Terminator Vault: The Complete Story Behind the Making of The Terminator and Terminator 2: Judgment Day

by Ian Nathan, Arnold Schwarzenegger (Foreword)

The Terminator’s back in this magnificent, behind-the-scenes look at The Terminator and Terminator 2: Judgment Day.  Long before Titanic and Avatar broke box-office records and won countless awards, James Cameron announced his genius with the 1984 release of The Terminator. Nothing like it had ever been seen before—it fused time travel, thrilling action, artificial intelligence, and terror with provocative questions about the human race—and of course, it made Arnold Schwarzenegger an international superstar. The movie’s 1991 sequel, Terminator 2: Judgment Day, has some of the greatest special effects in movie history and remains one of the most influential science fiction films of all time. The story of Sarah and John Connor’s fight against the advanced assassin cyborg, the T-1000, is an astonishing look at the battle between good and evil. Now, for the first time ever, here is the complete story of the  Terminator  world.  Terminator Vault,  written by acclaimed film expert Ian Nathan and with a foreword by “Governator” Schwarzenegger, takes a behind-the-scenes look at the making of both films, from the initial conception of Skynet (the AI system determined to destroy humanity) to the creation of the films’ special effects, many of which had never been previously attempted. Reproductions of original scripts and concept drawings provide completely new insights into the Terminator backstory, and there are over 170 color images of the development, production, and more. This is a must-have book for any Terminator fan, released in anticipation of the first film’s thirtieth anniversary.

Genres: Film, Media Tie In, Nonfiction

176 pages, Hardcover

First published October 3, 2013

About the author

Ian Nathan is the popular, London-based author of Anything You Can Imagine: Peter Jackson and the Making of Middle-earth, The Coen Brothers: The Filmmakers and their Films, Alien Vault, Terminator Vault, and many other books, many of which have really long titles.

He is the former editor of Empire Magazine.

If you live in the UK, you may also know from from the Discovering Film series on Sky Arts television extolling the virtues of classic film stars and directors, and he can also be heard on Talk Radio every Friday afternoon, mostly berating the state of current movies. He is just about younger than this makes him sound.

Reviews

[Michael Towers · Rating 3 out of 5]

Meh... This book is big and fat and promising to be filled with behind the scenes glory but inside, it's just really nothing interesting or important at all: especially not to justify the size and price.

Personally I think Terminator is one of the greatest movies ever made, with Terminator 2 not far behind and I was really excited to read this. There are some photos and some interviews but even being the massive fan I am, the first thing I did after reading this was list it on eBay. There's nothing in here whatsoever that piqued my interest or was anything special.

I would say this book is for the die hard fans only, except I kinda am one. So who knows.. It's not bad for a read but that's about it. There are lots of little bonus extras inside but the only interesting or cool one is the Polaroid of Sarah Connor, which was a nice inclusion.

The only thing of note or interest from this was an important life lesson. Terminator came, for Cameron, from a string of events that saw him miserable, losing a job, travelling across the world in a rage to confront the person who wronged him, then getting violently ill. He says looking back now, he would kiss the feet of the man that drove him to be in the lowest place he has ever been in in his life.

It's a nice take away that sometimes in life, when everything is going wrong... Maybe it's because everything is going right. And in years when we look back on it, maybe that dark place was exactly where we needed to be to get where we need to go. In Cameron's case, the worst moment of his life was directly responsible for his entire career and success. Its good to think about that, even though the rest of this is devoid of anything interesting or exciting.

[Kelvin Green · Rating 2 out of 5]

The tone is a bit fawning, treating everyone involved like they are the saviours of mankind, and there are a few inaccuracies -- some bizarre, as if the whole world hasn't seen the making of T2 so knows full well that the book is wrong -- but on the whole there's a light and engaging touch to the writing and the subject matter is interesting.

[Mhorg · Rating 5 out of 5]

Whoever came up with the Vault series is brilliant. I have several and this is one of my favorites. Filled with replica's of behind the scene and crew only materials, this book is also filled with brilliant pictures and prose, giving a fan of film making and of the first two (really the best of the series) movies. One will learn everything one wanted to know about how really driven and brilliant James Cameron is, as well as the friendships (and perhaps some enemies) he made while becoming the director he is. Deserves a spot on any SF film buffs shelf.

[Sebastian Zavala · Rating 4 out of 5]

An intriguing behind-the-scenes look at the making of the first two Terminator movies. Although the is, at times, a little too soft on Cameron, it in fact gives a really detailed look at how these films were made, from the writing of the first instalment's script to the reception of the popular sequel. Funnily enough, both T3 and Salvation are mentioned, though briefly. If you're a fan of the Terminator saga (and especially of James Cameron) it is a must-read.

[Brad Agotnes · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am a big fan of the terminator series, especially the first 2 movies. This book explains everything about James Cameron's ideas about the movies, including the difficulties in producing and filming them. I read it within 2 days. Recommended!

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

You can read my review at:

http://genreonlinenet.blogspot.com/20...

[Pat McNamara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not just a must have book for a Terminator junkie like me, but a fascinating insight into the film-making process for anyone who loves great film.