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[x-Lundz-x]

T1 had much better sense of desperation in the protags fighting to stay alive, and of course Michael Biehn is awesome. But man it looked dated even in the 90's.

T2 still stands as one of the best action films ever made and can still easily stand with the best tent pole films today in wow factor. The action, pacing, acting are all top notch. I mean some of the special effects are starting to show their age, but the helicopter scene, my god that still looks futuristic even by today's CGI.

T2 hands down is the better flick.

 

[PhoncipleBone]

The first is a lean and efficient beast. It just keeps moving, and the tension almost never lets up. It was definitely scarier than the second one.

They are both fantastic films, and I would put them both on pretty equal footing.

 

[AlexBasch]

Downgrade.

Add Nick Stahl to this series and you'll have gone from awesome to eww.


I really loved the synth soundtrack of T1, which I watched around 2001 for some reason, I grew up watching T2 countless times.

 

[nullset2]

I just watched both T's recently, both really nice flicks but truly the second one is just the first one with the effects, story, setting, characterization, music, etc. cranked up to eleven. And everyone is super lovable in the second, which I can't say for the first!

Also, the first one has aged bad in some places, CG being the biggest one of them, something that doesn't happen at all in the second. Second is best.

 

[VeryGooster]

I always enjoy the bombastic tones and explosive set-pieces of T2, but how grounded The Terminator is in comparison appeals to me more. The story feels more personal, and the stakes feel higher.

 

[Count Dookkake]

I just watched both T's recently, both really nice flicks but truly the second one is just the first one with the effects, story, setting, characterization, music, etc. cranked up to eleven. And everyone is super lovable in the second, which I can't say for the first!

Also, the first one has aged bad in some places, CG being the biggest one of them, something that doesn't happen at all in the second. Second is best.

Please, tell me about the CG in the first one.

 

[Toa TAK]

I like both equally. They're different but they both accomplish what they wanted to do to perfection.

 

[shadyspace]

I came to this realization when I was like 12

 

[bob_arctor]

Huh. It was never a question for me. The first is tighter, more brutal, and Arnold is straight terrifying. Tech Noir and Police station scenes seal the deal with ease.

 

[F0rneus]

Also, the first one has aged bad in some places, CG being the biggest one of them

The CG is so good, I have never seen it!

 

[Chinner]

Please, tell me about the CG in the first one.

sarah connors breasts are cgi

 

[EatChildren]

And when Arnie stalks down Sarah's apartment and murders Ginger and her boyfriend, it's all PUNCH PUNCH SCREAM BANG BANG BANG and dark and messy and awesome.

 

[nullset2]

Please, tell me about the CG in the first one.

Well, perhaps it'd be more appropiate to call them "effects" or "tricks"... Like the lightning effects they use to simulate laser shots, they look kinda bad compared to modern standards. I appreciate them for what they were in its age of course, but they have definitely aged.

Also, there's several props/set pieces they use in several scenes that look super laughable. Mannequin-like style stuff. There was this scene where the terminator slides in the pavement for a long distance, made me laugh super hard at how awkward it looked in comparison to modern standards. Also the scene where a "metal claw" tries to reach Sarah, ultra laughable too for the same reason, too.

I always enjoy the bombastic tones and explosive set-pieces of T2, but how grounded The Terminator is in comparison appeals to me more. The story feels more personal, and the stakes feel higher.

Yes, this is precisely how I feel about the first movie, too! It is by no means bad... personally enjoy T2 a lot more, though

Have you seen the new blu-ray release? I thought they did a pretty good job of cleaning it up. I mean, it's still obvious when a dummy is used or something, but I thought the Kyle/Endoskeleton fight at the end looked way better.

Dang, I haven't seen that. I'd love to see if it holds up to snuff...

 

[Hero_of_the_Day]

IAlso, the first one has aged bad in some places, CG being the biggest one of them, something that doesn't happen at all in the second. Second is best.

Have you seen the new blu-ray release? I thought they did a pretty good job of cleaning it up. I mean, it's still obvious when a dummy is used or something, but I thought the Kyle/Endoskeleton fight at the end looked way better.

 

[Count Dookkake]

Well, perhaps it'd be more appropiate to call them "effects" or "tricks"...

If by "more appropriate" you mean "not wrong," then ok.

