"Hasta La Vista, Baby"
Plot
Ten years after the events of The Terminator Sarah is in a mental hospital and her son, John Connor, is in a foster home. Another, more advanced, Terminator has been sent back in time with the goal of killing John. The resistance also sent a T-800 (the model from the first movie) back to protect him. The Terminator, Sarah, and John try to halt Cyberdyn's work on what will become Skynet , while trying to evade the shape shifting T-1000.
Story
Early on Cameron had been thinking about a sequel to his first blockbuster. Before committing to the movie Cameron got agreements with Arnold Schwarzenegger and Linda Hamilton to reprise there roles. He felt that they were to important to the story to risk not having them on board. While working on The Abyss Cameron had talked to Michael Beihn about possible ways to resurrect Kyle Reese. In the end nothing that he could come up with really sounded workable. He decided that any appearance by Kyle would be only a dream or a flash-back.
Another decision that was made early was that this time Arnold's T-800 would be the hero. This initially created the problem of who could play his the seemingly unstoppable adversary. Several ideas were initially tossed around. One was for Arnold to play both hero and villain. This idea was quickly rejected because having to concentrate on the split screen effect would limit interaction between the two, they would also be evenly matched; the villain would have no 'edge'. An idea that he than leaned toward was
for the new Terminator to be bigger and more powerful than Arnold. (exactly who, or what, that would have been I have no idea) Finally he hit upon the idea of going back to his original concept of what the first terminator was to have been, an infiltration unit that could blend in with the crowd. When thinking about The Abyss's Academy Award winning visual effects he had the perfect 'edge' to give his villain.
Never one to let the story get overlooked by technical effects, Cameron and friend William Wisher wrote the screenplay before getting all of the technical types going. Nothing sucks quite as much as having all of you're special effects ready to go and not having a good story line to go with it. (makers of Godzilla (1998) take note) Cameron had promised to deliver Carolco Pictures a script before they boarded a plane for the 1990 Cannes film festival, where they announced the project. He printed it from his computer just as the limo showed up to take him to the airport. At the festival they announced that T2 would be in theaters July 4, 1991. That announcement being made gave them only 13 months to make the biggest movie in history, from just a first draft screenplay.
Once back in LA Cameron and his team had there work cut out for them. They had to get the wheels turning on this project and they had to do it fast. Linda Hamilton had to get in unbelievable shape for her role. She described it as the worst experience of her life. Relatively unknown actor Robert Patrick was cast as the T-1000. Like Hamilton, Patrick had to get in shape for his role. His trainer suggested that he always breath through his nose, even while running, to create the unique mechanical T-1000 apperance. Patrick reported having to psych himself up before going hand-to-hand with
Schwarzenegger, who wouldn't.
One of the strangest casting moves was Edward Furlong, a first time actor who had not even answered there casting call. Casting Director Mali Finn saw him at a local boys club. She got him to come in for an audition. Cameron saw the same indescribable quality that made him perfect for the role of young John. His lack of acting experience did create some problems. He had to work with an acting coach quite a bit. Cameron's notorious temper flared more than once with his young star.
For special make-up effects Terminator veteran (and by than industry legend) Stan Winston returned. For the Visual effects, specifically the T-1000 morphing, Dennis Muren expanded on the CGI techniques that won him an Oscar for The Abyss. Winston also directed the original theatrical 'teaser' trailer for T2. With $150,000 and instructions to be original, interesting, and not give the plot away he set to work. Thinking that the first thing that people would say is how could Schwarzenegger be back after being crushed in a mettle press, he set it in a factory where copy after copy
of the terminator were being constructed. The teaser contains no dialogue, only the construction of the terminators and the words "He's back, Terminator 2: Judgment Day, summer 1991". As would happen many times in the near future the trailer started the hype that would build until the film hit theaters. The only question in filmgoers minds was will the film live up to the hype.
While editing the film Cameron had to make several cuts in the interest of time. Trying to not reduce the film to a bunch of special effects and action sequences strung together both character moments and special effects shots were cut to bring the run time in at 2 hours and 17 minuets. When it finally hit theaters critics and audiences alike gave it the big 2 thumbs up, way up. Terminating all box office records and taking home several Oscars Cameron's team showed what an event movie can, and should, be.
Trivia
The T-1000s police badge reads "Austin". Stephanie Austin is the name of a co-producer on the film.
Actor Robert Patrick walks with a slight limp, from an old sports
injury. Dennis Muren's team incorporated it into the computer generated
shots of the T-1000.
During the mall scene the Terminator carries a gun an a box of
roses. A song was written for the movie by the group "Guns 'n
Roses".
The Tow truck in the storm drain was driven part of the time by a
hidden driver. Robert Patrick was on the right side with a fake steering
wheel. The license plate was mirrored, so that when the shot was reversed
everything looked correct. They accidentally filmed a street sign. The
computer effects team reversed the sign in post-production. In some other
shots the cracked windshield hid the stunt driver's face. The windshields
fall out in the initial jump but Cameron had them put back because they
couldn't reshoot the expensive jump and they were needed to hide the
stunt drivers face.
The Terminator tricks the T-1000 by asking why "Wolfie" is barking,
the dog's real name is Max. Cameron once had a dog named
"Wolfie".
