Arnold Schwarzenegger Admits to Betraying His Family

When the Los Angeles Times reported that Arnold Schwarzenegger had fathered a child out of wedlock by having an affair with a member of his housekeeping staff and it was the cause of the separation between he and Maria Shriver, many wondered if it was true.

Schwarzenegger has now admitted to it.

In a statement to the LA Times, Schwarzenegger said, “After leaving the governor’s office I told my wife about this event, which occurred over a decade ago. I understand and deserve the feelings of anger and disappointment among my friends and family. There are no excuses and I take full responsibility for the hurt I have caused. I have apologized to Maria, my children and my family. I am truly sorry.”

In an interview with MSNBC, Schwarzenegger’s former spokesperson Sherri Annis was also surprised. When asked if she knew about the affair, Annis said, “Listen, if he concealed it from Maria, he certainly concealed it from me. Maria had his back on every occasion and it was known that she was always looking out for him. So he did a very good cover up job on this one.”

“And I take no pleasure in today’s news. I hate to see it for any family, but especially someone who I knew and really did enjoy working with and for. And I saw a marriage that was — it was a partnership, a real partnership, political partnership, entertainment partnership. They worked together well at the time,” Annis said.

The Terminator – Digibook version (a J!-ENT Blu-ray Disc Review)

James Cameron’s timeless sci-fi classic “The Terminator” will continue to entertain fans for generations to come. But while this digibook release marks the third Blu-ray release of the film, the Blu-ray is the same with the only difference is that it now comes in a digibook format.  If you have the previous versions on Blu-ray, you may not even need to bother with this release unless you are a hardcore fan or collector. But if you have never seen the film before,  then I definitely recommend checking this latest Digibook Blu-ray release for “The Terminator”!

Images courtesy of © 2010 Metro Goldwyn Mayer Studios Inc. All Rights Reserved.

TITLE: The Terminator

FILM RELEASE DATE: 1984

DURATION: 108 minutes

BLU-RAY DISC INFORMATION: 1080p High Definition (widescreen 1:85:1), English PCM 5.1 (Uncompress Audio), English 5.1 Dolby Digital, French 5.1 Dolby Digital, Subtitles: English SDH, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Thai, Korean and Chinese

RATED: R

COMPANY: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc./Twentieth Century Fox

RELEASE DATE: May 10, 2011

Directed by James Cameron

Written by James Cameron and Gale Ann Hurd

Producer: Gale Anne Hurd

Executive Producer: John Daly, Derek Gibson

Music by Brad Fiedel

Cinematography by Adam Greenberg

Edited by Mark Goldblatt

Casting by Stanzi Stokes

Art Direction by George Costello

Set Decoration by Maria Rebman Caso

Costume Design by Hilary Wright

Starring:

Arnold Schwarzenegger as The Terminator

Michael Biehn as Kyle Reese

Linda Hamilton as Sarah Connor

Paul Winfield as Lt. Ed Traxler

Lance Henriksen as Det. Hal Vukovich

Bess Motta as Ginger Ventura

Earl Boen as Dr. Peter Silberman

Rick Rossovich as Matt Buchanan

In the year 2029, the ruling super-computer, Skynet, sends an indestructible cyborg (Arnold Schwarzenegger) back in time to 1984 to kill Sarah Connor (Linda Hamilton) before she can fulfill her destiny and save mankind.

James Cameron, the mastermind of two of the highest earning films “Avatar” and “Titanic” began his writing/directing career with “Piranha Part Two: The Spawning” back in 1981 but the first film where he would be recognized internationally is for the 1984 film “The Terminator”.

Inspired by “2001: A Space Odyssey” and “Star Wars”, Cameron knew at a young age that he wanted to work on sci-fi films.  While working and editing “Piranha Part Two”, the filmmaker had a 102 degree fever and had nightmares of a chrome skeleton crawling through flames.  From that moment, “The Terminator” was born.

Crafting a screenplay which other Hollywood Studios were after, Cameron would not sell it unless he was able to direct.  No one wanted to give him the chance but his friend, producer Gale Ann Hurd, bought the rights to the screenplay, raised the finances and Cameron would be the director.

