T2 was the first R rated movie I saw in theaters at 13 years old. My buddy’s dad bought tickets for us and dropped us off. Was a kick ass movie, still is!
I remember my dad (single father of 3 boys) would rent a VCR and always get "The Terminator". He'd always joke he got "Love is a many splendid thing" but it was always "the Terminator".
My favorite part is how we didn't see 5 two and a half minute trailers in the run up to the release of a movie. You'd be lucky to see 1 minute of it before it came out. Now, I can pretty much see an entire movie from the trailers. Not much reason to go see it.
I dont remember the first one when it came out (xennial) but T2 was a fucking scene.
One thing younger generations never experienced was homogenized pop culture.
You couldn't escape it if you wanted to. And, in this case, you didnt want to.
This movie turned a villian into the good guy. This movie was turned into a book (never see it that way). This movie was doing some incredible groundbreaking work with CGI.
At the time, I believe it was the biggest marketing budget ever.
Groceries were more affordable, politicians could disagree but still talk to each other, you could get on an airplane with your water bottle, without taking off your shoes while people scanned you, you could buy a modest home on a modest salary, People still smoked indoors everywhere, girls had huge hair, guys had huge hair, gas was around a buck a gallon, and payphones were still a thing.
I'll never forget being six years old and being told about The Terminator in graphic detail from my best friend who was the same age and basically being raised by his sixteen year old sister who took him to see every r rated movie that came out at the time. As someone who was only allowed to watch family friendly content just hearing about it secondhand was mindblowing and also maybe game me nightmares at the time. One thing I still remember all these years later is that my friend seemed to be obsessed with Arnold's sunglasses in the movie.
T2 was awesome. I was in the cinema with my sister and some mates. She got the wrong end of the stick in that it still had ashtrays on the seats. So she lit up. All good so we all did. Got told off 2 ciggies in but it was all good as the first 15 mins was blurry and they were panicking as everyone was kicking off. Different world back then
Does everyone realize if SkyNet hadn't gone after Sarah Connor, her son never would have been born. They created their own problem which was actually a paradox because how could John Connor be born if they hadn't gone after her, so he shouldn't have been there to begin with to send Kyle back too who then becomes his father.
I'm sure another leader may have been born, but not John Connor. Sarah Connor may still have given birth to a leader, but not John Connor. Is that what you mean when you say one possible future...?
Time travel stories are always a paradox (the "Grandfather Paradox"), I was quoting Reese's line in T1. Cameron had enough awareness of the paradoxical nature of time travel to throw that line in.
First one was absolutely amazing for the overall feels.
The second one didn’t deliver in the way the first one did, however it wasn’t that far off when bolstered with its stunning directing, choreography, film craft and digital effects.
Oh man !!! I was 18 when the 2 came out and visited USA for the first time with my parents. Pay per view TV in the hotel had one but being me completely ignorant about Pay per View I've kept ordering the movie to watch everytime we were done visiting for the day. It cam out an outrageous bill but my dad was able to negotiate that at check out lol...
I didn't see a single terminator movie after T2. I just knew they would suck. The story was over at that point and there was no more need to continue to series.
I kinda enjoyed terminator salvation tbh. It takes a different approach and isn’t quite the same as what we expect from the first two movies, but imo it has its own charm.
T3 I thought the ending was most memorable, ironically.
The other movies though, I honestly don’t think they werent that special or memorable.
The first one is more of a suspense film really, and in a way it does qualify as a horror movie - there’s an evil creature hunting them down and it is full of psychological terror.
the terminator was a sleeper hit, but the media attention for T2 was unreal, it was everywhere, it was on the even on the cover of magazines that had nothing to do with movies.
When The Terminator came out in 1984 it was released with little Fanfare and quickly became a sleeper hit ... on the other hand T2 thanks to seven years of buzz about the original film was released in 1991 as a massive Blockbuster and it lived up to its billing, it was swarmes by audiences and praised by critics on release, a very big deal in the summer of 1991.
Came here to say this. No one I knew saw The Terminator when it was first released. Came off as just another 80’s scfi movie. There was a lot of surprise in my circle when they did the sequel. Once it came out though everyone loved it! Pretty much nothing but disappointment after though.
People nowadays don't realize that relatively few people saw Terminator 1 in the theaters - it became what it is now over years of "cult movie" reputational development and on cable and TV. When it came out, few people were fans of Arnold OR Cameron and there aren't big actor names in the movie. While it was moderately successful at the BO, it was only the 20th grossing film of that year (behind such movies as Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan, Breakin' and Bachelor Party), and was even kicked out of #1 place by Oh God, You Devil!
I was 14 in '91, and T2 was a phenomenon. My friend group consisted of a system of Dads with two VCRs, so we had everything. Rec/Play. Boom.
"Dad, I'm taking T2, and Top Gun to Jimmy's house. I'll bring them back. I promise. Danny and Donny are bringing Alien, Die Hard, Stand by Me, Jaws, and an old copy of that Heraldo debacle. Jimmy's Mom said it's ok."
My best friend's dad was a huge audiophile and electronics geek; the guy had a badass home-theater setup in their basement, complete with a big projection screen and a crazy surround sound system. And he had somehow gotten his hands on a promotional copy of T2 on laserdisc before it even came out in theaters. I'd still like to know how, but he was also a massive software pirate & went to tech/trade shows all the time, and I always figured maybe that's where he obtained it.
So anyways, he kept teasing us about it because we were huge Terminator and Schwarzenegger fan boys, and he knew being the first ones in our whole school to see Terminator 2 would be pretty huge socially. Plus he'd already watched it, and he really rubbed it in about how unbelievably awesome the movie was, but that we weren't old enough for R-rated movies yet. And so we started to become terrified that everyone else would get to see it way before we ever could, because our parents never took us to the theaters unless it was a Disney or kids movie.
Then a couple weeks later I was spending the night over at my friend's house, and that Saturday night out of nowhere, his dad asked us if we wanted to watch a movie in the basement. That was super unusual because normally us kids were only allowed to watch movies on the upstairs TV & VCR. I know we both hoped it would be Terminator 2, but we didn't want to show how excited we were & tried to play it cool, just in case he'd change his mind for whatever reason, because the man was kind of a dick like that.
So we went downstairs and sat on the big comfy reclining couch in front of the screen, almost vibrating with anticipation. His dad closed the door, stuck the laserdisc in the player, turned the lights down, turned the volume up, and hit start on the remote.....
When that terminator foot slammed down & crushed the skull, we both damn near jumped out of our skins. Then the camera pans up to show the Terminator, the battle in the beginning, the laser blasts, explosions, and eerie discordant music/horns in the background, all of it just about melted my brains out of my earholes. The sound & picture quality was so far beyond anything I'd ever experienced, and the sheer awesomeness of the whole movie was something I literally had dreams about. And I swore one day I'd own a home-theater system like that.
The next Monday at school we couldn't wait to tell our friends that we'd watched Terminator 2, how badass & crazy good it was, about how the Terminator was actually trying to rescue John Connor & fight the insane liquid metal T-1000.... and of course none of them believed us. When it finally came out in theaters and they started to go see it, everyone wanted to know how the hell we'd gotten to watch it first. The amount of nerd clout we got was astronomical lol.
