Review Detail
10.0 13 10
(Updated: December 21, 2023)
Overall rating
10.0
Audio/Video Quality
10.0
Audio Editing
10.0
Visual Editing
10.0
Narrative
10.0
Enjoyment
10.0
The Terminator: Enhanced Edition is fantastic. Right off the bat, all of the future war sequences have been “enhanced,” starting with the opening shot.
I feel the same way about this film as I do about the various special editions of the original Star Wars trilogy. That is, I do miss the cheesiness of the original effects, but I recognize that the new effects look better and are more consistent with the rest of the series, so I welcome them.
I do feel that this edit is darker than the theatrical cut, both visually and tonally. It feels more real, and more like a horror film. More so than the theatrical cut, this version is actually scary.
My only major complaint is that the colors seem to be a little too washed out. It’s especially noticeable in the scene in the parking garage when Reese tells Sarah about her son. In other versions of the film that I own, the colors are very warm. In this version, Sarah looks like she’s dying of hypothermia.
I can’t remember what the Blu-ray looks like, so maybe this is the result of the “extreme teal” being reduced. Not a huge problem, but it does result in a less than ideal viewing experience.
The sprays of blood added to the police station shootout contribute to the more graphically violent “horror movie” tone.
The addition of more flies in the motel scene is an interesting detail, but I don’t know if it helps the film. It’s creepy and bizarre, which kind of works with the new darker tone, but it’s so extreme, it’s almost humorous, and it puts undue emphasis on a series continuity error, since the T-800’s flesh doesn’t rot and attract flies in the sequels the way it does in the original.
The stop-motion animation at the end has been smoothed out, making the T-800 endoskeleton look more real and more terrifying.
Overall, this is a whole new way to experience one of my favorite films of all time, and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
I feel the same way about this film as I do about the various special editions of the original Star Wars trilogy. That is, I do miss the cheesiness of the original effects, but I recognize that the new effects look better and are more consistent with the rest of the series, so I welcome them.
I do feel that this edit is darker than the theatrical cut, both visually and tonally. It feels more real, and more like a horror film. More so than the theatrical cut, this version is actually scary.
My only major complaint is that the colors seem to be a little too washed out. It’s especially noticeable in the scene in the parking garage when Reese tells Sarah about her son. In other versions of the film that I own, the colors are very warm. In this version, Sarah looks like she’s dying of hypothermia.
I can’t remember what the Blu-ray looks like, so maybe this is the result of the “extreme teal” being reduced. Not a huge problem, but it does result in a less than ideal viewing experience.
The sprays of blood added to the police station shootout contribute to the more graphically violent “horror movie” tone.
The addition of more flies in the motel scene is an interesting detail, but I don’t know if it helps the film. It’s creepy and bizarre, which kind of works with the new darker tone, but it’s so extreme, it’s almost humorous, and it puts undue emphasis on a series continuity error, since the T-800’s flesh doesn’t rot and attract flies in the sequels the way it does in the original.
The stop-motion animation at the end has been smoothed out, making the T-800 endoskeleton look more real and more terrifying.
Overall, this is a whole new way to experience one of my favorite films of all time, and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
User Review
Do you recommend this edit?
Yes
Format Watched?
Digital
I