Created with a budget of $6.5 million, “The Terminator” would go on to make over $78 million.  A major success and also the synergy that would ignite the career of James Cameron who would go on to make “Aliens”, “The Abyss”, “Terminator 2: Judgment Day”, “True Lies” and then his two big record-breaking films “Titanic” and “Avatar”.

But as the film would be significant for Cameron, it would also ignite the careers of Arnold Schwarzenegger (“Predator”, “The Running Man”, “Total Recall”), Linda Hamilton (“Beauty and the Beast”, “Dante’s Peak”, “Terminator 2: Judgment Day”) and Michael Biehn (“The Abyss”, “The Rock”, “Aliens”).

The Blu-ray release of “The Terminator” came out in 2006.  In 2009, to mark the release of “Terminator 2: Judgment Day” on Blu-ray, a lenticular cover version of the Blu-ray was released.  And now we have a third version of “The Terminator” on Blu-ray which has the same Blu-ray release but it now comes with a digibook with essays, photos and trivia for the film.

“The Terminator” takes place in a post-apocalyptic time on Earth ravaged by war in 2029.  This time, it is the artificial intelligent machines that have conquered humanity and are planning to exterminate the entire human race.

But two people go back in time, to the year 1984.  One is the human resistance fighter Kyle Reese (played by Michael Biehn) and the other is the Terminator cyborg (played by Arnold Schwarzenegger) who was sent back in time to kill Sarah Connor, the woman who would raise John Connor, the leader of the human resistance against the machines in the future.

The Terminator does all he can to find Sarah Connor, by going through the phonebook and killing whoever has that name.  When the first two are killed, many worry about the third Sarah Connor in the phonebook.

As Sarah Connor (played by Linda Hamilton) is shocked to hear the news of a possible serial killer going after anyone with the name, she worries about her friend Ginger who is back at home with her boyfriend.  But it’s too late, the Terminator has murdered them and also intercepts Sarah’s phone call that she is at the club.

Immediately, the Terminator heads to the club to go after his target and as he is about to kill her, Kyle Reese barely saves her by pumping several shotgun shells on the Terminator but knowing that these weapons can only slow him but not defeat him.

John explains that his job is to protect her but she has a hard time believing that he is from the future and that a cyborg from the future is trying to kill her.  But Sarah quickly learns that Kyle is telling the truth and both do all they can to run and escape from the The Terminator.  But will Kyle be able to protect her against a foe that can’t be killed?

VIDEO:

It’s important to note that this third digibook Blu-ray release for “The Terminator” is the same Blu-ray from the second release.

Presented in 1080p High Definition (widescreen 1:85:1), like most films released in the early ’80s and are out on Blu-ray, not many films were able to utilize higher stock film.  In fact, despite the enormous success of “The Terminator”, one must remember that this was not a high budget Hollywood film, “The Terminator” was made with a budget of $6.5 million.   One thing you will notice is that this film has aged and there are scenes in which you can see the dust and speckles.

But still, the Blu-ray release does look better than any other video counterpart that the film was released in but with that being said, one thing that high definition does do for sci-fi films is also show the technology of the time.  In the case of “The Terminator”, the scene in which a rubber masked (life sized puppet?) head looks rubberized.  Granted, you can see detail of that mask, such as the lips and eyes but it was a scene that stood out back then in 1984 and it stands out even moreso in 2011.

“The Terminator” is not going to be the best looking film on Blu-ray but if you enjoy the film, this is the best looking version of the film to date.

AUDIO:

I know that many were hoping for a DTS-HD MA or Dolby TrueHD release of “The Terminator” since this is the third Blu-ray release of the film but this digibook version is the same Blu-ray presented like the previous two versions in the fact that “The Terminator” is in English 5.1 uncompressed and English and French 5.1 Dolby Digital.

With that being said, this is still the better version than its older video counterparts.  There are times when the surrounds are utilized during the action sequences, the music sequences and dialogue is clear even when the action sequences are much more audible.  But considering the age of this film and that it was originally a monaural soundtrack, it was nice to see them mix a 5.1 uncompressed soundtrack but it still maintains the same audio as the original 2006 Blu-ray release.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

“The Terminator” comes with the following special features:

• Creating the Terminator: Visual Effects & Music – (12:58) Presented in standard definition, this featurette goes into the making of the visual effects and the music for the film.
• Terminator: A Retrospective -  (20:31) Presented in standard definition is an older retrospective and features James Cameron and Arnold Schwarzenegger discussing the script and their memories of working on the first film.
• Terminated Scenes – (9:56) Featuring a total of seven short scenes cut from the film.

