Terminator 2 – Judgement Day: 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray Review
The Movie:
Terminator 2: Judgment Day shattered the definition of action-filmmaking to become one of the most celebrated sequels of all time. Even in an age of anything-is-possible digital blockbuster filmmaking – with onscreen action often entirely fabricated and “unreal” – T2 remains a touchstone for both filmmakers and movie fans on the use of visual effects, fusing high-tech thrills with an emotional and compelling story.
There’s not a lot that can be said about this film that hasn’t already been said a million times. It’s a phenomenal piece of work that blends everything that I love about science fiction and action movies. It’s very rare that a sequel tops the original film and its sequels thereafter. Don’t get me wrong, I really loved the original (the other sequels were pretty bad………Okay, Salvation was pretty decent) but T2 is on another level. To say that I love this movie is an understatement. As a kid I think I must’ve wore out at least 3 VHS tapes because I watched it so much. There have been many releases of this title over the years but this is one of the better ones. There’s actually 3 versions of the film (we’ll get to that in the Special Features section) on the disc and just that aspect alone is worth the price of this release. If for some reason you haven’t seen T2 at all then I urge you to pick this up as soon as possible because it really is a piece of cinematic history. 10/10
4K Presentation:
I was a bit conflicted with the 4K presentation of this release. In some cases the color grading improvements looks really nice and make scenes look quite vivid (ex: T-800 POV scanning) but then in other cases they’ve added a green-ish tint to other scenes that make it look kind of odd. Now there is some nice clarity throughout various scenes which is impressive but from what I could tell it wasn’t present during the entire film. So this release really feels like it’s a 50/50 scenario. It’s not terrible but it isn’t the best either.
Special Features:
Special Edition Version – Comes with a warning that picture and sound quality could be different than the Theatrical version.
Extended Special Edition Version – A bit longer than the SE version and comes with the same warning beforehand.
T2: Reprogramming The Terminator – An excellent feature that talks about the film and includes BTS footage as well as interviews with the cast and crew.
The Making of T2 – A “Making Of” feature from 1993.
Deleted Scenes – Two scenes that have optional commentary with either Robert Patrick and James Cameron or Stan Winston, Linda Hamilton and James Cameron.
Cast and Crew Commentary
Director James Cameron and Co-Writer William Wisher Commentary
