GREAT CINEMAMASTER LIST
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Search 713 spoiler-free recommendations from 1916 to 2026. Filter by the night you want—not the list you’re supposed to finish.

Direct film viewShowing master rank #23 on its own—not above the ranking.
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Artwork
DirectorAll directors

Most represented · 6+ films

More recurring directors · 3–5 films54
All directors · surname A–Z438
ActorAll actors

Most represented actors

Big Three membership
Major award winners

1 selected film

Master Rank balances Greatness, Engagement, and Ease. Sort by Greatness for the artistic-canon view.

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View Terminator 2: Judgment Day film page
Original poster artwork · Great Cinema Master List

Spoiler-free premise

Nearly 10 years have passed since Sarah Connor was targeted for termination by a cyborg from the future.

Read expanded premiseLonger, still spoiler-free

Skynet sends the liquid-metal T-1000 into 1995 to kill young John Connor. The resistance answers with a reprogrammed T-800, forcing John and his institutionalized mother Sarah into an uneasy alliance with the machine once modeled as their enemy.

Why it belongs

Terminator 2: Judgment Day's liquid-metal villain, muscular set pieces, and transformed bond between John and the Terminator give technical spectacle an affecting ethical trajectory.

Read expanded why it belongsThe fuller editorial case

Cameron joins Stan Winston's practical effects, early digital morphing, lucid chase geography, and Linda Hamilton's transformed physical performance, making technological spectacle serve a story about fate, protection, and learned humanity.

Major award record

Metadata only · zero points in 40/40/20
Academy Awards4 wins1992 · official ceremony record ↗

Plus 4 additional wins

No headline-category win to name

BAFTA2 wins1992 · official BAFTA 1992 Film Awards results ↗

Plus 2 additional wins

No headline-category win to name

Totals include every recorded competitive win. Only Picture or top-film honors, Direction, Screenplay, and lead or supporting performances are named.

Good for
Film Club
Descriptive guidance derived from rating, genre, runtime, mood, and GCML scores.

Institutional reference ranks

Sight & Sound—IMDb Top 25028AFI 100—
Reference metadata only · not part of the 40/40/20 score

Great Cinema Master List scores

Greatness9.1
Engagement9.9
Ease9.2

English · R
Narrative Feature
Mood: Exhilarating & Gripping