Best James Cameron Movie Ever

[블라스]

Aliens, with True Lies as a very close 2nd.

 

[luke1234]

Terminator 2 followed closely by Aliens

 

[xwolverine2]

true lies... only cause im pretty sick of the other ones at the moment lol

 

[Adrian89]

Terminator II: Judgement Day, obviously!

 

[Rac]

I voted for Aliens, but I think it's either that or T1.

 

[Episode29]

1) Terminator 2 (5/5)
2) Titanic (5/5)
3) Aliens (4.5/5)
4) The Terminator (4/5)
5) True Lies (4/5)
6) The Abyss (4/5)
7) Piranha 2: The Spawning (1/5)

Can't believe that last one wasn't included.

 

[hitmanyr2k]

It was a tough choice between Aliens, T1 and T2 but I had to go with Aliens. When you think about it that movie only has two big action set pieces in a 2.5 hour film yet I was never bored. I miss the days when characters and story took precedence over effects and action.

 

[GothamAlleys]

Both terminators are a heavy tie for me. same with titanic - it featured some of the best FX ive ever seen and the most intense action sequences as well

_______________

Largest James Cameron site online - www.JamesCameronOnline.com

 

[Symbiotic]

T2 by far.

 

[AVEITWITHJAMON]

Aliens and Terminator 1 are 2 top movies of all time, and it was a difficult choice to choose between the 2, but Aliens JUST shades it for me.

T2, True Lies, The Abyss are all awesome as well though. And Titanic is good, but nothing special.

 

[He-Man]

The Terminator

 

[Steyin]

I would never call Cameron one of the best of our time. Honestly, I find him overrated and avergae. All of these films are average, with the exception of T1 and T2, and I vote T2.

I would include Aliens as an above par film, but after watching Alien so many times and studying/analyzing it for a class a few years ago, Aliens just doesn't compare.

 

[GothamAlleys]

I would never call Cameron one of the best of our time. Honestly, I find him overrated and avergae. All of these films are average, with the exception of T1 and T2, and I vote T2.

I would include Aliens as an above par film, but after watching Alien so many times and studying/analyzing it for a class a few years ago, Aliens just doesn't compare.

I noticed your location and found that very interesting. Im a student in New York Academy of Film studying filmmaking, are you in the same school by any chance?

Ironically, its Jim's T2 that we used to dissect and was given as one of the examples of a perfect movie in every possible area, from visual subliminal storytelling to character arc to sound etc.

But yes, the first terminator and Aliens , althought phenomenal and fantastic movies both in terms of physical and storyline structure, were the least pumped with layers, themes and art from all the other Jim movies (aside from True Lies of course)

Im asking cause it there when I found out about Cameron's genius and an incredible and jaw dropping amount of thought and art he put into his post-Aliens movies
_______________

Largest James Cameron site online - www.JamesCameronOnline.com

 

[Steyin]

I noticed your location and found that very interesting. Im a student in New York Academy of Film studying filmmaking, are you in the same school by any chance?

Nah, was never in film school, but I agree about the complexity, or lack of it, with those films. True Lies was just an average/slightly above film, and Titanic was just cashing in on a tragedy to make a formulatic-tragic love story in my eyes (and Titanic was the second film I've ever fallen asleep to while in a theater). I can't comment on The Abyss as I've never seen it.

Now, I am curious to see what Avatar brings us. While I don't really think the 3D aspect will be that big of an advancement or precedent at this point in time, I'm more so curious as to the sci-fi elements of the film. From what I've read of the plot, it sounds like another generic imperialistic/love story, like a Pocahontas type of setting, but in space. Hopefully there will be something about Avatar that will throw many people for a loop aside from its visuals.

 

[Rishi]

Care to share what was so genius about the first Alien?

I mean, I know its a good movie but being an average dumb movie-goer I don't see much below the surface

 

[CelticPredator]

Its beautiful, its very dark. Its actually scary. It deals with insane pyschological issues such as rape, and birthing of another species. Alien is perfect.

