Member
I love this movie, but I always found the striptease scene super creepy. Overall though, I'd say it's a thoroughly entertaining action-comedy the likes of which we rarely see these days.

I can't help but feel the OP knew calling it "Cameron's worst movie" was going provoke some strong reactions that would get in the way of discussing the movie on its own merits though.
 

kswiston

Member
One of the best movies to rewatch.

OP is so wrong.

If I am going to rewatch old Arnold films, I would probably go with the Terminators or Predator. I'd probably pick Total Recall and Commando over True Lies as well. I prefer it when Arnold's goofiness is played straight. The Last Action Hero went even further into self-aware territory and it didn't work.
 
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