EXTRAS:

“The Terminator” digibook version comes with a book (as part of its case) featuring James Cameron, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Linda Hamilton and Michal Biehn.  With images from the film, also included are the following essays: “James Cameron: Cinematic Terminator” by Richard Tanne and Tech Noir: The Dark Side of Techno” by Travis Baker.  Also, Terminator Trivia.

“The Terminator”, to tell you the truth, I don’t know how many times I have seen this film.  Having owned so many video versions, watching it on HBO as a kid and just playing that very popular scene of the Terminator emerging from the fire over and over again, needless to say, I really enjoyed this film.

Here we are 27-years-later and “The Terminator” receives its third Blu-ray release in five years.

But before I talk about the Blu-ray release, I just to first talk about James Cameron and how admirable he was by sticking to his guns and not selling the screenplay of “The Terminator” to the biggest bidder.  His goal and dream was to direct this film that he wrote and was unwilling to budge.

And when you learn about James Cameron, being poor, broke and taking odd jobs such as become a truck driver to live his dreams of wanting to get his foot in the door of filmmaking is very admirable.  While I’m sure at the time, when so much money was offered to him for “The Terminator” screenplay, I can imagine that family and friends have probably thought he was crazy to turn down the money.  But he stuck to his guns and “The Terminator” would pave the way for him to direct the even more awesome sequel “Terminator 2: Judgment Day”, “Aliens”, “True Lies” and eventually his two masterpieces “Titanic” and “Avatar”.

Sure, there are those who are not too passionate about James Cameron films but one has to admire how this filmmaker has stuck to his guns not just for “The Terminator” but for all his films, wanting to direct it the way he wants and nobody interfering.  There are not many directors who are given that much power but Cameron did it.

With “The Terminator”, with only $6.5 million, he was able to do it and as he did for this film and as he has done for every other film that he has written and directed, they have become box office hits.  Maybe the filmmaker has “The Midas Touch” but you have to give him his due, especially for his selection of talent.  Arnold Schwarzenegger has a lot to thank Cameron for his role in “The Terminator”, this film made him a superstar, an action star and sure enough, Schwarzenegger was one of the biggest stars of the ’90s.

Linda Hamilton and Michael Biehn would also benefit from their role on “The Terminator” and here we are 27-years-later, people still remember “The Terminator”, “Terminator” films are still being made and for any of us who grew up at the time and enjoyed this film, as a sci-fi fan, you can’t help but have this film in your collection.

Which brings me to this Blu-ray release, the third version of “The Terminator” and the question is if this release is worth it?

If you can still find the first Blu-ray version, you’ll notice that it’s being sold now for under $10.  The second version has the lenticular cover but same Blu-ray release and now this third version has a digibook.

I personally enjoy digibooks that go into the history of the film and come with a good number of pages.  In this case, you get about 24-pages worth of content.  From learning how James Cameron became the director of the film, how he got the idea to write the film and the memorable images from the film.

If you really love this film, I’m sure that you’re going to buy the digibook no matter what.  But for others who own previous versions of the film, it may not be priority but if you are collector, sometimes these digibooks go out of print quickly, so for collector’s, it may be worth it.

As for me, having three releases, many fans of the film have been wanting new special features, a better lossless soundtrack and a better remastering using today’s technology vs. what was around when Blu-ray first came onto the scene.

But there are no differences in content and features compared to its previous two Blu-ray releases but if you have been wanting to get this film, now’s the time to get the Digibook version (with the best cover of the three Blu-ray releases by far).n n Overall, If you haven’t purchased this Blu-ray yet or have not watched the film and are wanting to… then definitely pick up this Blu-ray release!

Arnold Schwarzenegger and Maria Shriver have separated

In another celebrity marriage that would appeared to have lasted, unfortunately for Arnold and Maria, the couple have separated after 25-years of marriage.