 

[Andrew.]

And when Arnie stalks down Sarah's apartment and murders Ginger and her boyfriend, it's all PUNCH PUNCH SCREAM BANG BANG BANG and dark and messy and awesome.

He let the iguana live...

 

[F0rneus]

And when Arnie stalks down Sarah's apartment and murders Ginger and her boyfriend, it's all PUNCH PUNCH SCREAM BANG BANG BANG and dark and messy and awesome.

There's something awfully grim about how the Terminator empties his guns into the various "Sarah Connors" (Ginger included). It makes him feel so cold and terrifying. That's something that not even the (legendary in his own right) T1000 could ever make me feel. No matter the cooler powers, or better effects. They can't replace that feeling of utter ruthlessness.

 

[Enosh]

my opinion
T:SCC>T2>salvation>t1>t3

 

[GSG Flash]

T1 was great and ahead of it's time, but T2 is god tier.

 

[weekend_warrior]

Well you should, it's the better one.

 

[Chinner]

And when Arnie stalks down Sarah's apartment and murders Ginger and her boyfriend, it's all PUNCH PUNCH SCREAM BANG BANG BANG and dark and messy and awesome.

Kyle Reese accurately summaries Terminator 1's approach to violence:

You still don't get it, do you? He'll find her! That's what he does! That's ALL he does! You can't stop him! He'll wade through you, reach down her throat and pull her fuckin' heart out!

In Terminator 2, Arnie is barney the dinosaur and the T1000 is just a dork.

 

[Hero_of_the_Day]

my opinion
T:SCC>T2>salvation>t1>t3

So. I guess opinions can, in fact, be wrong.

 

[PumpkinPie]

I used to like T2 more when I was young, but now that I'm grown up I prefer T1. I like the moody atmosphere, the neon lights etc. The soundtrack perfectly captures the feeling of fear and helplessness, like the thing will never stop chasing them.

 

[Count of Monte Sawed-Off]

The Terminator is definitely the better movie. It's not even close for me.

 

[gregor7777]

T1 is superior. It's simple, tense, and Arnold plays a great villian in his prime.

I like T2 just fine, but T1 is a better movie.

 

[nullset2]

If by "more appropriate" you mean "not wrong," then ok.

Lol I dun goof'd by calling them CG.

 

[F0rneus]

my opinion
T:SCC>T2>salvation>t1>t3

You can literally hear the people who were arguing a few seconds ago about T1 vs T2, just going silent and blankly staring, haha

 

[VARIA]

T2 is the superior film, no contest.

It's my favorite sweded film too:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4mTCgIHpQXE

 

[AlexBasch]

There's something awfully grim about how the Terminator empties his guns into the various "Sarah Connors" (Ginger included). It makes him feel so cold and terrifying. That's something that not even the (legendary in his own right) T1000 could ever make me feel. No matter the cooler powers, or better effects. They can't replace that feeling of utter ruthlessness.

Can't help but feel bad about the gun shop guy too.

The guy carries on with his day, a tall, menacing looking guy steps in, shows him the guns, you'd think you're gonna have an awesome sale but nope, he's loading a gun, oh shit.

 

[PhoncipleBone]

There was a greater feeling of hopelessness in the original. Like you just could not stop Arnold, no matter what. The T-1000 had that feeling, but you knew by the end Arnold would stop it. In T1, Kyle and Sarah had very little they could use against the Terminator and slow him down.

The entire final sequence from when the Terminator comes out of the burning wreckage of the truck is so intense, and more intense than the ending refinery battle in T2.

Even when you think they killed the Terminator and blew it up, it isn't over. Kyle is dead. Sarah is wounded. But the metal fucker still keeps coming. Crawling with its hands to try and get her. And damn did it feel fucking great when she traps it in the press.
"You're terminated, fucker!"


Yeah, I need to rewatch them both. Both so awesome.

 

[Andrew.]

my opinion
T:SCC>T2>salvation>t1>t3

 

[NekoFever]

A couple of my friends share your opinion, OP. It's more common than you'd think.

I think they're so different that it becomes apples and oranges. One is horror and the other is all-out blockbuster action.

I do prefer Terminator 2 and would put it in my top five movies of all time, but I still won't hear anything bad against The Terminator.

