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What are your favorite Arnold Schwarzenegger films?

The Terminator. It's a very dark, moody film, and a cautionary tale I guess. The deleted scenes reveal even more about this aspect of this film I think. Outside of that...I think the so-called "neo-noir" aspect attracts me the most. I like films and series that often take place during the night, and especially ones of the 80s (like Miami Vice). In my opinion superior to Terminator 2: Judgement Day.

Commando is just a pure blast I think. Yes, it is regarded as a action film, but I believe all the one-liners and overall humor outweighs that aspect of the film. I also love all the familiar faces, like Bill Duke, David Patrick Kelly, and Dan Hedaya.

Predator is a good balance between action, sci-fi, and horror I think. One-liners like "knock knock" are unforgettable, as are the quite uncomfortable aspects, like the Predator behind the mask.

The Philip K. Dick's novel-based Total Recall is pure class I think. Very well produced, and a very impressive film for the time. It's one of those films that you see current technology catching up with, even though the film's depiction of it seems more friendly and utopian. Also stars the great Michael Ironside, and Sharon Stone in one of her most attractive appearances.

Terminator 2: Judgement Day was the film that ignited my interest in all of the films I mentioned above. Very moving film while also being visually spectacular. It will always be a reference point for me to the very early 90s.

Last Action Hero. A film that in my opinion aged extremely well. Yes, it is basically a tribute/parody of all the action film craze preceding it; makes fun of it, and yet remains interesting and very funny. I saw it in theaters at the time, enjoyed it, but my reception afterwards didn't match it. Nowadays I regard it as one of the finest films of the 90s.

I've also seen True Lies and Eraser in theaters, and liked them as well (especially the former).

What are yours GAF?
 
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StreetsofBeige

Gold Member
1. Total Recall (Sharon Stone hot)

2. True Lies (Tia Carrere hot)

3. T2

4. Predator

5. Eraser (Vanessa Williams hot)

6. Running Man

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Other than Red Heat I pretty much enjoy all of Arnold's output from 82-91.

My top choices are pretty close to the op though.

The Terminator - Does this even need an explanation? =P

Predator - Perfectly executed movie from direction to cast to soundtrack. First half alone is a solid action movie where the toughest mother fuckers alive obliterate a guerrilla force. They've never managed to make a Predator movie that comes even remotely close to this one and I don't think they ever will.

Total Recall - Verhoeven follows up Robocop with a Philip K. Dick adaption starring Arnold. How can you lose? You can't. Excellently crafted action movie with some additional depth you didn't see too often with many action movies of the era. Also fun to listen to the commentary track with Arnold and Verhoeven, as each take a different stance on "Dream or not?" perspective and commentate accordingly.

Conan The Barbarian - One of the only movies in this genre I truly like. John Milius gives us a great looking movie, a great cast and endlesslelsy quotable dialogue. Most important is Basil Poledouris's score, which is legendary and elevates this movie considerably. The movie itself is not really all that in line with Howard's yarns but it maintains the spirit and is basically a Frazetta painting realized in movie form. Can't fault that.

Commando - This movie is absurd from start to finish. It's stupid, over the top and it knows this yet is completely sincere with it's approach, making it a joy to watch. It also has one of my favorite pieces of dialogue:

"Now that is American workmanship. You think the Japanese invented that? Bullshit. We did. Oh, for a while there we lost it. But we got it back!" Pure 80s.
 
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My favorite Arnie movies are Terminator 2: Judgment Day, The Terminator, and True Lies.

Predator, Total Recall, and Last Action Hero were just okay, in my opinion.
 
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Terminator 2 is my favorite but i have a soft spot for the last action hero....it's peak Arnold and it so self aware and plays off that

I would love to see a deadpool like r rated version
 
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S

slugbahr

Unconfirmed Member
Get to da choppa!
Sarah Connor?
This saw is a part o' me. And I'm gonna make it part of you!
Come with me if you want to live.
It's not a tooma!
Let off some steam, Bennett!
...to hear the lamentation of their women.

Also...

...it was called, "The Girl of my Dreams"
 
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GV82

Member
No Particular order

Predator still looks good to this day, by setting it in the Jungle it doesn’t look dated, unlike The Thing & Alien (not a knock on either movie) in some scenes like the technology scenes date those two films & some of the effects look slightly dated but that’s the fun of them, but ALL 3 of these films (and Aliens) are amazing and are my Favourite Sci-Fi/Horror Movies which feature Aliens of all time.

True Lies - James Bond for Hollywood, James Cameron’s Last Best Movie for me, not into what he has put out since, great action scenes, one of the Arnold Movoes where I don’t care as much for the main villain as a character, was kind of just alright.

