Eraser 4K 1996

At first glance, "Eraser" is a typical 90s action movie, made according to all the classic conventions. We have a taciturn and tough protagonist played by the invincible Arnold Schwarzenegger, spectacularly taking down the bad guys, a charismatic villain played by James Caan with a bunch of henchmen, the beautiful Vanessa Williams, whom the hero rescues from the bad guys, the obligatory comic relief character played by Robert Pastorelli, and a ton of spectacular action scenes for every taste, ranging from jumping out of a plane without a parachute to a showdown between Arnie and a crocodile. In short, it has all the hallmarks of a decent action movie from an era before the pseudo-documentary style, shaky camera work, and unassuming, introspective heroes like Jason Bourne had become the norm.

However, there is one factor that sets this film apart from “Iron Arnie’s” filmography. The fact is that Eraser is the last truly good action movie he starred in. After that came the dreadful Batman & Robin, the not-so-successful Armageddon, the mediocre The 6th Day and Payback, and finally the utterly lackluster Terminator trilogy.

That’s why I’ve always seen this film as a sort of swan song for Arnie the actor, who seven years later reinvented himself as Arnie the politician. This is the last action movie where he looked as cool and awesome as we’re used to (and was also in great physical shape), the last “classic” action movie made by all the rules of the genre, the last action movie with no complaints about the direction, and the last action movie starring him that’s actually a pleasure to watch.