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| Arnold Schwarzenegger |
Welcome to Alternative to What: a weekly column that tries to find a great alternative to driving to the multiplexes. Based on releases of that week, the selections will either be thematically related or feature recurring cast and crew. The goal is to help you better understand the diversity of cinema and hopefully find you some favorites while saving a few bucks. At worse, this column will save you money. Expect each installment to come out on Fridays, unless specified.
THIS WEEK:
Total Recall (1990)
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The Terminator: Genisys (2015)
It is really hard to not just recommend The Terminator or T2: Judgment Day this week. I've made it a personal challenge not to recommend films within a franchise that I am writing a piece on. However, looking at The Terminator: Genisys, it is hard not to just tell people that the first two, directed by James Cameron, are some of the best sci-fi films of their respective eras. The second one still looks cutting edge and may be the definitive Arnold Schwarzenegger movie possibly ever. If anything, that's what's indicative of them making yet another sequel for the beloved cyborg. If one must know, the first two Terminator films are phenomenal and are a sub-recommendation to this piece if you haven't already seen them.
But what makes them so great? There's a common notion that Schwarzenegger isn't the world's greatest actor. In fact, he lucks into playing muscle-bound deadpan heroes with varying degrees of success. His one-liners are arguably bad jokes made funnier by his accent. Yet, he is so much more. He has screen presence that is unlike any other major action star of his era. Sure, many will argue for Sylvester Stallone, but is he really that charismatic? He may have done films like Rocky, but he doesn't have the gravitas and subliminal humor to his roles that makes Schwarzenegger so lovable, even far out and very strange premises.
Which brings me finally to Total Recall. In terms of great Schwarzenegger sci-fi films, this one ranks among the best. With cult director Paul Verhoeven, it is a comical ride through literal imagination full of action, humor, and enough awareness to make everything enjoyable. As with the best of his work, Schwarzenegger is best when he has to deal with outlandish situations. Very few are as bizarre as him fighting his wife or having to get his ass to Mars, where his head will inevitably explode. The film may take things seriously, but that doesn't mean its protagonist does, and that makes the ride all the more wonderful.
But what makes them so great? There's a common notion that Schwarzenegger isn't the world's greatest actor. In fact, he lucks into playing muscle-bound deadpan heroes with varying degrees of success. His one-liners are arguably bad jokes made funnier by his accent. Yet, he is so much more. He has screen presence that is unlike any other major action star of his era. Sure, many will argue for Sylvester Stallone, but is he really that charismatic? He may have done films like Rocky, but he doesn't have the gravitas and subliminal humor to his roles that makes Schwarzenegger so lovable, even far out and very strange premises.
Which brings me finally to Total Recall. In terms of great Schwarzenegger sci-fi films, this one ranks among the best. With cult director Paul Verhoeven, it is a comical ride through literal imagination full of action, humor, and enough awareness to make everything enjoyable. As with the best of his work, Schwarzenegger is best when he has to deal with outlandish situations. Very few are as bizarre as him fighting his wife or having to get his ass to Mars, where his head will inevitably explode. The film may take things seriously, but that doesn't mean its protagonist does, and that makes the ride all the more wonderful.
It may be hard to understand, but despite his limitations, the actor really knows how to portray masculinity in all of its conflicting ways. There's frustration at an automatic driver. He knows how to fight his way out of trouble. He also does it with humor. While the 90's would bring on more bizarre sci-fi films such as The Fifth Element, Total Recall kicked the decade off with a certain mixture of cleverness and tackiness that only the best can do. Even if one isn't into the rules behind the science, Total Recall works as an adventure story. The journey continues not based on stupid rules, but on instinct and the next inconceivable step. If one wants to understand why the film works so well, consider the remake that pinned the source material with bigger effects, but less humor and charisma. Trust me, it is more indicative of what this actor brings to his work.
I cannot claim to be the biggest Schwarzenegger fan out there. For all I know, there have been better films out there. Still, when he is given meaty roles, it is hard to resist what he does. He isn't a great actor, but in his prime he was someone who elevated the mundane action genre to something watchable. I am doubting that he is able to pull of dramatic chops or even have the appeal that he once did. There's a rare chance that The Terminator: Genisys will actually be halfway decent. Yet there's more recognition of what squandering the actor looks like. We know what the beloved cyborg is capable of. It's just a shame that he can't be given better stories to go along with it.
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