The former California governor and “Terminator” star Arnold Schwarzenegger and Maria Shriver have issued the following joint statement to the Los Angeles Times:

“This has been a time of great personal and professional transition for each of us. After a great deal of thought, reflection, discussion and prayer, we came to this decision together. At this time, we are living apart while we work on the future of our relationship.”

“We are continuing to parent our four children together. They are the light and the center of both of our lives. We consider this a private matter and neither we nor any of our friends or family will have further comment.”

Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger at the screening of “The Expendables” in Las Vegas

Actor Sylvester Stallone (L) and California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger arrive at a screening of Lionsgate Films’ ‘The Expendables’ at the Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino August 11, 2010 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The film opens nationwide in the United States on August 13, 2010. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images). Content © 2010 Getty Images All rights reserved.

Last Action Hero (a J!-ENT Blu-ray Disc Review)

Similar to its 2003 DVD counterpart, “Last Action Hero” on Blu-ray is still a barebones release.  But when it comes to picture and audio quality, the Blu-ray release of “Last Action Hero” is quite solid for a film that came out in 1993.  Audiophiles who are a big fan of this film will definitely enjoy how great this film sounds via lossless!

Images courtesy of © 1993 Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

TITLE: Last Action Hero

DURATION: 131 Minutes

BLU-RAY INFORMATION: 1080p High Definition, Widescreen 2:40:1, English, French and Portuguese DTS-HD MA, Spanish 5.1, Subtitles: English, English SDH, French, Spanish and Portuguese

RATED: PG-13 (For Strong Action Sequences)

COMPANY: Columbia Pictures/Sony Pictures Home Entertainment

RELEASE DATE: January 12, 2010

Directed by John McTiernan

Story by Zak Penn and Adam Leff

Written by Shane Black and David Arnott

Executive Producer: Arnold Schwarzenegger

Produced by John McTiernan, Stephen J. Roth

Co-Producer: Neal Dorlinger, Robert E. Relyea

Associate Producer: Robert H. Lemer

Music by Michael Kamen

Cinematography by Dean Semler

Edited by Richard A. Harris, John Wright

Casting by Janet Hirshenson, Jane Kenkins

Proudction Design by Eugenio Zanetti

Art Direction by Marek Dobrowolski, Rick Heinrichs

Set Decoration by Cindy Carr

Costume Design by Gloria Gresham

Starring:

Arnold Schwarzenegger as Jack Slater

F. Murray Abraham as John Practice

Austin O’Brien as Danny Madigan

Art Carney as Frank

Charles Dance as Bendict

Frank McRae as Lieutenant Dekker

Anthony Quinn as Tony Vivaldi

Ian McKellen as Death

Action-adventure superstar Arnold Schwarzenegger bursts through the screen as a larger-than-life movie hero in this nonstop adventure from acclaimed director John McTiernan (Predator, Die Hard).

A year after Arnold Schwarzenegger’s “Terminator 2: Judgment Day”, in 1993, he followed up with the summer action film “Last Action Hero”.

The film was directed by John McTiernan (“Die Hard: With a Vengeance”, “The 13th Warrior”, “The Thomas Crown Affair”) and a screenplay by Shane Black (“Lethal Weapon” films, “The Monster Squad”, “The Last Boy Scout”) and David Arnot (“The Adventures of Ford Fairlane”).  The film featured cinematography by Dean Semler (“Bruce Almighty”, “The Alamo”, “The Longest Yard”, “2012″) and music by Michael Kamen (“X-Men”, “Band of Brothers”, “Frequency)”.

An expensive film which cost around $85 million, the film was literally a spoof on action films and would feature cameos from many stars around that time.  From Sharon Stone, Sylvester Stallone, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Ian McKellen, Tina Turner, Robert Patrick and many more.

The film revolves around a boy named Danny Madigan (played by Austin O’Brien) who is a big fan of Arnold Schwarzenegger action films, especially his character Jack Slater.

The problem with Danny is that he rarely goes to school and it’s become a problem since he spends his time watching movies and his mother covers up for him.

