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Written, directed, and produced by James Cameron, this action-comedy film was one of the most
expensive movies ever produced, when it was released in July of 1994. Luckily, it more
than tripled its $110 million dollar budget. At the height of his A-list movie career,
future California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger stars as a suave, deadly, and ostensibly flawless
secret agent for a mysterious government counter-terrorism task force known as "The Omega Sector", an
organization headed by an eye-patch wearing Charlton Heston in a brilliant cameo role.
In a plot that feels awfully dated today, Schwarzenegger is attempted to stop a radical
terrorist group from attacking the United States... while simultaneously dealing with
the discovery that his wife, Jamie Lee Curtis is possibly having an affair. With tongue
planted firmly in-cheek, the bombastic, over-the-top excitement in this 141 minute adventure plays
out almost like a parody of better action movies. The kicker however, is that "True
Lies" is one of the best action movies ever made... containing all the iconic staples:
diving into water to avoid an explosion, kicking a board to flip a machine gun into your hands,
using humans as bullet shields, sliding upside on a rope and snapping a guy's neck... combine
all of this with ridiculously mammoth set-pieces, high-flying and believable stunts, incredibly
unique and gripping chase sequences, and top-shelf level visuals, and you've got a formula for
success. Schwarzenegger is the quintessential hero, going full-tilt into action movie mode,
especially when he chases a dirt-biking terrorist into an elevator of a high-rise whiling riding
a horse. These sequences are as inventive as they are implausible, but they're all the
more enjoyable for it. With no idea her husband is secretly working for the government, Curtis
provides plenty of comic relief as the bored housewife who seeks out a relationship with
smarmy and cowardly used car salesman Bill Paxton, who tries to bed various females with
a tired "secret agent" routine. Given the material, and dialog, Paxton, Curtis, and
even Schwarzenegger do a tremendous job with the material: keeping things light without
getting too goofy. The middle portion of the movie, which finds Schwarzenegger hatching
an eloborate plan using government resources to spy on his own wife, and uncover her affair
is positively hilarious and engaging: the dramatic irony of who knows what, and when
makes for some great moments. Unfortunately, the terrorist plot is sidelined for the better
part of an hour while this secondary story unfolds. When the almost forgotten A-plot
does return, it puts a grinding halt on the proceedings... ruining what was otherwise
a well-paced picture, as the movie does a near 180 in tone, and story. One humorous
observation, early in the film the subtitles share that Arnold is talking with a "perfect"
Arabic accent... when then is his American still so terrible? With Brad Fiedel's awesome
score, Tom Arnold's humorous quips, Cameron's steadfast direction in even the largest of
scenes, and Schwarzenegger's overall ***-kicking and one-liners, this movie functions well
across all phases. Exotic locations, great shoot-outs, loud explosions, and an involved,
but fun story make "True Lies" "Ridiculous fun, laughs, and thrills". Those are my thoughts,
now lets read some of yours from the YouTube comments.
Lets rate "True Lies"... a double NINE. I think everyone agrees this movie is a bit
silly, and unbelievable, but it's undeniably exciting too, you thought it was awesome.
Although it struggles a bit with an indentity crisis, this is a more than capable action/comedy
spectacle. Although it's not even in my top-3 James Cameron's movies, I thought it was awesome
as well.