Also, it was the first & last movie his dad ever let us watch in his home theater. The guy was super protective & anal about his electronics & equipment, to the point of paranoia almost. Though I guess that was the one movie he couldn't keep to himself, and it kinda felt like he was showing off a bit too. But I still get goosebumps thinking about the experience to this day, and watching T2 was definitely a good way to have it.
Nobody has the charisma and screen presence that seven time Mr. Universe, Arnold Schwarzenegger has. I read that a director said that Arnold's body is one of their greatest props, and it's true. That's why it seems so ridiculous to me when they remake his old movies. Nobody can carry those roles and bring the same serious yet funny presence that he did. Not even Chris Hemsworth, or Dwayne Johnson can replace Arnold on the silver screen. I feel lucky that I was able to grow up watching his movies.
Seeing T2 in the theater with the morphing T-1000 effect was absolutely mindblowing. The scene where the T-1000 sort of melts through the bars left everyone in the theater stunned.
My experience was kinda lessened by a dude a couple rows behind me who had a braingasm any time the T-1000 did literally anything and would go “WHOOOAAAAA” and “WOOOOOOWWWWW” at the top of his lungs.
Terminator 2 was a pop-culture event. I remember buying the comic-book adaptation as well as the Meltdown tie-in candies that I swear burned a hole in my tongue. 😂
T2 in the theater was great. The t-1000 effects were next level. It was the kind of effect that would normally be a cartoon drawing or something. Jurassic park was also pretty great. As far as seeming somewhat realistic. It’s funny to watch t2 now. It’s nostalgic. Remembering how cool it was at the time.
I didn't see T1 in the theaters, but I did see T2 on or near opening night, and it was the best theater experience I can remember. Fully packed, no spoilers because no internet, everyone cheered at the right places, but no one was talking over the movie. Everyone gasped at the T1000 getting thrown into the wall and then shifting back to facing Arnold. It was amazing and I remember it better than Infinity War and Endgame (which were also great).
I seen Terminator on VHS, but remember the hype on Terminator 2. It was huge. Sadly none of us could see it, but remember Arnold getting interviews all over the place.
I remember watching The Terminator multiple times on video cassette. And waiting on a long line when T2 opened. Everyone was so excited and it was amazing.
The original was a staple of sleepovers in my friend group. We rented the vhs every couple weeks and rotated whose house we stay at. We were all about 9 years old, my friend Mike called it "The Interminator" because he must have mixed it up with an exterminator or something.
We stayed up all night watching Terminator and randomly sneaking out to roam the neighborhood. Those were the days.
I was in LA when T1 came out. I know this sounds silly, but it freaked me out. It seemed so real.
T2 felt fun and awesome. No, let me rephrase that.
A movie comes out that you KNOW is fantasy, but fun. Good guys win. You hear about it everywhere. You can see the movie for next to nothing and enjoy popcorn and a soda with your friends for, also, next to nothing. You can visit a theme park, for next to nothing, and pretend you're an extra in the whole thing- for next to nothing.
That was the 90's. It was just fantastic. I hope we get back, and if we do, I'll see you there.
The Terminator was like an instant cult classic, but I missed it b/c I was a kid.
T2 was a freaking phenomenon. A total saturation of music videos, tv specials about the fx, the shooter video game was in every arcade and movie theater lobby, Arnoldmania swept the World, and we loved every minute of it! My bestie and I still quote T2 to this day.
The Terminator was legit in theaters when it came out in ‘84. It was kinda like seeing The Matrix or Jurassic Park for me, ya just knew this was moving the dial.
I remember this came out in October. Didn't know what to expect but I remember thinking it was going to be cheesy. It blew me away and stands as my favorite film of all time.
The first one was kind of under the radar as I recall. James Cameron wasn’t JAMES CAMERON yet. Arnold was known from Conan and bodybuilding but wasn’t the action star yet. But there was buzz among the kids whose parents let them see R-rated movies, like me. I saw it in the theaters and was blown away. It really took over pop culture with “I’ll be back” and other catchphrases becoming instantly used. True organic classic hit movie.
Caught Terminator when it hit the video store route. Teenagers used to quote the shit out of that one. It was stuff of legend. We crack up at all the quotes. T2 was in another level. That movie’s release was like Jurassic Park. It was huge. Big box office pomp. It was great. Cameron at his finest. You also had the Guns N’ Roses some tie in. So it was pretty huge.
Robert Patrick was the good guy, right? He just knocked the cop out to take his uniform. Arnold Schwarzenegger was the bad guy, look what he did in the bar. Minutes later...... What the..... What is happening? The good guy is the bad guy, and the bad guy is the good guy?
Dude when he comes around the corner in that mall hallway to meet T2, drops the roses and unearths his shotgun, I mean no one in the theater took a fucking breath. It was absolute magic
Remember see it on video after everyone raved about it, saw T2 in preview during comic con in San Diego that year. My dad was actually auditing Carolco's books that year and if it flopped they were done for.
I was 6 when T1 aired and was fascinated by this picture.
I was 14 for T2, and a huge fan of Guns n Roses, so the moment he draws his shotgun hidden in a box of roses and You Could Be Mine starts playing might be my biggest movie boner ever !
I don't even go that far. Appetite for Destruction was it for me, Use Your Illusion got into stuff like November Rain and Don't Cry which I hated after that first album. Everyone sells out, but was hoping they wouldn't.
T2 was a big deal. It was the most expensive movie at the time and Arnold was the highest paid actor for it at the time. He made about $21,000 per word in T2.
I don’t remember the first one coming out, but I do remember it coming on hbo and it was a huge deal. I still wasn’t allowed to watch it until it was edited for tv. The second one, well, it’s kind of hard to describe how big it was. Guns N’ Roses were the most popular band in the world at the time, they had just released 2 albums simultaneously, something that had never been done. I remember Arnold going on Arsenio and repeating “It will be da biggest movie of the summah” over and over. He also mentioned that the first one cost 6 million to make, and the catering cost more than that for the second one.
I was 13 when it came out and there were a few emotions. In Australia it had an M rating (15 and over), so firstly it was exciting that I didn't get challenged at the ticket booth, second it was an awesome movie an launched my fandom of Arnie, but it was bittersweet because I got busted when my mum found out I'd seen it, but totally worth it!
Original Terminator was going to be a niche film, a hybrid sci-fi/horror film starring som mid actors and a huge guy who couldn’t speak clear English. No one knew what was coming when it hit, and it hit like a bomb! Completely overshadowed the movie that was supposed be the big sci fi blockbuster that summer, Runaway.
The first one I think most people saw on VHS. I don’t even remember it in the theater. T2 was huge. Everywhere. I remember the trailer before it came out. Everyone wanted to see it after watching it on VHS many times.
Exactly this. Terminator was a big movie but kind of off and competing against Ghostbusters which was huge. T2 was enormous. It’s 7 years later so 1984 vs 1991. Competing against Robin Hood with Kevin Costner and T2 had great marketing and Guns N’ Roses featuring songs which the band was huge then.
I only knew of T1 once it made it to the VHS market.
T2 however was another thing! I was in college by that point.
I don’t think the excitement behind T2 could be replicated now: the movie’s story, in & of itself, was awesome! A great continuation of the T1 story. But the FX were so cutting edge. As in while they were already out there (ie The Abyss), for many folks this action movie was their first experience to seeing the FX that made the T-1000 possible. In a way it was like Star Wars, where, before, space ships were painfully obviously held on a stick (with maybe a sparkler stuck out the back), Star Wars showed WW2 aerial dog fights in space! T2 had Ray Harryhausen’s awesome stop action FX alongside the totally CGI stuff.