With the release of “Jack Slater IV”, his friend Nick (played by Robert Prosky) who runs a very old rundown movie theater that is not doing so well, Jack gives him a sneak preview to catch the movie.  Nick also talks about how he was given a gold-ticket by Harry Houdini but never used it.

Nick tears the ticket in half and gives Danny the other half and as Danny is getting involved and enjoying the film, the ticket starts to magically work and next thing you know, Danny is inside the film for “Jack Slater IV” and in this world, things work like the movies and not real life.

As the film progresses and Danny sticks with Jack Slater and the two take on the bad guys which include the evil Englishman Benedict (played by Charles Dance).  But somehow along the way, Benedict steals Danny’s ticket and has now cross over to the real world where Danny has come from.

In the real world, Benedict starts to learn that bad guys can win and starts killing people and noticing that the police are not there to stop him.  So, Benedict comes up with an idea to stop Jack Slater and that is by killing off the real actor that plays him…Arnold Schwarznegger.

Can Jack Slater and Danny stop Benedict in time?

VIDEO & AUDIO:

“Last Action Hero” is featured in 1080p High Definition (2:40:1).  Sony Pictures Home Entertainment has given this film a pretty good treatment as they have with “Cliffhanger” and “Air Force One” in which they kept the film as close to what we see on the big screen, including the fine layer of grain.

For a film that is 17-years-old, the film looks good for its age and because there is so much happening throughout the film.  For example, in Danny’s world, you can see how run down the theater is, old-style seats and everything is dark and there aren’t any vibrant colors.  Until he goes into Jack Slater’s world, then colors are vibrant and much better visuals.  Definitely a major improvement from the 2003 DVD of “Last Action Hero”.

Now, where this film shines is with its lossless audio soundtrack.  Featured in English, French, Portuguese 5.1 DTS-HD MA and Spanish 5.1, one thing that “Last Action Hero” had when it was first released in theaters was the fact it was the first film to utilize Sony’s Dynamic Digital Sound.  Granted, at that time, many theaters weren’t equipped to play SDDS but there was concentration on the film’s audio and that is where this Blu-ray shines.

The opening sequence alone shows you that the film is going to utilize all channels and thus bringing a more immersive soundscape as you hear gun shots, explosions, crashing metal, booms all through your front, surround and rear surround channels.  Subwoofer utilizes the booms and for the most part, this is the best I have ever heard from this film.  The lossless audio soundtrack for this 1993 film is very well-done!

Subtitles are presented in English, English SDH, French, Spanish and Portuguese.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

“Last Action Hero” comes with no major special features but is BD-Live enabled with movieIQ which allows people to obtain real-time information of the cast, music, trivia while watching the film.

When “Last Action Hero” first came out and when I watched in the theaters, I figured a pairing with director John McTiernan and Arnold Schwarznegger (known for their action films) would be a wonderful pairing.  But I can remember how impatient I was getting because the film seemed so long (especially at 131 minutes).  I felt that the arc where Danny is in Jack Slater’s world tend to drag quite a bit.

But I admit that I enjoyed how it was a satire of action films and also featured cameos by many celebrities.  By the third and final arc, things started to get more interesting as Jack Slater is pulled out of his magical world and now having to deal with this new world that he is quite unaware of.  For the most part, “Last Action Hero” was a good popcorn flick but I do remember that since it came right after “Terminator 2: Judgment Day”, there was high expectations.

Needless to say, despite what the critics may have felt about the film, “Last Action Hero” did well in the worldwide box office and even some appreciating the film much more now than when it first came out in theaters back in 1993.

For those who purchased the 2003 DVD and are big fans of the film, you maybe wondering if the Blu-ray is worth buying.  The bad news is that there are no special features on this Blu-ray unless you have BD-Live and you can take advantage of the movieIQ function.  But other than that, I’m still amazed that for a film that was quite expensive, featured so many talent did not have any featurette created for it.  No commentary, no theatrical trailer, there is no special features and to me, that’s surprising.  But the Blu-ray is a major step up in picture and audio quality and that is where fans of the film will appreciate its HD release on Blu-ray.

Overall, “Last Action Hero” on Blu-ray is literally a barebones Blu-ray release but for Schwarzenegger or McTiernan fans and those who truly enjoyed this film will definitely enjoy it much more with its video and audio upgrade.