 

[Tatsumaki Senpuukyaku!]

They should have made the arnold model the villain again in T3. Have john conner being hunted down by his only father figure. Would have been interesting.

Shame about what we got

 

[Ataraxia]

Downgrade.

Upgrade.

 

[PhoncipleBone]

Terminator 1 had Paxton. Terminator 2 did not.

T1 wins again.

 

[Roland Deschain]

Love both but prefer the first.

 

[KennyLinder]

Terminator 1 had Paxton. Terminator 2 did not.

T1 wins again.

Shame he only had a small part, maybe he was busy shooting something else so just went in for a small part.

 

[Guzim]

my opinion
T:SCC>T2>salvation>t1>t3

As for me, there are some days where I think T1 is the better film, and there are other days where I think T2 is better. They're both great films.

 

[squidhands]

Terminator 2 did nothing better than the original Terminator. Bigger and squeakier louder? Sure.

 

[PhoncipleBone]

Shame he only had a small part, maybe he was busy shooting something else so just went in for a small part.

Remember that this was when Paxton and Cameron were nobodies. Thankfully, Cameron delivered lots of Paxton in Aliens.

 

[andthebeatgoeson]

funny enough yesterday someone made a thread about it.

http://m.neogaf.com/showthread.php?t=643683

That's the joke

 

[JB1981]

"Hey buddy .. did you just see a real .. bright .. light?"

 

[Sojgat]

I came to this realization when I was like 12

This.

 

[User 406]

As well as all the other good points in here about how The Terminator is better than its sequel, the simple fact that T2 straight up violated the causality of the first move is unforgivable. The Terminator had a nice internally consistent time loop, and T2 threw it all out the window just so we could have our happy ending of no nuclear war. I also think this is one of the first examples of how action movies started to lose the strong nihilistic streak they had during the Cold War. When T2 was released, the Berlin Wall had gone down, relations with the USSR were better than they'd ever been, and in fact the USSR would dissolve shortly afterwards. Movies like The Terminator exemplify the mood of living under endless nuclear threat, T2 and later action films had a far more hopeful tone.

 

[daviyoung]

It's an eternal 80s kid vs 90s kid debate.

Only millenials will have a more objective viewpoint, but even that would be skewed because T2 is more TV friendly.

Guess we'll never go, except those of us that do know. And we know that history will admire T2 and view T1 as its lesser prototype.

 

[Scoot2005]

What sets Judgement Day apart in my opinion are the special effects. They were groundbreaking back then and still hold up well today. Seeing the T1000 walking through metal bars in the mental hospital nearly gave me nightmares as a child. Never has a film conveyed the dread of being stalked so perfectly; that no matter what you did you couldn't get away or be protected from your nemesis - even in a hospital or police station. And the dream sequence with the playground on fire. The only thing really scary about the original Terminator is Sarah Conor's hair.

Wasn't T2 the first movie to use CG effects throughout an entire movie. Could be totally wrong here.

 

[Darkgran]

You are correct OP

When I first saw T2 in the theater in 1991 I had no idea that Arnold was a "good guy" and to be honest I was kinda pissed about it.

 

[daviyoung]

Wasn't T2 the first movie to use CG effects throughout an entire movie. Could be totally wrong here.

Tron?

 

[Not Spaceghost]

T1 is superior. It's simple, tense, and Arnold plays a great villian in his prime.

I like T2 just fine, but T1 is a better movie.

I agree with this, the very simple premise to T1 makes it a far more "timeless classic" than T2. T2 is easily one of the best examples of a follow up done right, but T1 just has a more complete feeling.

Also tits.

 

[PhoncipleBone]

Wasn't T2 the first movie to use CG effects throughout an entire movie. Could be totally wrong here.

It was one of the first prominent examples for photorealistic CGI, but many movies had employed CGI before. Star Trek II and Young Sherlock Holmes for example.

I think T2 does have the distinction of being the first movie to have digital wire removal though. They had to digitally erase the wires holding up the bike as Arnie (well, the stuntman) jumped off the road and into the ravine.

I think it was also one of the first to digitally correct backgrounds. During the same ravine chase, they had to use the mirror image of a shot of the truck, but doing so made all the signs backwards. They had to use CGI to correct the signs.