 

[GothamAlleys]

Care to share what was so genius about the first Alien?

I mean, I know its a good movie but being an average dumb movie-goer I don't see much below the surface

All right. Heres a little something:

There's a particuarly nasty theme that runs through Alien that has to do with a fear of biology - concepts of family, of what biology actually is (and its merger with technology), and of loss of control.

Scott communicates it in a number of ways. Take the family thing - we see the crew waking, semi-naked, in the hypersleep chamber. Birth (and foreshdaowed by the ship's first 'breath' we see disturbing the dressing gowns as the hyeprsleep chamber activates). The design of the hypersleep chamber, with its capsules clustered around a single column, subliminally nudges us towards the crew being siblings. The dialogue around the breakfast table - possibly the most potent symbol of 20th century family - resembles sibling rivalry. They call their ship 'Mother'. And this is a basic set up for the crew, the family, being betrayed by their mother, for they have a cuckoo in their midst.

So we get shown the betrayal - Ash is a droid, but Scott shows full of milk, 'mother's milk'. What with SO937, it's nicely subliminal that Ash is Mother's favourite son. The set design of the lower levels of the Nostromo was informed by the design of the Allien, so that as the film progresses we see the ducts and tubing through the strobes and smoke and think we see the Alien (and this is reinforced by the Alien's appearance onboard the Nostromo) - we're being shown that Mother is more of a home to the Alien than the crew ever were. Except for Ash, whose innards are also more organic than what you'd expect for a droid, all that messy biology in synthetic form. Much like Kubrick's 2001 we're being shown that humans are distinctly unsuited for space travel, except Alien's starchild is a thing to be feared rather than wondered at.

We're also given a nice paralell to Mother with the Derelict. Everything here is imbued with the theme of procreation. The spacesuited figures entering the Derelict resemble sperm travelling through the fallopian tubes, Kane penetrates the hymen-like membrane of blue light, Kane meets an Egg and finds that he is the one who is fertilised.

There's a lot of subtext going on in Alien through set and costume design, disregarding the Alien itself. Giger's work gave Scott the needed subtext of the film, Scot took that and he built the whole film around it. This is what a good director should do - direct all the resources into a unified experience.

Hope that helps

_______________

Largest James Cameron site online - www.JamesCameronOnline.com

 

[Eggyman]

All right. Heres a little something:

There's a particuarly nasty theme that runs through Alien that has to do with a fear of biology - concepts of family, of what biology actually is (and its merger with technology), and of loss of control.

Scott communicates it in a number of ways. Take the family thing - we see the crew waking, semi-naked, in the hypersleep chamber. Birth (and foreshdaowed by the ship's first 'breath' we see disturbing the dressing gowns as the hyeprsleep chamber activates). The design of the hypersleep chamber, with its capsules clustered around a single column, subliminally nudges us towards the crew being siblings. The dialogue around the breakfast table - possibly the most potent symbol of 20th century family - resembles sibling rivalry. They call their ship 'Mother'. And this is a basic set up for the crew, the family, being betrayed by their mother, for they have a cuckoo in their midst.

So we get shown the betrayal - Ash is a droid, but Scott shows full of milk, 'mother's milk'. What with SO937, it's nicely subliminal that Ash is Mother's favourite son. The set design of the lower levels of the Nostromo was informed by the design of the Allien, so that as the film progresses we see the ducts and tubing through the strobes and smoke and think we see the Alien (and this is reinforced by the Alien's appearance onboard the Nostromo) - we're being shown that Mother is more of a home to the Alien than the crew ever were. Except for Ash, whose innards are also more organic than what you'd expect for a droid, all that messy biology in synthetic form. Much like Kubrick's 2001 we're being shown that humans are distinctly unsuited for space travel, except Alien's starchild is a thing to be feared rather than wondered at.