Definitely a different time. Now movies are in theaters for 10 minutes before moving on to streaming. Then the whole summer was about watching T2 again & again.
I saw The Terminator on hbo aa a kid. The scene where the Terminator stands up in the flames and wreckage of the semi truck gave me chills.
Saw T2 in the theater and everybody gasped and yelled at the truck jumping down to chase John on the dirt bike. It was cool to see in a packed theater.
I was a little young to see T1 in the theater so only ever saw it on VHS. T2 was amazing since nobody knew what to expect. They didn’t spoil movies with trailers back then so the T1000 was a complete surprise.
T2 was huge. Bigger than the original and arguably the better movie. This was Peak Arnold. He’d had a huge hit with kindergarten cop and now he’s back as the good guy in a new Terminator movie? Biggest star on the planet at the time.
I never saw terminator 1 in the theater. I did see terminator 2 in the theater, drove from my college town to Chicago and watched in the big screen. It was awesome and the crowd was most appreciative.
The scene with Arnold reloading the shotgun in one hand while on his motorbike elicited ooohs and ahhs. Fast forward, I showed my adult step son who did not see that movie and he did the same thing during that scene. Just great stuff.
Something caught my eye in one of the end scenes when the fuel tanker crashes. I went through the scene frame by frame and saw the cable that was used to pull the truck into the ‘crash’
I worked at a movie theater in San Jose and got to see an employee only midnight screening of T2 before it opened broadly. They also filmed the Cyberdyne mini-gun sequence in Fremont.
T2 was a freaking event, like going to Disneyland. It was built up for months and then it paid off. When ads say movie event of the summer, they wish they could come close to T2's success.
We stumbled on Terminator while browsing for movies to check out at the library. Same with Repo Man. Had never heard anything prior to checking them out on a whim.
I saw terminator 2 at a thursday midnight showing. It was the most epic thing ever! when arnold stepped out of the biker bar in full biker gear to the music of 'bad to the bone', every person in the totally packed theater erupted with cheers and clapping and shouting. it was a good time to be alive and be there at that place and time.
My uncle told us about T1, we rented it and David Lynch’s Dune the same day. One was a hit, the other was confusing. Why was Gurney carrying that pug? After that I must have rented T1 2-3 more times. T2 came out when I was 15, it was an event.
Back before the Internet you went to the movies without knowing what to expect. So when I watched T1 all I knew about the movie was that it was an action movie (from the poster).
Saw Terminator at a “fuck-a-buck” theater a couple of years before I saw Terminator 2 on opening day. The lines were unbelievable, thankfully we had a good friend who stood in line while we were working to get tickets.
I was about 10 years old in the mid 80s when I first saw T1 on cable. That was my introduction to Arnold and the movie was really scary. T2 is great, but I still prefer T1.
The original Terminator came out in 1984, before Arnold was a mega-star. He was pretty much known as Conan the Barbarian at that point. Then he did a bunch of big movies. Predator, Twins, Total Recall, Kindergarten Cop. By the time T2 came out, he was one of the biggest movie stars in the world. The hype around T2 was off the charts, and the movie lived up to it. It was awesome.
I saw it in the theater with a bunch of Russian cosmonauts-in-training. It was their first time visiting the US and they'd seen a pirated copy of the first one on a dinky TV. Also they laughed at the Russia bit:
Terminator: Yes. It launches its missiles against their targets in Russia.
John: Why attack Russia? Aren't they our friends now?
Terminator: Because Skynet knows that the Russian counterattack will eliminate its enemies over here.
T2 was as big a movie as Michael Jackson was a singer.
We never saw anything like that before, and honestly, haven’t seen anything that good since. I think saving private ryan was just as good, but in a different way. The movies that transitioned us from practical effects to digital age had the best of both worlds, and it shows.
Awesome! I just watched 1 and 2 last week and told my wife that man, I miss being a kid when these came out, they were the world. We didn't have internet, many of us only had 3 channels on TV and a VCR.
one day every kid showed up talking like Arnold, specifically saying "I'll be back" the most (probably easiest for a kid to remember LOL) and i hadn't seen it and was so confused, i was oblivious
Similar for me. It was my friend's 14th birthday and his dad took us to see T2. I knew nothing about it. Had seen no trailers and never seen the first one. Absolutely one of the best movie experiences ever.
Yeah, much like Batman 89 a few years before, it was a phenomenon. Massive marketing, and pop culture was heavily affected for years afterwards. T2 references popped up in tv shows and movies constantly.
It was fun to see trailers for upcoming movies before other movies, look forward to seeing something, wait outside on a Friday night in line while other kids from school were there too, talk about it in school after. It was weirdly social.
The second one was shocking because Arnold's role went from villain to helper. And Linda Hamilton was AMAZING.
I was 15 when it came out and it was the great time I noticed a super strong, badass, HUMAN woman in mainstream media. I was a little too young to have properly appreciated Ripley.
I'm too young to remember the first one, but T2 was the most expensive movie ever made up until that point. The marketing was insane, and they even had a soundtrack featuring Guns 'n Roses which meant the movie was also featured on their music video.
I somehow missed all the marketing and was suprised when YouKnowWho was actually the good guy. Pretty sure that plot twist wasn't a plot twist for anyone who'd been paying attention.
That video is still there greatest hype object I've ever seen. New Terminator, New Guns N Roses, and FX showing us things we had no idea could ever be possible.
I did not blink for so long during the T2 movie that my contact lens just fell out of my eye. I stupidly tried to save it in a thing that had Coke in it, which means it disappeared in about five seconds.
The original film was not a box office hit. Most of us discovered it at the video store or on cable.
The sequel though, that was a blockbuster before it even released. The advertising was crazy on this one and I saw it, like, maybe 5 times in the cinema? Maybe more since we had dollar theaters back then and there was one very near my home where this played for months.
T2 might have been the first time I remember a marketing campaign that felt like what you'd get currently. Maybe it just appealed to me more as a teenager, so I noticed it more, but that movie was marketed everywhere, in just about every way I could imagine, and the build-up to its release was palpable
I don’t remember the reaction to the first one, but the second one was huge. There were giant displays everywhere. I even have a photo of myself on one of the motorcycles used in the movie, but I can’t remember where the photo was taken.
My best friend introduced me to Terminator on the VCR. When it was announced T2 was on the way we waited on it like Christmas. Went and seen it in the theater and it was worth the hype (at the time at least). The first one still takes the prize for me though
BrittaUnfiltered67@reddit
People took to the streets
Bright-Form730@reddit
T2 was the first R rated movie I saw in theaters at 13 years old. My buddy’s dad bought tickets for us and dropped us off. Was a kick ass movie, still is!
tomNJUSA@reddit
Terminator was awesome. I had not heard of it and my friends were going so I went. Knew nothing about it.
LonesomeBulldog@reddit
I remember seeing The Terminator in the theater when I was in 6th grade. I viewed it as a horror movie like Alien. T2 was viewed as an action movie.
Z3R0GR4V@reddit
I remember my dad (single father of 3 boys) would rent a VCR and always get "The Terminator". He'd always joke he got "Love is a many splendid thing" but it was always "the Terminator".
flyboy_za@reddit
I was too young for either to be allowed in the theatre, but I watched the bejesus out of them on vhs.
It was a great time to be alive.
