Cleveronix A different way of telling a story

Suman Roberson It's a movie as timely as it is provocative and amazingly, for much of its running time, it is weirdly funny.

Tayyab Torres Strong acting helps the film overcome an uncertain premise and create characters that hold our attention absolutely.

Logan By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

a_chinn Probably James Cameron's weakest film (I'm not counting "Piranha Part Two: The Spawning"), but considering his other films are "Terminator 1 & 2," "Aliens," "The Abyss" "Titanic," and "Avatar" that's a fairly high bar (the JC best to worst (or least- best) rank order goes Terminator, Aliens, T2, Abyss, Avatar, Titanic, True Lies). Arnold plays a super spy, but his family, wife Jamie Lee Curtis and daughter Eliza Dushku, have no idea and think he's a dull salesman (never mind how Arnold could ever be considered ordinary). Curtis is left a neglected and bored wife who begins seeing lecherous used car salesmen Bill Paxton, pretending to be a spy in order to seduce Curtis, and from there Arnold's life as a spy trying to stop a group of international terrorists from getting a nuclear warhead begins to cross over with his family life. I remember liking this film when it first came out and enjoyed the mix of comedy and action, but watching it as a married 45-year old adult, I realized this film at it's core is about keeping the romance and excitement alive in a marriage after kids and career start to take hold during middle age. The action is good, but is done with a comedic lighter touch and is nowhere as good or as suspenseful as Cameron's best films, which is a bit disappointing. The humor is okay, but not all that funny. However, the cast is extremely likable, led by Arnold and Curtis, but Tom Arnold is also excellent as Arnold's spy partner (Arnold is an underrated comic actor who deserves more respect), as is Bill Paxton. I remember there being some controversy and accusations of misogyny over Arnold's manipulation of wife when he locks her up and makes her do her infamous striptease. There is still an unpleasant creep factor to those scenes, but it's not enough to ruin the overall film. "True Lies" is not a boundary pushing of film like most all of Cameron's other films. This could just as easily have been an Ivan Reitman comedy, but Cameron is a solid filmmaker and delivers a solid film. On a side note, Charlton Heston shows up for a couple scenes as Spencer Trilby, the head of Arnold's super secret spy agency, sporting an eye patch that makes him look exactly like the comic book version of Nick Fury. He totally should have played the cinematic version of Fury if there was still alive today!

Predrag Say what you will about Cameron.... but he knows how to tell a story and "True Lies" is a wonderful movie about spies and their domestic lives. Arnold is in top action form all the way and ably abetted by his sidekick-handler Tom Arnold (why does everyone attack this guy? He is really great in this one) but the real surprise is Jamie Lee Curtis going from mousy housewife pedaling along in a boring office job to a sexy (really sexy) female spy at her husband's 'oh so busted for being a spy all those year!' side. It's a remarkably up to date terrorist tale of nuclear warheads heading up the highway from Key West to be placed in key United States cities that must be thwarted at all costs and it's also a tale of petty husband suspecting bored lonely wife of having an affair on the side (Bill Paxton in a hilarious turn. The husband has his own flirtations with Tia Carrere who brings her exotic beauty to the role of villainous facilitator for the Terrorist group. All of this is blended into a mix of action/comedy that hits on all points and hums along to some spectacular action sequence conclusions.The special effects are out of this world and Schwarzenegger plays it just right so as not to be tacky. Art Malik makes for a good baddie and Jamie Lee Curtis is fantastic especially when doing her striptease routine. What a figure! Perhaps but the immediate effects really go over the top. Throughout Arnie certainly outdoes most James Bond's in an unusual range of expressions in his eyes. There's good direction, especially in the action sequences – for me the most exhilarating was Arnie on horseback pursuing a nasty on motor cycle and not a jump-jet hovering in the midst of chaos. Tia Carrere has a good stab at the 'femme-fatale' and Tom Arnold as the under-valued assistant. There is plenty of action in this movie and quite a few witty touches. Great cast choice and excellent dialogue, plenty of sub-plots to keep you glued. Classic Arnie one-liners make this movie an awesome comedy!Overall rating: 8 out of 10.

