THE UNPOPULAR OPINION is an ongoing column featuring different takes on films that either the writer HATED, but that the majority of film fans LOVED, or that the writer LOVED, but that most others LOATHED. We're hoping this column will promote constructive and geek fueled discussion. Enjoy!
****SOME SPOILERS ENSUE****
In 1994, I went to my local theater on opening weekend to see the latest James Cameron film, TRUE LIES. Having been blown away by TERMINATOR 2: JUDGEMENT DAY, THE ABYSS,and ALIENS, it seemed a no-brainer for TRUE LIES to be an epic spectacle as great as those films. For years, I enjoyed my VHS copy of the film many times and Jamie Lee Curtis' famous striptease scene was a formative moment in my teenage years. Then, with so many other movies to see, TRUE LIES just fell out of rotation. About 20 years ago, I revisited it and was disappointed to found how poorly it aged. With recent news that Cameron's THE ABYSS may finally be getting a 4K release, I watched TRUE LIES again. Shockingly, it held up even more poorly that it did ten years prior. TRUE LIES does have some stunning action scenes, but many of them are sandwiched between the most sexist and racist moments from any Hollywood film of the last fifty years.
As a thirteen year old white kid, I never thought twice about how the characters in TRUE LIES treat those around them. Not really considering race, I watched the movie as good guys versus bad guys. When Tom Arnold tells Arnold Schwarzenegger to "ditch the bitch", I thought it was hilarious to her mild profanity on the big screen. Seeing the heroic Schwarzenegger protect his wife and daughter from the dastardly terrorists sat with me as typical blockbuster entertainment and I loved it. Now, while I consider myself fairly liberal, I still have enjoyed the hell out of every season of 24, watching Kiefer Sutherland defeat terrorists from the Middle East, Russia, and even domestically. It hit closer to home post-9/11 to see an American hero beat up extremists and I cheered along with everyone else. But, TRUE LIES did not age well when I re-watched it 2000 and even less so today.
First off, the villains are the worst kind of stereotype. Where contemporary villains on shows like Amazon Prime's Jack Ryan or ZERO DARK THIRTY have managed to inject some nuance to the truly extreme views of these all characters, James Cameron's film portrays them barely better than the "dirka dirka" spouting puppets in TEAM AMERICA: WORLD POLICE. They are all shown as swarthy, bearded, leering and savage and all aside from ringleader Art Malik as Salim Abu Aziz are barely more than cannon fodder for Schwarzenegger to defeat handedly. Not a single one of them represents a three-dimensional character with motivation beyond the downfall of America. Even in 1994,this was a stale representation of a villain and upon re-visitng TRUE LIES it stands as even more of an example of poor writing on Cameron's part.
Then there is the relationship between the Tasker family. In the opening sequence showing Arnold Schwarzenegger's iconic tango with Tia Carrere, TRUE LIES looked like it could finally be a successor to the James Bond franchise. That entire set up set the table for a very different movie, one in which we never have to believe that Arnold Schwarzenegger is a typical suburban family man. The sheer ridiculousness that his wife and daughter would think this muscled behemoth of a man is anything but a secret agent requires more suspension of disbelief than is possible. Even taking the comedic side of the story for what it's worth, very little of the humor in TRUE LIES works today. If anything, it is offensive and may explain why this film may never get a proper re-release in James Cameron's lifetime.
Harry Tasker abuses his power as a spy and secret agent when he suspects his wife is having an affair. At a generic level, it seems funny and pre-dates a similar technique used in the film THIS MEANS WAR, a movie I actually enjoyed. But, no harm truly came to the female character in that film whereas here, Jamie Lee Curtis is psychologically tormented by the man who loves her. Tracking her every move, recording her, invading her privacy, and torturing her used car salesman rendezvous (the always great Bill Paxton in a wasted role), Harry eventually takes his wife to a black site where he terrifies her into admitting that she did not cheat on him sexually. If that is not fucked up enough, he then sets up a fake mission for her where he forces her to pose as a sex worker and strip naked for a stranger. Again, in the context of the story and from a naive perspective, this all works in the narrative. But, when you take a step back and revisit it in hindsight, it is psychological torment of the highest degree and not in any way romantic. The fact that Harry has been lying to his family for years and feels justified but is appalled when his wife or daughter lie to him is absurd.
I won't get into the fact that this was also a production where Eliza Dushku was sexually molested as a child, but it does go to illustrate the toxic nature of this film's material. Based on the French film LA TOTALE! which does not use Arab caricatures as villains nor the level of emotional abuse and torture to discover potential spousal infidelity, TRUE LIES had so much promise from a technical level. At the time, the closing jet sequence was the special effect sequence to beat in Hollywood and now it looks cheap even by practical effect standards. The chase sequences through this movie still hold up fairly well today but are marred by tone deaf dialogue and one-liners that fall flat. From Russel Carpenter's cinematography to Brad Fiedel's nice score, TRUE LIES ended up earning Jamie Lee Curtis a Golden Globe and should be remembered for milestones like being the first film with a budget over $100 million. Instead, it should really be forgotten.
James Cameron stated in 2018 that a Blu-ray transfer was completed but he had not had a chance to review it. Busy at work on the AVATAR sequels, Cameron may be stonewalling long enough to avoid addressing the myriad issues with TRUE LIES. If any film was worth a George Lucas-level special edition to correct the elements that don't work or are downright offensive, TRUE LIES is one. The problem is there is no way to fix that many issues without re-filming the entire movie from scratch. Maybe that is the right call here. Maybe instead of a sequel or a special edition, TRUE LIES should get a remake and benefit from all of the special effects breakthroughs that James Cameron has championed in the last twenty-five years and get rid of the basic racism and sexism that otherwise besmirch a fun, action-packed movie.