James Cameron: King Of The World

One of only two directors to whom the Comic Book Guy is willing to show his movie script, James Cameron spent the 1980s and early 1990s mastering the art of the mega-grossing, effects-laden sci-fi action blockbuster, before an obsession with developing 3D technology kept him out of the multiplex for over a decade. The result broke records and won awards

1. Piranha II: The Spawning (1981)

Even Cameron himself tends to leave this film off his CV (well, wouldn't you like to claim The Terminator as your debut?), but we're not going to let him forget it. Ever. So is it any good? Cameron describes it as the finest flying killer fish horror/comedy ever made, and he's not wrong, but neither are critics who dubbed it one of the worst "all-time horror turkeys". It's doubtful whether Cameron can be blamed for the haddocks from hell, given that (a) he was a special effects supervisor promoted when the original director quit, and (b) he wasn't allowed in the editing room after shooting wrapped (although he did break in at night in an attempt to rectify matters). But Director's Guild rules work both ways, so this will remain a fishy patch on his filmography for evermore.

The Mike and Bill Show: Throughout Cameron's career he's had a fondness for re-using certain actors - and nowhere is this more evident than in his frequent casting of Michael Biehn and Bill Paxton, so throughout this feature we'll be taking a look at their various appearances. Even though neither of them are in this film. It does, however feature Lance Henriksen, another Cameron stalwart.

2. The Terminator (1984)

It's ironic, considering the reputation that Cameron would go on to earn for huge-budget sci-fi blockbusters - including with this very franchise - that The Terminator is so far removed from the template you'd expect from him. Low-budget, violent and dark as hell, it also uses surprisingly few of the trappings of the sci-fi genre compared with the films that would follow. What it did demonstrate at this early stage was that Cameron was capable of making intelligent and gripping action flicks, as well as getting the best out of some truly superb visual effects teams. And it's been said often, but bears repeating that Arnie was never better cast than in a role that simply didn't require him to act.

The Mike and Bill Show: It's odd having to play the male "hero" when the taciturn lead character is actually the villain, but freedom fighter Kyle Reese is a role that Michael Biehn still manages to ace. Bill Paxton, meanwhile, is dispatched promptly but memorably early on in proceedings, as the punk that makes the mistake of trying to mess with the Governator.

3. Aliens (1986)
Over 20 years on, it's still hard to shake the feeling that Aliens remains the greatest sci-fi action flick ever made. Masterfully building tension during a deliberately slow opening (and the lengthier Special Edition only heightens this), it makes the pay-off even grander when the first thrills hit and simply do not relent for the remainder of the film. The real achievement, though, is in somehow making a sequel to a true classic, in essentially an entirely different genre (war movie vs Alien's slow-building horror), and yet matching it for quality. If not for Cameron - for better or worse - there'd likely be no Alien franchise.

The Mike and Bill Show: Their joint finest hour - Biehn gets to play the likeable and sympathetic grunt Dwayne, while as braggart-turned-coward-turned-hero Hudson, Paxton pretty much steals the entire film in one line: "Game over, man! Game over!"

The Abyss (1989)

The shoot from hell, The Abyss spawned waterlogged crew t-shirts reading 'Life's Abyss - and then you dive'. With the resultant film perhaps best described as an interestingly flawed, The Abyss was the showcase for some superb effects and set-pieces, but let down on its theatrical release by a left-field ending that drew almost universally negative critical reaction. The later Director's Cut would improve the pay-off significantly, and there remains plenty to recommend it - not least the sense of tense claustrophobia. But after the double-whammy of Cameron's first two films, it can't help but feel like a slightly earnest disappointment, despite pioneering the fluid form effect that would later give birth to the T-1000.

The Mike and Bill Show: No Paxton this time. But it completes a hat-trick of appearances for Biehn, with the studio even lobbying on his behalf for a Best Supporting Actor nomination for his role as Lieutenant Coffey.

Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)

Judgment Day's achievements are legion: yet another entry in the "sequels as good as if not better than the original" file, pretty much defined the 1990s-style huge-scale action blockbuster, was a huge statement of intent as regards the use of CG special effects in film, introduced the phrase "Hasta la vista, baby" to an unsuspecting world, made 'Spaced's' Tim Bisley "cry like a child" and the rest of us wish we could do that twirly shotgun-cocking thing. Quite good, then.

The Mike and Bill Show: Not featured in the theatrical version, Biehn's Kyle Reese makes a brief reappearance as an hallucination in a scene restored for the Special Edition. No Paxton again, either, although Aliens' Private Vasquez, Jenette Goldstein, shows up as John's foster mother.

6. True Lies (1994)
Aliens and the Terminators had demonstrated Cameron's ability to mix straight-up action with a healthy dose of wit, and for True Lies he went one step further, coming out with a film that aimed for "action comedy". It's problematic - superb fun at times, and with some awe-inspiring stunts, there's something slightly dubious about elements of the plotting and a whiff of dodgy sexual politics in Jamie Lee Curtis' humiliation at the hands of her husband for a flirtation with infidelity. And while playing a molecular biologist in Batman & Robin might still be Schwarzenegger's least believable role, an American whose family believe him to be an ordinary businessman can't be far off.

The Mike and Bill Show: After a couple of films' break, Bill returns as weaselly car-salesman-posing-as-a-spy Simon. Not that Cameron was casting him to type or anything. Biehn is nowhere to be seen, but watch out for a young Eliza Dushku, demonstrating all the depth and range she'd later employ in 'Dollhouse'.

Titanic (1997)

Alright, so the love story is tedious and overwrought. Leo and Kate - both fine actors elsewhere - phone it in, while Billy Zane engages in laughable moustache-twirling. And it manages to be mildly offensive towards working-class Irish people. But you know what? Show us a mainstream film outside of Jurassic Park or Lord Of The Rings that matches the actual sinking sequence for sheer first-time-you-see-it-on-the-big-screen spectacle. Some may have questioned whether this was the film that as noted a sci-fi director as Cameron should have made next, but there's no denying that he succeeds in what he sets out to do. And it made all that money back, and then some.

The Mike and Bill Show: Biehn was clearly out of fashion by the time the 1990s rolled around, but good old Bill notches up another appearance - as the salvager whose mission drives the recounting of the film's story. Note how the film stops bothering to cut back to him part of the way through, though - scenes wrapping up his part of the framing narrative were actually excised from the final cut.

Avatar (2009)

So why all the fuss? It's just another multi-million dollar blockbuster, right? One simple reason for the white-hot pre-release excitement about Avatar was because it was Cameron doing genre stuff again, albeit on a mega-blockbusting scale. The fact that it had been almost two decades since Terminator 2 couldn't change the fact that his reputation as a sci-fi filmmaker is immense. And you can add to that weight of expectation that came with Avatar being the film he'd wanted to make since before Titanic. So, did Cameron's trademark mixture of wit, action, intelligence, character and effects survive intact after his long sabbatical? Click here to read our review