The security guard the T-1000 copies and kills is played by identical
twins Don Stanton and Dan Stanton.
The pumps at the gas station they spend the night in have the logo
for Benthic Petroleum, the company from The Abyss. The truck
with the liquid nitrogen also has the logo.
In order to fly the helicopter and shoot a gun at the same time the T-
1000 morphs a third arm.
Linda Hamilton's twin Leslie Hamilton Gearren played the T1000
when it was imitating Sarah. Leslie is also in a scene that is only in the Special Edition.
The Terminator says "I need a vacation". Schwarzenegger ad-
libbed the line, which was first in Kindergarten Cop.
Earl Boen reprises his role of Dr. Peter Silberman from The Terminator. In that movie
Silberman profiled Kyle Reese and said that Reese was so crazy "I could made a career out of this guy."
In this movie he has basically made a career out of psychoanalyzing Sarah's supposed delusions.
Special Edition Scenes
The T2 Special Edition was first released on a VHS two tape set. It has since been released as on the T2 Ultimate Edition DVD, one of the finest DVDs on the market.
After doctor Siberman explains Sarah's supposed 'condition' to the med students he tells the orderlies to give her he medicine. When she refuses they beat her with there billy clubs and force the medicine down her throat.
After being beaten Sarah has a dream where she sees Kyle Reese (Michael Biehn returns in a cameo) he tells her that she has to protect their son. She sees a playground get destroyed by a nuclear explosion and than wakes up.
After the T-1000 kills John's foster parents he goes outside and kills the dog. He sees the name "Max" on the collar and realizes he was tricked when 'John' (the Terminator imitating John's voice) called the dog Wolfie.
After killing the dog the T-1000 searches John's room for clues. He moves his fingers along the wall, feeling for clues, and find some hidden photographs of John and Sarah. This scene is not in the Special Edition of the movie, but is on the additional scenes on the supplement tape. Cameron cut it because he thought it either A: Was too redundant, by than the audience realized that the T-1000 touched things to scan them. or B: It made the T-1000 appear to have X-ray vision. Depending on who's version of the story you believe.
At the gas station when John asks the Terminator if he can learn instead of answering that he can observe and copy human behavior, the Terminator responds that he can learn but skynet set his CPU chip on read only mode. John and Sarah reset the chip to write mode. In order to get to it they have to open up the inside of the Terminator's head. After taking out the chip, which shuts the Terminator down, Sarah is about to smash it before John stops her. While they are working on opening up his head he is sitting across from a mirror. Because of the camera angles involved the camera would have been visible in the reflection, so they build a duplicate set on the other side of a cut out in the wall where the mirror is supposed to be. Since John is not moving his face is not visible in the reflection and had body double on the other side. Schwarzenegger was on the other side and a dummy head, seen only from behind, was being worked on by our heroes. Because Sarah moved around so much her face was visible in both the reflection and the 'real' side. The casting people began looking for woman who resembled Linda Hamilton before finding out that she has an identical twin sister, Leslie Hamilton Gearren. The actors worked for hours to choreograph and synchronize their movements. One small goof can be spotted. Right before Sarah shuts off the Terminator the 'real' hand stops moving while the reflection continues to move. NOTE: Linda's sister, Leslie, is a nurse in New Jersey. I can just imagine some guy saying "they must have given me more pain killer than I thought, you look just like that lady from The Terminator".
At a gas station John tries to teach the Terminator to smile. He is not a quick learner.
Dyson is at home working on his research on the Terminator CPU chip. His wife tells him that he is neglecting his family and getting obsessed with his work. He tells her everything good that could come from it. He never thinks that his work could lead to the evil that created the Terminators.
At the Militia compound John and the Terminator talk about death. The Terminator is not afraid of death. John describes some of his past.
When John and the Terminator go after Sarah the Terminator says that killing Dyson might prevent the war, but John says that killing is always wrong.
At Cyberdyne Dyson smashes his CPU chip model with an ax.
In the factory after the T-1000 reforms after being shattered he begins to lose control of his abilities. His hands and feat begin morphing into the floor or anything he touches. This explains why he tells Sarah to call John instead of imitating her. The damage probably temporally disabled his voice changing ability.
When Sarah comes up behind the fake Sarah John looks down and sees the fake Sarah's feet morphing into the floor.
Cut Scenes
Some scenes were not put into the special edition because Cameron felt that they did not make the film better.
After the T-1000 kills John's foster parents he goes outside and kills the dog. He sees the name "Max" on the collar and realizes he was tricked when 'John' (the Terminator imitating John's voice) called the dog Wolfie.
After killing the dog the T-1000 searches John's room for clues. He moves his fingers along the wall, feeling for clues, and find some hidden photographs of John and Sarah. This scene is not in the Special Edition of the movie, but is on the additional scenes on the supplement tape. Cameron cut it because he thought it either A: Was too redundant, by than the audience realized that the T-1000 touched things to scan them. or B: It made the T-1000 appear to have X-ray vision. Depending on who's version of the story you believe.
The supplement has the original ending. Sarah is an old woman in the year 2029. At the very park that was destroyed in her dream Sarah sits with old John and his daughter. She says that Judgment day never came and that John is a senator, who fights to kill the Skynet bill. This was removed because it did not fit the dark tone of the rest of the movie and would kill any possibility of future sequels.