Terminator 2: Judgment Day

WAIT! Don't. Buy. It. YET! (2009-01-04)
I purchased this Blu-ray recently and found it to be a waste of money. YES, TERMINATOR 2 is unspeakably awesome; YES, TERMINATOR 2 on Blu-ray is a good thing...BUT NOT THIS VERSION.

For one, it's THEATRICAL CUT ONLY!

Second, this version is EXTREMELY BARE BONES: it's just the movie and 2 commentary tracks (one from 1993, the other from 2003) and THAT'S IT. For a movie with so much technical precision and BTS material found on previous releases, this is a GRIEVOUS oversight.

Third (and final), the transfer is TERRIBLE. The original film is a bit grainy to begin with, but in previous VHS and DVD transfers it was never enough to be distracting. Here, in 1080 resolution, the grain is so bothersome that it strikes me more as digital noise--even STATIC at worst--than actual celluloid texture. I get the feeling they went through the HD transfer process as fast as possible to cash in on the HD market. It looks little better than what the old DVD version would on upconvert.

Interestingly, I recently bought THE ROAD WARRIOR on Blu-ray and noticed the difference. Both ROAD WARRIOR and TERMINATOR 2 have roughly the same amount of grain in their image (and the VHS and DVD transfers were comparable), but the Blu-ray transfer of THE ROAD WARRIOR is GLORIOUS, and the grain actually accentuates the image (worth every penny); logically, the TERMINATOR 2 image should be on par at LEAST, but instead it underperforms.

So don't buy this Blu-ray release of it yet, because if history is any teacher, TERMINATOR 2 is going to receive the same double and triple-dipping treatment it did on DVD, and the next release is likely to have a better transfer and bonus features...the same thing already happened with THE FIFTH ELEMENT.

A Blu-ray review (2009-01-02)
If your a fan of this movie series you might want to get this, however its only marginally better definition then the dvd (especially if you have an upconvert dvd player). This blu-ray does not have the special features available on some of the special edition dvds. So basicly you give up some nice special features for a marginal increase in definiton. If its about 10 dollars or so, or if they rerelease it with special features and improved definition then it would be worth it otherwise just stick with the special editon dvd.

Awesome movie, awesome dvd (2008-12-30)
This is probably the best dvd I own as far picture and sound quality, the features are great which I have heard have been cut on the Blu-Ray. That's a travesty, considering how awesome this movie is!! When I got my Blu-ray I wanted to test it with this movie, unfortuanately from what I understand I'd be better off sticking with this version. I don't mind waiting until a comparable version comes out on Blu-ray.

This Movie Deservers Better Blu-Ray Treatment (2008-12-30)
Are you wondering why the price of the Blu-ray version is too good to be true? It's because this is only an average production. This incredible movie deserves much better. The picture and audio are just average (by Blu-ray standards, that is).

T2 is a BD-25 (half-size) Blu-ray disc and contains no lossless audio track. In other words, it doesn't come close to exploiting the capabilities of the Blu-ray format, so why bother?

Save your ten dollars, and wait for the "remastered" Blu-ray version that I'm quite sure will be released in the future. I'm sure it will contain a better image as well as a real, uncompressed audio track. This is similar to what happened with The Fifth Element: The first Blu-ray version of the movie was terrible, and was followed up by a remastered version. Embarrassing to say the least.

Note that I am rating the Blu-ray edition of this movie and its shortcomings. I'm frustrated that it's barely an improvement over some of the excellent DVD versions available.

One of the best action movies ever deserves to be a "reference" quality production that you would use to show off your home theater, but instead it falls far short.

The movie itself is of course awesome.

A classic that holds up on Blu-ray (2008-12-22)
This movie is starting to get a bit dated now in terms of effects, but it still looks fantastic. The only down-side to this disc is it needs more bonus material...as do many movies, unfortunately. Regardless, it is a bargain for your Blu-ray collection and you will not be disappointed in the quality.