Review of True Lies (1994) by Spangle — 04 Aug 2017

Cheesy, stupid, and bombastic, in all of the right ways, James Cameron's True Lies is a quintessential American action from the 1980s/1990s. Loaded to the point of bursting with one-liners, cleavage, and explosions, True Lies is the type of macho insanity that keeps men lining up to watch action films to this very day. Yet, action films of today lack the same whimsical sense of stupid brilliance that films such as True Lies captured so effortlessly. Somewhere in the one-line dropping courtesy of Arnold Schwarzenegger, Cameron turns True Lies into a ballet of testosterone, sexism, and penis envy, that only he can make come off so effortlessly excellent. Without the cruel restraints of telling a serious story found in Cameron's prior action work, he is allowed to fully indulge in explosions and carnage in a way that Michael Bay only wishes he could. Honestly, if Bay did not watch this film and walk home crying, I would be stunned.

As an action comedy film, True Lies never takes itself too seriously. Indulging in over-the-top explosions, rescue missions, and absurd plot turns, Cameron lets the audience know from the jump that this is really just male fantasy in film form. Dropping in Arnold Schwarzenegger as the audience surrogate, allowing men in the crowd to feel one with his overtly masculine appearance, we experience his world vicariously through him. Cool, calm, married to Jamie Lee Curtis, and spitting game with Tia Carrere, Arnold's secret agent Harry Tasker is what every man would openly admit to wanting to be. Toss in a few "cool guys don't look at explosions" moments to open this film and this becomes a proverbial wet dream for macho men everywhere or wimpy men who wish to be macho. Just watch his cool under the pressure demeanor, casual one-liners as he beats the pulp out of a man just as buff as himself ("here cool off"), and rushes to save his wife and daughter from the grasp of international terrorists, and try to deny that every man does not want to be Harry. He saves the day. Looks good doing it and gets every girl around. There is an obvious appeal and Cameron plays it to cartoony perfection, ditching reality in the name of just embracing the cheese. It is a stupid film to be sure, but scenarios where we all dream of being a hero under pressure are undoubtedly just as stupid so it is only natural the film would be the same way.

Yet, equally as obvious is how the film would line up with the theories of Yvonne Tasker regarding masculinity in these macho, testosterone-filled films. Torturing the male form from beginning to end, True Lies is loaded with explosions and pain for Arnold. With Harry Tasker getting beat up brutally at every turn, having his clothes ripped, and having to lift himself up off of the brink of certain death, he is a man who seems to have a very low life expectancy. While he may not bleed as much as some of his opponents, this is not an easy mission for him and is one that leads to him having to change his ripped shirts for a different one quite often. With the rips and the action, however, the male physique is constantly turned into spectacle here and the reason why any tickets were sold. In the most intimate action set piece - the bathroom scene - there are no explosions but lots of gunfire and fighting. Pitting Harry Tasker with a man just as big as himself, this spectacle of two men in peak physical condition is undeniable and brought to the forefront.

However, the film certainly tortures the men a bit in a different way. Men define themselves by the women they get and their ability to please them, hence male insecurity regarding their privates and jealousy. With Helen Tasker (Curtis) beginning to stray due to the lack of intimacy with Harry, he diverts resources to find out who her mystery man Simon (Bill Paxton) is and makes concerted efforts to track him down. Highlighting male insecurity regarding their spouses and inability to satisfy their urges as they expect they should be able to do, True Lies is a film that both tortures men over this area of weakness and gives great release. Upon finding Simon, beating him up, making him admit to have a "little dick", and pee on himself, Harry is able to feel like a bigger man and more secure in his position as the only man in Helen's life. Even if she had strayed with Simon, Harry's presumably better endowment and full masculine confidence in every situation ensures that he could take Simon quite easily if it came down to it. It, like the rest of the film, is a fantasy-driven representation of men's desire to possess their significant others, outperform other men, and fulfill their significant other's every need. It is a competition to the very end in both life and the film.