The 1 Scene That Ruined One Of Schwarzenegger’s Best Movies

True Lies might not be one of Arnold Schwarzenegger’s best-loved movies, but it’s certainly remembered as one of his more memorable efforts. The action comedy follows Schwarzenegger as Harry Tasker, a secret agent who lives a double life to protect his family. When his two worlds collide, Harry is forced to protect his family from a terrorist organization who have gained control of multiple nuclear weapons. Unfortunately, one scene effectively ruined what might have been considered one of Schwarzenegger’s best movies.

Despite having come under fire for its depiction of Arabic characters, True Lies is an excellent piece of cinema. Directed by James Cameron and featuring Jamie Lee Curtis, Tia Carrere, Eliza Dushku, Bill Paxton, and Tom Arnold, True Lies boasts some exceptional talent. The film’s comedic nature subtly pokes fun at the US government’s misappropriation of resources and the inadvertent misogyny of “macho” family men.

Should True Lies be considered Arnie’s greatest movie? Not by a long shot (we’re Team Kindergarten Cop, to be clear). However, for all its flaws, it’s an excellent movie and deserves to be highly regarded in the actor’s filmography. Unfortunately there’s a single scene that basically ruined True Lies, despite it being one of Schwarzenegger’s best.

How A True Lies Scene RUined One Of Schwarzenegger’s Best Action COmedies

Considering the first two thirds of the movie set about making Harry Tasker one of the most inadvertently toxic husbands imaginable, the bar for his status as a true family man was already pretty low. However, up until that point, it was clear that his less pleasant behavior was a result of his training and the societal notion of traditional masculinity that had shaped him. Treating his wife as a possession and manipulating her is awful, but it makes perfect sense in line with his character and the subtly satiric tone of the film.

The film’s final act sees Tasker hop into a helicopter to face the terrorists holding his daughter hostage. All he’s told is that they’re holding her in a skyscraper, so he commandeers a military aircraft and sets off. Still all very much in-keeping with the rest of the movie. However, that’s where the scene effectively ruined what might have been one of Schwarzenegger’s best films. He reaches the skyscraper and immediately opens fire into the windows, killing dozens of terrorists in a matter of seconds.

What Tasker doesn’t do is verify where his daughter might be. (Luckily, she’s climbing out onto a nearby crane, but still.) He takes no time to ensure his daughter is safe, and simply shoots into the building, potentially killing his own child (at least, as far as he knows). Maybe it furthers the film’s lampooning of the “shoot first, ask questions later” mentality, but it seems just a touch too far. It destroys the illusion of credibility, undermining the film’s satire and, unfortunately, hurts the movie overall.