MovieChat Forums > Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991) Discussion > Why I Prefer Terminator 1

Why I Prefer Terminator 1

posted 4 years ago by RedbullSW1 (9)
18 replies | jump to latest

I may be biased because I watched T1 as a child and the second one only much much later, but I always loved how the first one has much more of a horror vibe than the second one. I love the atmosphere. I love love Arnold as a bad guy. Love the slow building score.

I know the action scenes in the second one are a lot better and T2 is a more fun movie than the first with perfect pacing. But there is something so transportative about T1. Also I should say I don't like the kid John Connor in 2 that much. I find him a tiny bit annoying.

[–] TandyMan (11096) 4 years ago

Ha. John Connor is definitely an annoying kid. But he's supposed to be. That's why it works for me.

I find the similarities between T1/T2 and Alien/Aliens to be very interesting since Cameron had a hand in both franchises, turning a horror film into an action blockbuster. I wonder if there isn't a formula there that shouldn't be exploited further. Perhaps a good number of classic horror films would be well served with an action makeover.

[–] actionkamen (23176) 4 years ago

Yeah, they should have made the IT sequel into a more action-oriented movie a la T2 or Aliens. Probably would have fared bettter in the box-office.

[–] GreenGoblinsOck8 (7699) 4 years ago

I watched both as a kid and like both equally. I do prefer Arnold as a good guy and had seen some of his other movies outside Terminator as a kid.

[–] kuatorises (7467) 4 years ago

I don't understand the people who think Furlong was annoying. There's some notoriously bad kid performances in movies. Jake Lloyd, for example. Edward Furlong was not one of them.

[–] 102000 (6248) 4 years ago

Eddie did just fine - I liked him as John.

[–] kuatorises (7467) 4 years ago

Easily one of the better child actor performances, particularly in a more mature movie.

[–] 102000 (6248) 4 years ago

I like T1 the best because it's the only one that is a stand alone story. I love T2, but changes everything at the end - that could have worked, but the sequels certainly screwed up everything.

Too bad that Salvation wasn't a success, that is the direction I would have liked to see the franchise go, (the future war.)

[–] kuatorises (7467) 4 years ago

"I love T2, but changes everything at the end - that could have worked, but the sequels certainly screwed up everything."

T2 doesn't work because the sequels sucked? What, LOL? You can't even count the sequels. They aren't written by Cameron.

[–] Heisenberg (6730) 4 years ago

I think everybody knows what you are talkin about. You are correct on evrything.
I like them equally, but T1 is clearly aiming at a more mature audience.

[–] jakemon45 (1125) 4 years ago

1 is far and away better for me.

[–] AnubisRaydeen (7897) 4 years ago

signed

[–] Ripkens25 (2014) 4 years ago

It's a shame Arnie started wanting to be a good guy in his movies. T1 was a better movie because Arnold was a bad, merciless, menacing nightmare. In T2, he was a softie in comparison.

[–] R_Kane (15828) 4 years ago

Yes, because “softies” sacrifice themselves for the greater good.

Sheesh.

In T2, the Terminator learned how to be human.

[–] Ripkens25 (2014) 4 years ago

The humans could have been the heroes in T2.

Nobody is saying T2 was in any way bad. It's just that some people prefer the darker turn as the T-800 in the first movie, rather than him being John Connor's pet in the second.

[–] GreenGoblinsOck8 (7699) 4 years ago

The humans could have been the heroes in T2.

Except for the fact one of them is just a kid who wouldn't have stood a chance against the Terminator. Frankly Reese died damaging the Terminator enough so that Sarah had a chance of defeating it. And it would've been too similar to the first if Arnold was the villain again.

[–] brucewayne (319) 4 years ago

not really... just the t-1000 did the "horrible" stuff that that Arnie would have done and some of it was truly horrible..plus you want to miss out on Robert Patricks iconic performance?

t1 is a horror movie. t2 is more an action movie

[–] cyguration (3951) 4 years ago

Agreed.

I think about this often and love the retro-horror vibe of Terminator 1. I feel like it's infinitely more watchable than Terminator 2.

The big difference between the two is exactly what you mentioned -- the first film had this foreboding nature about it, as if a threat was always looming around the corner (and it was).

The second film had more of an action-adventure vibe to it.

The second film is fun to watch, but it feels like I could watch Terminator 1 like every other weekend, whereas I could watch Terminator 2 every ten years or so.