Ruenin@reddit
My favorite part is how we didn't see 5 two and a half minute trailers in the run up to the release of a movie. You'd be lucky to see 1 minute of it before it came out. Now, I can pretty much see an entire movie from the trailers. Not much reason to go see it.
acimkiss@reddit
I dont remember the first one when it came out (xennial) but T2 was a fucking scene.
One thing younger generations never experienced was homogenized pop culture.
You couldn't escape it if you wanted to. And, in this case, you didnt want to.
This movie turned a villian into the good guy. This movie was turned into a book (never see it that way). This movie was doing some incredible groundbreaking work with CGI.
At the time, I believe it was the biggest marketing budget ever.
handsomeape95@reddit
I vaguely remember watching some interview about how they had to make Arnold a good guy now because of his popularity.
JuJu_Wirehead@reddit
T2 still holds up today. I watched it last year and was blown away by how many of the effects still work. Same with Jurassic Park.
SwanReal8484@reddit
We were staying at my aunts for Thanksgiving and my cousins who were several years older got to go see it. Rats.
GlobalNuclearWar@reddit
Groceries were more affordable, politicians could disagree but still talk to each other, you could get on an airplane with your water bottle, without taking off your shoes while people scanned you, you could buy a modest home on a modest salary, People still smoked indoors everywhere, girls had huge hair, guys had huge hair, gas was around a buck a gallon, and payphones were still a thing.
yard_ranger@reddit
I remember the first time I tried to see it the theater camera had a malfunction and we had to get rebate tickets :/
realfakerolex@reddit
I'll never forget being six years old and being told about The Terminator in graphic detail from my best friend who was the same age and basically being raised by his sixteen year old sister who took him to see every r rated movie that came out at the time. As someone who was only allowed to watch family friendly content just hearing about it secondhand was mindblowing and also maybe game me nightmares at the time. One thing I still remember all these years later is that my friend seemed to be obsessed with Arnold's sunglasses in the movie.
Crivens999@reddit
T2 was awesome. I was in the cinema with my sister and some mates. She got the wrong end of the stick in that it still had ashtrays on the seats. So she lit up. All good so we all did. Got told off 2 ciggies in but it was all good as the first 15 mins was blurry and they were panicking as everyone was kicking off. Different world back then
Correct_Security_742@reddit
Does everyone realize if SkyNet hadn't gone after Sarah Connor, her son never would have been born. They created their own problem which was actually a paradox because how could John Connor be born if they hadn't gone after her, so he shouldn't have been there to begin with to send Kyle back too who then becomes his father.
reachers_toothbrush@reddit
One possible future...
Correct_Security_742@reddit
I'm sure another leader may have been born, but not John Connor. Sarah Connor may still have given birth to a leader, but not John Connor. Is that what you mean when you say one possible future...?
reachers_toothbrush@reddit
Time travel stories are always a paradox (the "Grandfather Paradox"), I was quoting Reese's line in T1. Cameron had enough awareness of the paradoxical nature of time travel to throw that line in.
tspoon-99@reddit
Totally rad
Area212@reddit
First one was absolutely amazing for the overall feels.
The second one didn’t deliver in the way the first one did, however it wasn’t that far off when bolstered with its stunning directing, choreography, film craft and digital effects.
Slow_Description_773@reddit
Oh man !!! I was 18 when the 2 came out and visited USA for the first time with my parents. Pay per view TV in the hotel had one but being me completely ignorant about Pay per View I've kept ordering the movie to watch everytime we were done visiting for the day. It cam out an outrageous bill but my dad was able to negotiate that at check out lol...
Fluffy-Ad-7199@reddit (OP)
Forgot to ask if anyone saw the other terminator movies after these two and were fans of them.
David_High_Pan@reddit
There's only two that I know of.
work_work-work@reddit
What do you mean? There were only 2 movies. 😉
blackcain@reddit
I didn't see a single terminator movie after T2. I just knew they would suck. The story was over at that point and there was no more need to continue to series.
Fluffy-Ad-7199@reddit (OP)
I kinda enjoyed terminator salvation tbh. It takes a different approach and isn’t quite the same as what we expect from the first two movies, but imo it has its own charm.
T3 I thought the ending was most memorable, ironically.
The other movies though, I honestly don’t think they werent that special or memorable.
Horror_Ad3292@reddit
T2 and the double GnR album, the videos, the merch, it was the summer of love.
David_High_Pan@reddit
Early nineties were so sick. Still had the eighties leaking into them but also new culture music and film.
Practical effects were still being used in film but special effects were getting good enough to be taken seriously.
Punk rock and hip hop were still young enough to exist as a sub culture before corporate greed got involved.
Disastrous_Heron4558@reddit
I can remember the first one scaring me. Like horror movie scared. Same with Predator. Even though they were billed as sci fi/action “I guess”.
David_High_Pan@reddit
There's only a couple movies from my childhood that I can actually remember the day of the first viewing. Predator is one of them. What a film.
Alien is another. Terrified me and made me a lifelong fan of sci-fi horror.
ringmod76@reddit
The first one is more of a suspense film really, and in a way it does qualify as a horror movie - there’s an evil creature hunting them down and it is full of psychological terror.
daddyd@reddit
the terminator was a sleeper hit, but the media attention for T2 was unreal, it was everywhere, it was on the even on the cover of magazines that had nothing to do with movies.
Kimber80@reddit
When The Terminator came out in 1984 it was released with little Fanfare and quickly became a sleeper hit ... on the other hand T2 thanks to seven years of buzz about the original film was released in 1991 as a massive Blockbuster and it lived up to its billing, it was swarmes by audiences and praised by critics on release, a very big deal in the summer of 1991.
Crovax-6977@reddit
Came here to say this. No one I knew saw The Terminator when it was first released. Came off as just another 80’s scfi movie. There was a lot of surprise in my circle when they did the sequel. Once it came out though everyone loved it! Pretty much nothing but disappointment after though.
reapersaurus@reddit
People nowadays don't realize that relatively few people saw Terminator 1 in the theaters - it became what it is now over years of "cult movie" reputational development and on cable and TV. When it came out, few people were fans of Arnold OR Cameron and there aren't big actor names in the movie. While it was moderately successful at the BO, it was only the 20th grossing film of that year (behind such movies as Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan, Breakin' and Bachelor Party), and was even kicked out of #1 place by Oh God, You Devil!
ParisGreenGretsch@reddit
I was 14 in '91, and T2 was a phenomenon. My friend group consisted of a system of Dads with two VCRs, so we had everything. Rec/Play. Boom.
"Dad, I'm taking T2, and Top Gun to Jimmy's house. I'll bring them back. I promise. Danny and Donny are bringing Alien, Die Hard, Stand by Me, Jaws, and an old copy of that Heraldo debacle. Jimmy's Mom said it's ok."
Aggravating_Cable_32@reddit
My best friend's dad was a huge audiophile and electronics geek; the guy had a badass home-theater setup in their basement, complete with a big projection screen and a crazy surround sound system. And he had somehow gotten his hands on a promotional copy of T2 on laserdisc before it even came out in theaters. I'd still like to know how, but he was also a massive software pirate & went to tech/trade shows all the time, and I always figured maybe that's where he obtained it.
