Publication Date: 09-25-2026

Terminator 2: Judgment Day (35th Anniversary re-release) review

Dir. James Cameron

By: Steve Pulaski

Rating: ★★★★

NOTE: Seen in theaters in RealD 3D in celebration of the film’s 35th anniversary.

You could reasonably call Terminator 2: Judgment Day the best sequel ever made. You could also call it the best action movie ever made. The fact that I suspect not a soul who has seen the movie would take issue with either of those points shows you how there’s probably no such thing as a hyperbolic take when it comes to James Cameron’s magnum opus.

While Cameron’s ongoing Avatar series might be grossing untold billions and advancing special effects, particularly motion capture technology, to a point that won’t be fully showcased until after one of the all-time great visionary filmmakers is no longer with us, make no mistake, Terminator 2 is the crown jewel of his filmography. Re-released in theaters in conjunction with its 35th anniversary, not even gimmicky RealD 3D can mute the colors, kineticism, fluidity, and explosive power of this motion picture. Take it from me who saw it in the format. While the 3D is justifiably shallower — seeing as this was filmed at a time when the third dimension was not necessary for a film with a nine-figure budget — it still provides a tinge of added flavor to what is already a complete cinematic soufflé.

It’s 2029, and after the Earth has been pillaged following a war between Skynet and humans, there is a youngster who might be our hope after all. He is John Connor (Edward Furlong), spoken about in name only in the first film, here to potentially save the day when paired with the T-800 (Arnold Schwarzenegger) in this one. Connor is the reluctant, Christ-like figure here, despite being a surly teenage boy living with a foster family following the institutionalization of his mother, Sarah (Linda Hamilton). After the T-800 failed to kill Sarah in the last film, he’s now assigned to protect Connor, namely from an evil Terminator comprised of shapeshifting, seemingly impenetrable liquid metal known as the T-1000 (Robert Patrick).

Prior to the Terminator’s arrival, John Connor is your typical bike-riding kid, who shrugs off authority and wonders where his mother is. She, on the other hand, is housed in a mental hospital. Turns out, authorities, social workers, and hospital personnel alike don’t take to kindly to a volatile woman screaming about the nuclear holocaust and robots running the world.

I know that the Terminator 2 script had to be well-over 100 pages long, but that being said, impressive is the fluidity of this sequel on part of writers Cameron and William Wisher. “Fluidity” kept coming to mind when watching the film on a gorgeous silver screen. There’s a natural pacing to the story that makes typically predictable chase sequences whisk by with the kind of ferociousness they demand in order to be felt. Consider one of the film’s major ones, in which the Terminator and John are barreling down a California reservoir on a motorcycle with the T-1000 in hot pursuit. It’s a nimble as it is crafty, with Cameron’s propensity for varied camera angles, knick-of-time happenstance, and spatial clarity on full display. It’s almost more than a well-devised action sequence. It’s a full-blown adrenaline rush.

Integral to Terminator 2‘s success — what makes the action feel weighty and consequential, I’d add — is the way in which the Terminator grows to become a father figure for John. Overtime, the young boy learns that the Terminator is programmed to follow his instructions, and obliges when John asks him to stop killing people. From there, he shoots to injure or scare, and he’s arguably better than any pet John for which he could’ve asked. Beyond that, however, the conversations they have are akin to that of a father-and-son, and with John being a bastard, this violent, indestructible weapon is the closest paternal figure he has. And in true fashion, even the Terminator learns from the kid, including why humans cry.

The Terminator is a tough character to portray with his steely eyes, impossibly stoic demeanor, and guttural line delivery. In Terminator 2, Schwarzenegger takes on that of a straight man in what is a significantly more dramatic movie than the first film. In time, this odd couple pairing breaks Sarah out of the hospital and the three create a family unit as strong as one you’d find in a sweet and sincere drama.

Also outstanding in the film is Robert Patrick, who personifies shapeshifting evil. Even 35 years later, the scenes in which he reforms himself by way of liquid metal is entrancing thanks to the brilliant effects work by George Lucas’ Industrial Light & Magic. If Patrick’s T-1000 is shot in his chest, a gaping hole exists for a matter of seconds before it’s repaired, rendering him unharmed. The first time you watch this film, there’s a good chance you spend at least a few minutes mulling over the ways in which he could be killed, if that’s possible. So rarely does a sci-fi movie harbor something so impossible that it makes you assess the potential outcomes by virtue of the logic it creates. As a result, it’s Patrick who sells this character with ceaseless (and literal) forward motion, undiscouraged, unfazed, and the kind of resistance that prompts fear above any emotion.

There are many great action and sci-fi movies out there. There have been many great movies of both genres since 1991. But Terminator 2: Judgment Day is among an elite class of movies that defies hyperbole. It’s every bit as great as you can sell it, and in doing so, there’s a chance you still might come up short.

Starring: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Edward Furlong, Linda Hamilton, and Robert Patrick. Directed by: James Cameron.