Friday, July 8, 2011
Happy Birthday Cyberdyne Systems Model 101: ‘Terminator 2: Judgment Day’ Turns 20
When media outlets initially revealed the reported budget of
Terminator 2: Judgment Day, it came
as an apocalyptic shock to rival anything depicted in the film itself. The price tag was a then unthinkable 100
million dollars. Any blockbuster of the
time considered itself lucky to cross the century mark at domestic box office,
so to actually spend that much money to make a film seemed insane. Add to that the fact that Cameron was just
coming off of the mixed reception to his expensive underwater sci-fi opus The
Abyss, and the whole endeavor seemed a recipe for disaster. Here was a sequel to an incredibly well received
yet undeniably modest success that didn’t seem to have much mass appeal. As came to be the norm for most of Cameron’s
productions from that point on, he knew better than his detractors.
Happy Birthday Doughboy: ‘Boyz n the Hood’ Turns 20
1991 proved to be a landmark year for black cinema. New
Jack City was released to both controversy and enthusiasm. It reintroduced black exploitation to a new generation
under the guise of a feature length anti-drug PSA. It also became the highest grossing black
film of all time up until that point.
Spike Lee kept his as yet unbroken winning streak going full bore with Jungle Fever. As the summer movie season got underway,
audiences the world over were enthralled with liquid metal spectacle of James
Cameron’s Terminator 2: Judgment Day. While the masses were being distracted by
Cameron’s technical wizardry, an unknown filmmaker from Los Angeles offered them
an as yet unacknowledged side of African American life.
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