So anyways, he kept teasing us about it because we were huge Terminator and Schwarzenegger fan boys, and he knew being the first ones in our whole school to see Terminator 2 would be pretty huge socially. Plus he'd already watched it, and he really rubbed it in about how unbelievably awesome the movie was, but that we weren't old enough for R-rated movies yet. And so we started to become terrified that everyone else would get to see it way before we ever could, because our parents never took us to the theaters unless it was a Disney or kids movie.
Then a couple weeks later I was spending the night over at my friend's house, and that Saturday night out of nowhere, his dad asked us if we wanted to watch a movie in the basement. That was super unusual because normally us kids were only allowed to watch movies on the upstairs TV & VCR. I know we both hoped it would be Terminator 2, but we didn't want to show how excited we were & tried to play it cool, just in case he'd change his mind for whatever reason, because the man was kind of a dick like that.
So we went downstairs and sat on the big comfy reclining couch in front of the screen, almost vibrating with anticipation. His dad closed the door, stuck the laserdisc in the player, turned the lights down, turned the volume up, and hit start on the remote.....
When that terminator foot slammed down & crushed the skull, we both damn near jumped out of our skins. Then the camera pans up to show the Terminator, the battle in the beginning, the laser blasts, explosions, and eerie discordant music/horns in the background, all of it just about melted my brains out of my earholes. The sound & picture quality was so far beyond anything I'd ever experienced, and the sheer awesomeness of the whole movie was something I literally had dreams about. And I swore one day I'd own a home-theater system like that.
The next Monday at school we couldn't wait to tell our friends that we'd watched Terminator 2, how badass & crazy good it was, about how the Terminator was actually trying to rescue John Connor & fight the insane liquid metal T-1000.... and of course none of them believed us. When it finally came out in theaters and they started to go see it, everyone wanted to know how the hell we'd gotten to watch it first. The amount of nerd clout we got was astronomical lol.
Also, it was the first & last movie his dad ever let us watch in his home theater. The guy was super protective & anal about his electronics & equipment, to the point of paranoia almost. Though I guess that was the one movie he couldn't keep to himself, and it kinda felt like he was showing off a bit too. But I still get goosebumps thinking about the experience to this day, and watching T2 was definitely a good way to have it.
ddnut80@reddit
OJ SImpson was considered for the role of The Terminator. They didn’t cat him though. He seemed TOO NICE. 🤣
SheriffBartholomew@reddit
Nobody has the charisma and screen presence that seven time Mr. Universe, Arnold Schwarzenegger has. I read that a director said that Arnold's body is one of their greatest props, and it's true. That's why it seems so ridiculous to me when they remake his old movies. Nobody can carry those roles and bring the same serious yet funny presence that he did. Not even Chris Hemsworth, or Dwayne Johnson can replace Arnold on the silver screen. I feel lucky that I was able to grow up watching his movies.
Tx_Drewdad@reddit
My most vivid memory is Sarah getting the poloroid at the end and some stoner dude almost shouting, "That was the picture!"
Tim-oBedlam@reddit
Seeing T2 in the theater with the morphing T-1000 effect was absolutely mindblowing. The scene where the T-1000 sort of melts through the bars left everyone in the theater stunned.
Neurodrill@reddit
My experience was kinda lessened by a dude a couple rows behind me who had a braingasm any time the T-1000 did literally anything and would go “WHOOOAAAAA” and “WOOOOOOWWWWW” at the top of his lungs.
ScalpelCleaner@reddit
Terminator 2 was a pop-culture event. I remember buying the comic-book adaptation as well as the Meltdown tie-in candies that I swear burned a hole in my tongue. 😂
MaenHoffiCoffi@reddit
What was what like?
edkishinevsky@reddit
The first one was perfect
Treysinatra@reddit
T2 in the theater was great. The t-1000 effects were next level. It was the kind of effect that would normally be a cartoon drawing or something. Jurassic park was also pretty great. As far as seeming somewhat realistic. It’s funny to watch t2 now. It’s nostalgic. Remembering how cool it was at the time.
PeachAndBlueberry@reddit
When the T-1000 walks through the bars in T2, everybody in the audience -- me included -- went kinda nuts in a bunch of different ways. It was great.
pdx-peter@reddit
Funny post for a bot.
little_boots_@reddit
the first one blew my mind.
Fantastic_Common_834@reddit
Blew our minds...incredibly ambitious, exciting, violent, mind bending...it was WAY ahead of it's time!
Rimailkall@reddit
I didn't see T1 in the theaters, but I did see T2 on or near opening night, and it was the best theater experience I can remember. Fully packed, no spoilers because no internet, everyone cheered at the right places, but no one was talking over the movie. Everyone gasped at the T1000 getting thrown into the wall and then shifting back to facing Arnold. It was amazing and I remember it better than Infinity War and Endgame (which were also great).
Empty_Nestor@reddit
T2 was absolutely spellbinding in the theater.
Self-Comprehensive@reddit
I was 15 or 16 and my grandma took me and some other cousins to see it. It was such a crazy experience.
kavalejava@reddit
I seen Terminator on VHS, but remember the hype on Terminator 2. It was huge. Sadly none of us could see it, but remember Arnold getting interviews all over the place.
N4AGr8Time@reddit
I knew after watching the first one, that when the second one was released, “I would be back.”
FzzyCatz@reddit
I remember watching The Terminator multiple times on video cassette. And waiting on a long line when T2 opened. Everyone was so excited and it was amazing.
DejaWiz2@reddit
T1 was instantly iconic.
T2 was instantly legendary.
Both were extraordinary theater-going experiences.
No_Iamyourfather_sam@reddit
The original was a staple of sleepovers in my friend group. We rented the vhs every couple weeks and rotated whose house we stay at. We were all about 9 years old, my friend Mike called it "The Interminator" because he must have mixed it up with an exterminator or something.
We stayed up all night watching Terminator and randomly sneaking out to roam the neighborhood. Those were the days.
No_Ability1548@reddit
I was in LA when T1 came out. I know this sounds silly, but it freaked me out. It seemed so real.
T2 felt fun and awesome. No, let me rephrase that.
A movie comes out that you KNOW is fantasy, but fun. Good guys win. You hear about it everywhere. You can see the movie for next to nothing and enjoy popcorn and a soda with your friends for, also, next to nothing. You can visit a theme park, for next to nothing, and pretend you're an extra in the whole thing- for next to nothing.
That was the 90's. It was just fantastic. I hope we get back, and if we do, I'll see you there.
Shell-Fire@reddit
It was amazing.
im_a_picasso@reddit
The Terminator was like an instant cult classic, but I missed it b/c I was a kid.
T2 was a freaking phenomenon. A total saturation of music videos, tv specials about the fx, the shooter video game was in every arcade and movie theater lobby, Arnoldmania swept the World, and we loved every minute of it! My bestie and I still quote T2 to this day.
DJErikD@reddit
I sold a shit-ton of Gargoyle sunglasses at Sunglass Outlet.
TheInternetHeel@reddit
I bought some of this model right before Gargoyles went out of business
Mundane_Ad7197@reddit
The Terminator was legit in theaters when it came out in ‘84. It was kinda like seeing The Matrix or Jurassic Park for me, ya just knew this was moving the dial.
TheInternetHeel@reddit
I remember it came out around Halloween.
TheInternetHeel@reddit
I remember this came out in October. Didn't know what to expect but I remember thinking it was going to be cheesy. It blew me away and stands as my favorite film of all time.