We're also given a nice paralell to Mother with the Derelict. Everything here is imbued with the theme of procreation. The spacesuited figures entering the Derelict resemble sperm travelling through the fallopian tubes, Kane penetrates the hymen-like membrane of blue light, Kane meets an Egg and finds that he is the one who is fertilised.

There's a lot of subtext going on in Alien through set and costume design, disregarding the Alien itself. Giger's work gave Scott the needed subtext of the film, Scot took that and he built the whole film around it. This is what a good director should do - direct all the resources into a unified experience.

Hope that helps

_______________

Largest James Cameron site online - www.JamesCameronOnline.com

Brilliant. Alien is my favourite. I love the Alien films. That is why I voted Aliens.

 

[jaymes_e06]

Terminator 2. That movie is litterally one of the few masterpieces of all time.

I agree with the above statement.

 

[GothamAlleys]

1) Terminator 2 (5/5)
2) Titanic (5/5)
3) Aliens (4.5/5)
4) The Terminator (4/5)
5) True Lies (4/5)
6) The Abyss (4/5)
7) Piranha 2: The Spawning (1/5)

Can't believe that last one wasn't included.

Its because Cameron didnt really direct it. The producer was the real director and wanted someone behind the camera to fulfill contractual issues. Cameron wanted to actuallyy direct the movie the way he wanted and got fired after 14 days of shooting. 14 days! Someone else continued his work while Cameron was given credit to fullfill contractual requirements

_______________

Largest James Cameron site online - www.JamesCameronOnline.com

 

[Axl Van Sixx]

The Terminator is one of my favourite movies of all time, so it has to take the #1 slot for me. But I rewatched Titanic a few times in recent months just due to a burst of interest on the topic, and I think I'll have to make it my #2.

Titanic is a remarkable achievement no matter how you look at it. The fact that Cameron pulled off such a monumental feat is really a testament to his abilities as a director. How many other directors would actually dive to the bottom of the Atlantic to shoot footage of the real shipwreck for a movie? It's fashionable to dismiss Titanic, and some of the dialogue is a little corny. But I think the love story is still moving for those who can check their cynicism at the door. The movie really conveys the tragedy of the sinking, and the music and visuals are all spectacular.

My rankings:

1. The Terminator (5/5)
2. Titanic (5/5)
3. Terminator 2: Judgement Day (4/5)
4. Aliens (4/5)
5. The Abyss (3/5)
6. Avatar (3/5)
7. True Lies (3/5)

Would be interesting to see where Avatar ranks on people's lists now, since this thread was created in 2009.

 

[psylockolussus]

Titanic.

 

[Batmannerism]

Damn ! Hit Aliens too quickly, and have decided that T2 really was his best film - all around it wins for performances, story and a perfect mix of cgi and practical effects that few films even come close to. The film is perfectly paced with breathtaking action scenes, followed by gaps that are just long enough for us to recover our breath- while we learn more about the characters.

Yeah, its cinematic magic.

Btw can Avatar be added to the poll ? - I don't like it that much because its preachy and derivative as **** ( its so Dances With Wolves that Kevin Costner should have got a writing credit), but Cameron took cgi environments to a new level, and it was a huge financial success, and even I am still impressed with the battle scenes.

 

[:eek:]

I'd probably rate all movies except True Lies 4/5. True Lies is his weakest but still a solid 3/5 movie and definitely one of the better James Bond-wannabees out there. But it really doesn't feel much like a James Cameron-movie. It's probably due to the fact it's a remake of a French movie and probably is the only movie he made for pure entertainment. I think it was Schwarzenegger who saw the French original and suggested to Cameron to make a new version and Cameron saw it mostly as something to do while he otherwise was preparing Titanic. At the core of all other Cameron-movies there is this criticism of how we rely on technology and what human greed and arrogance can lead to. He may not be the most subtle storyteller around, but at least it feels his movies usually have a heart and soul that most blockbusters don't have.

 

[jolldan]