Jawbox5 In effect, True Lies features every aspect you should expect from a Schwarzenegger film. The manic action sequences, extravagant special effects and strong doses of humour throughout. Where the film differs is in its audacity and creativity when pulling off the more overblown set-pieces and by being helmed by a director who is a master of action in the form of James Cameron. This is clearly Cameron's most relaxed and purely entertainment based film, something that makes it greatly accessible but lacking in the punch of his better works.It follows Harry Tasker, a top U.S spy who has successfully fooled his wife Helen into thinking that he is a computer salesman. Why she isn't suspicious of all the times he comes home late we'll never know. For the first and final thirds of the film Harry and his team are tracking an antiques dealer who has links to a terrorist group who they believe are sneaking weapons into the country. It's pretty much as basic a spy plot as you can get but it's perfectly serviceable for a film like this. Schwarzenegger is enjoyable here. He'd played these type of roles so much by this point that he slips into it with ease. It's also the closest we'll coming to seeing Arnie playing James Bond so that's something else I suppose. Tom Arnold also deserves credit as Arnie's partner Gib, providing a lot wisecracks and sarcasm that make him a fun foil.The films entire second act is what really sets the story apart. Harry believes his wife is having an affair with slimy car salesman Simon (brilliantly played by Bill Paxton) who is pretending to be a spy to add some excitement. Harry then cooks up the idea of having his wife complete an ''assignment''. This leads to a really strange sequence where Helen does a striptease and dances in front of him in a hotel suite. Firstly, how can she not tell it's him? Secondly, the entire scene is unpleasant when you take a step back. I understand Harry wanting to get some kind of revenge on his wife, but to degrade her like he does just feels wrong. Jamie Lee Curtis excels in these moments of physical comedy and the natural comedy that comes from her interactions with Paxton are very amusing, yet the eventual payoff ends up feeling forced and unnecessary to the plot. As you'd expect the action is wonderfully stylised and unrestrained in all the right areas. Take for instance the best action scene which involves Harry on a horse pursuing the head terrorist on a motorbike and the way in which the scene works is how it just keeps building. First they chase through a park, then a hotel lobby, then get elevators to the roof, where the terrorist escapes via free fall into a swimming pool and Arnie's horse refuses to follow in a funny payoff. There are no lengths the film won't got to in order to provide the most excitement it can. The climax is similar. At one point it features Arnie flying a jet with his daughter clinging onto the cockpit and the terrorist dangling from a missile. It's bordering on ridiculous. Yet one of the films strengths is that it knows these situations are far-fetched and it clearly has fun in seeing how far it can go.James Cameron's direction is as smooth as ever and there are not many directors who are as competent when it comes to action as he is. Cameron also wrote the screenplay which is fun and well-paced yet certainly lacking in something extra. Even though I enjoy the first the two-thirds of the film, the weird payoffs in all, the final act does feel a little contrived and the film loses a lot of steam as a result. The strength of the writing is definitely in the films humour. It mostly keeps its tone light and playful, leading to plenty of good one-liners and interaction, especially between Harry and his team. Elsewhere, Brad Fiedel provides a brilliant score, brimming with excitement and energy that fit the films tone perfectly. It's a nice move away from the more atmospheric work of his previous scores.True Lies doesn't quite hit the heights of much of either Cameron's or Schwarzenegger's other works, partly because of its simply trying to be fun entertainment and partly because of the limitations in its plotting. The plot itself is too simplistic for it to ever be that gripping and the tonal shifts do frequently feel unwarranted. Its approach is both an asset and a hindrance as a result. Yet, when it comes to big action, comedy and effects then you'll struggle to do better than here. When the film sticks to its strengths it is undeniable fun.

Deigues "True Lies" is an action-comedy from James Cameron. It opened in theaters in 1994 and it was one of the last watchable movies of Schwarzenegger's career - before his stint into politics.The main plot is nothing spectacular (far from it): it takes a generic and stereotypical antagonist (in this case a Palestinian terrorist) and instills him with an infinite rage towards the USA. He becomes particularly dangerous when he manages to take control of nuclear weapons, making him Schwarzenegger's main target, as he seems to be the only person who can stop the terrorist and ultimately save the world. *Sigh*Thankfully, this plot gets sidetracked along the way and a more interesting one takes over. Schwarzenegger plays the role of a secret agent, but he isn't the sort of spy with a dark and troubled past nor is he a suave and carefree bachelor – he's married. On the one hand, his spy life is unbeknown to his wife (Jamie Lee Curtis), who is convinced he is nothing more than a boring computer salesman and, even worse than that, a boring husband. On the other hand, Schwarzenegger is clueless to the unhappiness of his wife, whom he believes to be a fulfilled and satisfied woman - which of these lies is worse seems to be debatable.While most of the films in Schwarzenegger's career saw him as nothing more than a supremely built being and completely ignored the growing of his age (he was pushing 50 around the time of shooting), "True Lies" seems to be one of the few that recognized this fact and used it to its advantage. While the hero is still above most of his enemies, there is a human side to him and it's that side that draws us the most.I found myself entertained by the tension surrounding the struggling couple, as hijinks quickly ensue and they are both thrust into Schwarzenegger's spy world. Unfortunately, the couple's storyline seems to finish at the beginning of the third act. After which the film prolongs its welcome with 20 extra minutes of pure action to neatly tie a very thin and generic plot that nobody really cares about.Still, "True Lies" achieves what it sets out to do. It's a fun movie with a lot of action, explosions, special effects and elements of comedy underneath. While it is far from being Cameron's most inspired work it is still a rather enjoyable film.