Ok-Description-4640@reddit
The first one was kind of under the radar as I recall. James Cameron wasn’t JAMES CAMERON yet. Arnold was known from Conan and bodybuilding but wasn’t the action star yet. But there was buzz among the kids whose parents let them see R-rated movies, like me. I saw it in the theaters and was blown away. It really took over pop culture with “I’ll be back” and other catchphrases becoming instantly used. True organic classic hit movie.
VirtuaFighter6@reddit
Caught Terminator when it hit the video store route. Teenagers used to quote the shit out of that one. It was stuff of legend. We crack up at all the quotes. T2 was in another level. That movie’s release was like Jurassic Park. It was huge. Big box office pomp. It was great. Cameron at his finest. You also had the Guns N’ Roses some tie in. So it was pretty huge.
LinuxLinus@reddit
I'm too young to have cared about the first one, but the second one was a phenomenon.
At the remove of a few decades, the first one is a great picture. The second one is a great spectacle, but not a great picture.
arthurjeremypearson@reddit
NINE.
YEARS.
Separated Terminator and T2. Almost a decade we all knew Arnold was The Bad Guy.
We had NO idea.
And T2 was entirely written with that in mind. The twist was absolutely spectacular. Theaters erupted in surprise. it was glorious.
Or so I imagined. I got fvcking spoiled on it because the ads spoiled it and they were EVERYWHERE.
swordrat720@reddit
Robert Patrick was the good guy, right? He just knocked the cop out to take his uniform. Arnold Schwarzenegger was the bad guy, look what he did in the bar. Minutes later...... What the..... What is happening? The good guy is the bad guy, and the bad guy is the good guy?
Savings-Pudding1732@reddit
Dude when he comes around the corner in that mall hallway to meet T2, drops the roses and unearths his shotgun, I mean no one in the theater took a fucking breath. It was absolute magic
HallackB@reddit
Those were the days
geekstone@reddit
Remember see it on video after everyone raved about it, saw T2 in preview during comic con in San Diego that year. My dad was actually auditing Carolco's books that year and if it flopped they were done for.
GX_EN@reddit
I saw both in the theater when they came out.
“You’re terminated, fucker”
John_Bittercult@reddit
I was 6 when T1 aired and was fascinated by this picture.
I was 14 for T2, and a huge fan of Guns n Roses, so the moment he draws his shotgun hidden in a box of roses and You Could Be Mine starts playing might be my biggest movie boner ever !
reachers_toothbrush@reddit
the moment he draws his shotgun hidden in a box of roses
Guns in Roses
Waesrdtfyg0987@reddit
I hate thinking about guns n roses. They were probably my favorite band as a kid and they fell so hard so fast.
John_Bittercult@reddit
Yep, but it's still a part of the soundtrack of your life ! I come back to Use Your Illusion I&II once a year, and go down memory lane...
Waesrdtfyg0987@reddit
I don't even go that far. Appetite for Destruction was it for me, Use Your Illusion got into stuff like November Rain and Don't Cry which I hated after that first album. Everyone sells out, but was hoping they wouldn't.
Flufnstuf@reddit
T2 was a big deal. It was the most expensive movie at the time and Arnold was the highest paid actor for it at the time. He made about $21,000 per word in T2.
reachers_toothbrush@reddit
The T-1000 effects still hold up to this day.
drinkslinger1974@reddit
I don’t remember the first one coming out, but I do remember it coming on hbo and it was a huge deal. I still wasn’t allowed to watch it until it was edited for tv. The second one, well, it’s kind of hard to describe how big it was. Guns N’ Roses were the most popular band in the world at the time, they had just released 2 albums simultaneously, something that had never been done. I remember Arnold going on Arsenio and repeating “It will be da biggest movie of the summah” over and over. He also mentioned that the first one cost 6 million to make, and the catering cost more than that for the second one.
reachers_toothbrush@reddit
https://i.redd.it/6i6r9sv5pk3h1.gif
reachers_toothbrush@reddit
I remember the second one coming out. The hype was unbelievable. The awesome Gun n' Roses video tie in only made it better.
dolomick@reddit
Fucking awesome, that’s what
I_AM_ME-7@reddit
Pure fucking joy.
Calvin_Spline@reddit
I was 13 when it came out and there were a few emotions. In Australia it had an M rating (15 and over), so firstly it was exciting that I didn't get challenged at the ticket booth, second it was an awesome movie an launched my fandom of Arnie, but it was bittersweet because I got busted when my mum found out I'd seen it, but totally worth it!
ZebraBorgata@reddit
It was awesome! Loved the first two!
Haunting_Style3880@reddit
Pretty rad!
BrilliantAd4857@reddit
Planned our 4th of July around going to see T2. Well worth it.
lidder444@reddit
It came out bank holiday ( Labor Day ) weekend in the uk. It was also my birthday. Still one of my favorite movies !
BigEd369@reddit
Original Terminator was going to be a niche film, a hybrid sci-fi/horror film starring som mid actors and a huge guy who couldn’t speak clear English. No one knew what was coming when it hit, and it hit like a bomb! Completely overshadowed the movie that was supposed be the big sci fi blockbuster that summer, Runaway.
Comfortable-Bed-6814@reddit
It was awesome!
aegiltheugly@reddit
Dark clouds appeared on the horizon, and the earth trembled in anticipation. Other than that it was pretty normal.
This-Explanation4366@reddit
This was a documentary for a future not set. It prepared us mentally for the present. "There is no fate but what we make for ourselves"
FnEddieDingle@reddit
Saw it in the theatre ar 14 and loved it!
mypcrepairguy@reddit
It was at that time.....that I thought this guy would make a great governor.
monsterlynn@reddit
Buncha kids lobbying their parents nonstop for at least a year to take them to see an R rated movie and getting shot down.
PissedCaucasian@reddit
The first one I think most people saw on VHS. I don’t even remember it in the theater. T2 was huge. Everywhere. I remember the trailer before it came out. Everyone wanted to see it after watching it on VHS many times.
glencoe606@reddit
Exactly this. Terminator was a big movie but kind of off and competing against Ghostbusters which was huge. T2 was enormous. It’s 7 years later so 1984 vs 1991. Competing against Robin Hood with Kevin Costner and T2 had great marketing and Guns N’ Roses featuring songs which the band was huge then.
Limo_Wreck77@reddit
The GNR music video tie in really took the marketing to a new level.
That song was everywhere and just made the hype for the movie insane.
Limo_Wreck77@reddit
I was a kid when the first one came out and watched it on VHS all the time.
When the sequel was released I was a teenager and couldn't wait to see it at the theater.
It blew me away. The new CGI effects were such a watershed moment. It remains one of my fave films of all time.
hyst0rica1_29@reddit
I only knew of T1 once it made it to the VHS market.
T2 however was another thing! I was in college by that point.
I don’t think the excitement behind T2 could be replicated now: the movie’s story, in & of itself, was awesome! A great continuation of the T1 story. But the FX were so cutting edge. As in while they were already out there (ie The Abyss), for many folks this action movie was their first experience to seeing the FX that made the T-1000 possible. In a way it was like Star Wars, where, before, space ships were painfully obviously held on a stick (with maybe a sparkler stuck out the back), Star Wars showed WW2 aerial dog fights in space! T2 had Ray Harryhausen’s awesome stop action FX alongside the totally CGI stuff.
Definitely a different time. Now movies are in theaters for 10 minutes before moving on to streaming. Then the whole summer was about watching T2 again & again.
