Well, what can be said about this classic. If you have'nt seen or heard of this movie before now than all I can say is that you must live in a shoebox. You either love or hate this movie and if you are in the latter than i'd say you'd be in the minority.

Terminator 2 released in 1991 by Caralco Pictures and directed by James CAMERON (The Abyss,Titanic) was a huge success in movie theaters worldwide. I won't dwell too much about what the story is about because I'm assuming that if you're reading this page then you won't need me to explain it all to you again, but just in case you have lived in that shoebox then briefly it is the sequel to Terminator released in 1984. This time Arnold SCHWARZENEGGER returns as The Terminator not to try and kill Sarah CONNOR (Linda Hamilton) but rather to protect her and her son , the future leader John CONNOR from the most advanced, lethal Termintator ever the T1000.Schwarzenegger said during the making of this film that he would never play another evil character again.

This THX certified DVD version is brought to you courtesy of Live Entertainment and the DVD is packed so full of features that it really shows you what this format is capable of. Although the film was shot full screen in Super 35 the movie is presented in the original Theatrical Letterbox release only (2.35:1) and is anamorphically enhanced for 16x9 televisions. I was a little bit disappointed with this, I like the option of having the Pan & Scan version plus the Letterboxed version on alternate sides of the disc, especially if the film is shot in Super 35 full frame because unless you are lucky enough to own a large or widescreen television the letterboxed image is obviously smaller to fit into the square shaped television.

Don't get me wrong I am against cropped versions of movies and believe you should be seeing what the director intended at all times, but if it's shot in Super 35 full frame, then why not release it in that version or at least include it on the other side of the disc. Okay let's get back to the review, this film is demo quality and is an absolute must for action fans, the image is super clear and sharp. The transfer is a marvel to watch with rich colours, and of course the darker scenes look great and the blacks are deep. The finale in the steel mill looks VERY good with its rich blacks, deep blues and hot, glowing reds and oranges. This disc has almost certainly earned the THX stamp of approval.

The T800's bike jump into the stormwater drain was performed by a stuntman Peter Kent. The motorbike was supported by 1-inch cables, so that when they hit the ground, the bike and rider only weighted 180 pounds. The cables were later digitally erased.

The DVD is also the first to employ the new RSDL technology with the change over or reverse reading commencing in Chapter 43. The change over is detectable but is a fraction of a second and nothing to worry about. The audio track is also presented in Dolby Digital 5.1 plus the usual Pro Logic downmix. The digital soundtrack is excellent in it's own right and for a movie such as this with action from start to finish you'll be glad you invested your hard earned cash into that Digital Receiver. Brad Fiedel's score also benefits a great deal from the DD 5.1 sound on this DVD, the canal chase in particular is set to some unusually intense music having a truly relentless quality which note for note accents the chase on the screen. 

However the bass in the 5.1 track is somewhat lacking, other DVD onwers of this movie have also complained that not enough was being put through that all important .1 subwoofer output and I have to agree, there are a few instances in the movie where it really should have been put to better use as you cannot FEEL it in scenes where you would really expect it. The Prologic version however seems to be okay.

The extras on the disc are presented with moving menus which look great, this really is a great DVD to show your friends who have never seen one as it has the lot. The bios are brief as are the film notes. There is also a teaser and a trailer included and if you watch the trailer first you'll see a major difference in picture quality compared to the actual film and then will appreciate just what a good job has been done on this transfer.

Overall this is a superb DVD that deserves to be in every collection.

Features:- widescreen 2.35 : 1 anamorphic, the disc is also enhanced for 16x9 TVs, it is THX approved, digitally mastered. It has English DD 5.1, English Dolby Stereo 2.0, Spanish Dolby Stereo 2.0 and French Dolby Stereo 2.0. Region 1.