Commando - great Arnold Movie with great one liners & Matrix is just a fun bad guy.

T2 - I love this film a lot, I just wish Cameron hadn’t gone soft with this one, the first one was more Violent than this one, so he toned down the Horror elements of the first & made it more of an adventure, still an amazing film but if he just put a tad more Horror into T2, say let Arnies Terminator kill people at first, Maybe John could have programmed him in present day rather than the future or maybe he could have malfunctioned would have pushed it even over the edge for me, (yes I know they did that in T3 at the end but this would have been in a superior movie) that said early to mid 90’s Action films were toned down a tad for a while until Tarintino came along & made them a bloody violent mess again.
never mind best Arnie films, how great is Robert Patrick as the T-1000?

Terminator - I love this one the most still because it is a Horror Sci-Fi Movie, a Stalker/Killer Movie where the Bad Guy is actually a Robot & there is no friendly robot there to protect, only a vulnerable human Arnie is the Villain in this, which I love.

Total Recall is just a fun Sci-Fi tomb, “get your ass to Mars”, Sharon Stone is in this & Michael Ironside too? Man Ironside is a great actor sometimes under appreciated he needs a Big Role again.

Jingle All the Way - for when I am in the mood for a Christmas movie with Arnie one liners, Put the cookies down & Phil Hartman too RIP.

Last Action Hero - I didn’t see this one until last year, because I had heard nothing but bad things about it, but I actually enjoyed it, I didn’t take it too seriously and enjoyed it for what it was silly Action/adventure film, maybe at the time it didn’t work for people, almost spoofing the genre. Charles dance Great Villain.


Man I love some of the Villains in Arnie Movies, that’s what makes the best ones for me.

Also I don’t think I have seen any Arnie movie past the 6th day apart from expendables & the terminator films.
 
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VulcanRaven

Member
The Terminator
Commando
Total Recall
Predator
True Lies
The 6th Day

Its very underrated. Great movie:
51TW6WNWQDL.jpg


I haven't seen the Conan movies. I need to watch them at some point.
 
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For one actor to have so many loved and classic movies, speaks volumes for the collective love of Arnie and his golden period (not seeing the love for the last stand, expendables, escape plan, or even the end of days or 6th day)

But when he struck gold, he was at the top of the pile. I mean almost any actor would be proud to have a predator, total recall, or commando to their name.

Let alone a Conan, true lies, or terminator 1 or 2

Even lesser films are still very watchable (red heat, raw deal)

Even the likes of twins, junior (meddling with science) or the last action hero (meta, before there was a meta) were ahead in the future thinking and disguised as comedies or action movies
 
Terminator 1
Terminator 2
Commando
Predator
Total Recall
True Lies

Those are the gold standard, however my biggest gap in Arnold knowledge is the Conan films, which I've surprisingly never seen and I've seen obscure ones like Red Heat and Raw Deal.

Raw Deal, let me tell you, has to be seen to be believed, it's not a genuinely good movie but it's easily the most bizarre movie he ever did, there's so many bizarre lines and "WTF?" moments.
 

TGO

Hype Train conductor. Works harder than it steams.
Other then the ones people have mentioned already.
I've got a soft spot for the one that people don't like

Arnie telling Lucifer as it is.
 
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Paltheos

Member
Not so hot on True Lies. I always thought it was too light on the action and a little too self-aware. My favorites are probably...

Total Recall
Commando
Running Man

Roughly that order.
 

Cravis

Member
I can watch all his early output endlessly.

I think some of his later works like the 6th Day and End of Days, while nowhere near the caliber of his earlier output, are severely underrated.
 

#Phonepunk#

Banned
first Predator is a straight classic

personally my favorite of his films is Conan the Barbarian. still one of the best dark fantasies of all time.

but he has been in a lot of great. stuff. <3 Arnold
 

pr0cs

Member
Like Tom Cruise Arnie has had a lot of great movies that played to the type of persona that suits his demeanour .

Red Heat
Terminator 1&2
Running Man
Total Recall
True Lies
Predator
Commando

I mean, Arnie has been a staple of my youth being a child of the 80s, I remember lining up to see his movies though not till high school since prior to then they were pretty picky about kids watching R rated movies in theaters. Didn't stop us from renting all his movies at the video store though.
 

Kadayi

Banned
Conan the Barbarian

Not so much for Arnold tbh, but It's a really well-done film. Beautifully shot and conceived with a quotable script from Oliver Stone coupled with a cracking soundtrack: -



Could have been a proper long-running franchise ala Bond or SW, but the producers decided to shit the bed and go for the comedy factor with the sequel, unfortunately.

As for the rest, well Predator is top-notch and Total Recall, though again I think with both of those good direction is a huge factor.
 
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