CarlatheDestructor@reddit
I saw The Terminator on hbo aa a kid. The scene where the Terminator stands up in the flames and wreckage of the semi truck gave me chills.
Saw T2 in the theater and everybody gasped and yelled at the truck jumping down to chase John on the dirt bike. It was cool to see in a packed theater.
artwrangler@reddit
We all went around saying “I’ll be bach” Got a bit tedious after awhile
Zapp_Rowsdower_@reddit
Waaaassasuuuuuuuuuuuuuuaaaaahhhhhh’
Jolly_Werewolf_7356@reddit
It was great!
geodebug@reddit
I was a little young to see T1 in the theater so only ever saw it on VHS. T2 was amazing since nobody knew what to expect. They didn’t spoil movies with trailers back then so the T1000 was a complete surprise.
1991 had a lot of great movies!
-SpreadLove-@reddit
T2 was the most amazing thing I’d ever seen at a movie theater until Avatar
sharky-shores@reddit
Hard to believe the future is now a reality
BlaizedPotato@reddit
Saw them at the theater. I was 16 for the first one. The special effects were amazing and the pace of the movie was unique for back then.
Difficult_Clerk_1273@reddit
Same here. This was actually the first R-rated film I saw in a theater without an adult present. I loved it and it’s held up well over the years!
ReadRightRed99@reddit
T2 was huge. Bigger than the original and arguably the better movie. This was Peak Arnold. He’d had a huge hit with kindergarten cop and now he’s back as the good guy in a new Terminator movie? Biggest star on the planet at the time.
ferriswheeljunkies11@reddit
Yeah, it dominated the summer. The newspaper used to post the top ten box offices of the week, the top ten singles and the top ten albums.
I just remember T2 being #1 for a long time.
The Guns N Roses video was huge too
ReadRightRed99@reddit
Arnold got the best music. GNR for terminator. AC/DC for Last Action Hero in 1993.
7stroke@reddit
The trailer alone was epic
Correct-Condition-99@reddit
I saw that movie in theater with a guy and two girls. This was just 4 friend going to see movie. I've been married to her for over 30 years now.
s1l1c0n3@reddit
The summer T-2 was released I saw in the theater about fifty times. I was completely blown away (and mildly obsessed)
NeatMathematician126@reddit
The liquid metal effect of the T-1000 was mind blowing. People were shocked in a way movies rarely achieve.
blackcain@reddit
Today they could do those special effects or even shoot the entire movie on an iphone.
Friendly-Advantage79@reddit
https://i.redd.it/gdxp4ebxxj3h1.gif
blackcain@reddit
I never saw terminator 1 in the theater. I did see terminator 2 in the theater, drove from my college town to Chicago and watched in the big screen. It was awesome and the crowd was most appreciative.
The scene with Arnold reloading the shotgun in one hand while on his motorbike elicited ooohs and ahhs. Fast forward, I showed my adult step son who did not see that movie and he did the same thing during that scene. Just great stuff.
Think_Palpitation42@reddit
It was an amazing piece of sci-fi.
It seems we're now on track for it to happen in real life.
4Q69freak@reddit
I always wonder if those that praise the advancements in AI have never seen Terminator. Remember, once Skynet becomes self aware that it’s too late.
Razor_Paw@reddit
Wonderful, amazing, crazy awesome fun. In that order.
r1Rqc1vPeF@reddit
Saw T1 on VHS first, loved the film.
Something caught my eye in one of the end scenes when the fuel tanker crashes. I went through the scene frame by frame and saw the cable that was used to pull the truck into the ‘crash’
Suitable-Gap-8789@reddit
Saw the first one when it came out, first year of college. Bought a pair of Nike Vandals the next day.
perdair@reddit
I was in 6th or 7th grade - the black ones with the silver strap around the ankle.
HeavyTea@reddit
Terminator was amazing.
Big gap until T2
Technical-Prompt4432@reddit
I worked at a movie theater in San Jose and got to see an employee only midnight screening of T2 before it opened broadly. They also filmed the Cyberdyne mini-gun sequence in Fremont.
Vioralarama@reddit
Terminator didn't hit until it got on cable.
T2 was a freaking event, like going to Disneyland. It was built up for months and then it paid off. When ads say movie event of the summer, they wish they could come close to T2's success.
Jason_TheMagnificent@reddit
I remember sneaking in to see T2, back in the days when seats were first-come, first-served
BMisterGenX@reddit
I think that Terminator was kind of a sleeper hit and was originally released to minimal fanfare. I don't think I saw it until I saw it on TV or video
Fritz5678@reddit
We stumbled on Terminator while browsing for movies to check out at the library. Same with Repo Man. Had never heard anything prior to checking them out on a whim.
PissedCaucasian@reddit
Repo Man soundtrack for the win.
KatJen76@reddit
When T2 came out, I swear MTV played the Guns n Roses song from it every 15 minutes. Radio stations also had it in saturation mode.
Griz_iz_daddy@reddit
I feel like it was a little bit overcast and breezy on the day T2 came out. I don't recall what it was like when the first one came out 🤷♂️
kalitarios@reddit
I was going to sarcastically say what you said, so I'll give you props. I'm in a sassy mood today.
Griz_iz_daddy@reddit
It's gotta be a GenX thing, right? Sarcasm is my love language.
kalitarios@reddit
pretty sure it's my default settings
Noisechild@reddit
Saw T2 as a double feature with Bogus Journey. Best night of my life!
AuroraDF@reddit
I never saw either and didn't care about him but I still seemed to see this picture everywhere and know what it was all about. Lol
Before the Internet, the information still came at you in various ways!
punkdrummer22@reddit
Great
Mistervimes65@reddit
Saw both in theaters. They were seriously game changing. In the same way Predator and Alien/Aliens were. We’d never seen anything like them.
forgetful_waterfowl@reddit
I saw terminator 2 at a thursday midnight showing. It was the most epic thing ever! when arnold stepped out of the biker bar in full biker gear to the music of 'bad to the bone', every person in the totally packed theater erupted with cheers and clapping and shouting. it was a good time to be alive and be there at that place and time.
Comfortable_Self_736@reddit
Almost my exact experience (don't think it was midnight, but it was a "sneak preview" viewing). That audience was a blast.
ElegantBob@reddit
I am in Britain, so when I watched it the audience murmured quietly in approval
That was when I knew it would be a massive hit
forgetful_waterfowl@reddit
lol, you britishers, i guess I can forgive you because of Dr. who and red dwarf.
cpencis@reddit
Went to see Terminator for a 15 year old friend’s birthday - his dad took 6 of us out to it. It was great in a full theater.
Hoon0967@reddit
Freaking awesome!
Ej11876@reddit
My uncle told us about T1, we rented it and David Lynch’s Dune the same day. One was a hit, the other was confusing. Why was Gurney carrying that pug? After that I must have rented T1 2-3 more times. T2 came out when I was 15, it was an event.
Reynardine1976@reddit
I saw Dune in a similar way, maybe a bit too young. I am still haunted by that scene where Baron Harkonnen pull the heart plugs out of the teen slave.
LazyBatSoup@reddit
I'd read the book and was wildly surprised by the "weirding module."
xantub@reddit
Back before the Internet you went to the movies without knowing what to expect. So when I watched T1 all I knew about the movie was that it was an action movie (from the poster).
grumpynetgeekintexas@reddit
Saw Terminator at a “fuck-a-buck” theater a couple of years before I saw Terminator 2 on opening day. The lines were unbelievable, thankfully we had a good friend who stood in line while we were working to get tickets.
I would NEVER do that nowadays, NEVER!
Astorstranata@reddit
T1 was basically marketed like a horror movie. T2 was huge and everyone was excited to see the groundbreaking special effects.
Vericatov@reddit
I was about 10 years old in the mid 80s when I first saw T1 on cable. That was my introduction to Arnold and the movie was really scary. T2 is great, but I still prefer T1.
mountain-guy@reddit
T1 came in very much “under the radar”. Was so cool for its time. I was 10-11 yrs old but remember it vividly. Still prefer it to this day.
BWWFC@reddit
kinda living it now imho, welcome to the machine ;-p
davekva@reddit
The original Terminator came out in 1984, before Arnold was a mega-star. He was pretty much known as Conan the Barbarian at that point. Then he did a bunch of big movies. Predator, Twins, Total Recall, Kindergarten Cop. By the time T2 came out, he was one of the biggest movie stars in the world. The hype around T2 was off the charts, and the movie lived up to it. It was awesome.
earinsound@reddit
what was what like?
kalitarios@reddit
Yes
Temporary_View_3303@reddit
Terminator was the coolest thing on film at its time. T2 was great for the effects and action, but T1 was the better movie.
ThisFunny6977@reddit
I watched Terminator 2 in the mall theater where the mall sequence was filmed.
nizo505@reddit
I saw it in the theater with a bunch of Russian cosmonauts-in-training. It was their first time visiting the US and they'd seen a pirated copy of the first one on a dinky TV. Also they laughed at the Russia bit:
edwardsantes@reddit
it was like this
and nobody could make money with that son of a bitch Reagan in the White House
babbylonmon@reddit
T2 was as big a movie as Michael Jackson was a singer.
We never saw anything like that before, and honestly, haven’t seen anything that good since. I think saving private ryan was just as good, but in a different way. The movies that transitioned us from practical effects to digital age had the best of both worlds, and it shows.
Temporary_View_3303@reddit
“T2 was as big a movie as Michael Jackson was a singer.”
Dude… it was big. By not THAT big.
KurtStation68@reddit
an event
Texaswheels@reddit
Awesome! I just watched 1 and 2 last week and told my wife that man, I miss being a kid when these came out, they were the world. We didn't have internet, many of us only had 3 channels on TV and a VCR.
zombie_spiderman@reddit
Well, my knees didn't hurt nearly so much, but that's probably not what you're asking...
_ism_@reddit
one day every kid showed up talking like Arnold, specifically saying "I'll be back" the most (probably easiest for a kid to remember LOL) and i hadn't seen it and was so confused, i was oblivious
Lost_Taste_8181@reddit
I saw T2 before I saw T1. My dad took me to see it in the theaters and it blew my mind. I was 14
be_super_cereal_now@reddit
Similar for me. It was my friend's 14th birthday and his dad took us to see T2. I knew nothing about it. Had seen no trailers and never seen the first one. Absolutely one of the best movie experiences ever.
Ok_Act4459@reddit
T2 was absolutely huge
Talking_Asshole@reddit
Yeah, much like Batman 89 a few years before, it was a phenomenon. Massive marketing, and pop culture was heavily affected for years afterwards. T2 references popped up in tv shows and movies constantly.
prostipope@reddit
the first Terminator kinda snuck up on everyone. The 2nd one felt like a new Star Wars release.
Practical-Bag5408@reddit
GN’R!
https://youtu.be/MXx9S2nDouY?si=t8giI5wstXo5blB1
chillinwithabeer29@reddit
That was Terminator 2 - 7/8 years after the original
Practical-Bag5408@reddit
Yeah, OP asked about both movies.
OverlordBluebook@reddit
that GN'r music video would constantly play on MTV I remember right after movie came out.
calculon68@reddit
Like watching a B movie done really really well.
PatienceandFortitude@reddit
It was fun to see trailers for upcoming movies before other movies, look forward to seeing something, wait outside on a Friday night in line while other kids from school were there too, talk about it in school after. It was weirdly social.
VinceP312@reddit
I was 10 in 1984, so my memory is that for nearly everyone I knew, T1 was a video store discovery.
But that's a kid's POV. I have no clue what the adults exposure to it was, while in theaters.
W0nderingMe@reddit
The second one was shocking because Arnold's role went from villain to helper. And Linda Hamilton was AMAZING.
I was 15 when it came out and it was the great time I noticed a super strong, badass, HUMAN woman in mainstream media. I was a little too young to have properly appreciated Ripley.
Ray_The_Engineer@reddit
Those of us that were into sci-fi and science dug it. I can't speak for others. I still rewatch the original Terminator every 3-4 years.
QuintupleTheFun@reddit
I'm too young to remember the first one, but T2 was the most expensive movie ever made up until that point. The marketing was insane, and they even had a soundtrack featuring Guns 'n Roses which meant the movie was also featured on their music video.
Super-Travel-407@reddit
I somehow missed all the marketing and was suprised when YouKnowWho was actually the good guy. Pretty sure that plot twist wasn't a plot twist for anyone who'd been paying attention.
goldbouillon@reddit
I’m pretty sure the plot twist was spoiled in the first trailer.
Turkzillas_gobble@reddit
That video is still there greatest hype object I've ever seen. New Terminator, New Guns N Roses, and FX showing us things we had no idea could ever be possible.
QuintupleTheFun@reddit
I still love that song!
dinkeydonuts@reddit
I was bullied and called a homophobic slur because I liked Star Wars and never saw Terminator.
I snuck into see T2.
random420x2@reddit
I did not blink for so long during the T2 movie that my contact lens just fell out of my eye. I stupidly tried to save it in a thing that had Coke in it, which means it disappeared in about five seconds.
MalkyC72@reddit
Yo paarents ah dead
ZZoMBiEXIII@reddit
The original film was not a box office hit. Most of us discovered it at the video store or on cable.
The sequel though, that was a blockbuster before it even released. The advertising was crazy on this one and I saw it, like, maybe 5 times in the cinema? Maybe more since we had dollar theaters back then and there was one very near my home where this played for months.
OverlordBluebook@reddit
I remember Terminator was in the "horror" section all the time right along with return of the living dead. Today it's just an action flick..
Winstons33@reddit
Dunno... Wasnt quite old enough to see the first one in the theaters....
But I had that movie poster on my bedroom wall!
That, and Blade Runner maybe a few others...
Outside-in-2211@reddit
Just 3 years away from this reality and we seem to be right on target.
JoeyKino@reddit
T2 might have been the first time I remember a marketing campaign that felt like what you'd get currently. Maybe it just appealed to me more as a teenager, so I noticed it more, but that movie was marketed everywhere, in just about every way I could imagine, and the build-up to its release was palpable
Anxiouslycalm12@reddit
Theres a synthwave song, reminds me of terminator and IBM computers
Weird-Girl-675@reddit
I don’t remember the reaction to the first one, but the second one was huge. There were giant displays everywhere. I even have a photo of myself on one of the motorcycles used in the movie, but I can’t remember where the photo was taken.
Hot_Rock@reddit
My best friend introduced me to Terminator on the VCR. When it was announced T2 was on the way we waited on it like Christmas. Went and seen it in the theater and it was worth the hype (at the time at least). The first one still takes the prize for me though