For a lot of us, Eraser marks the end of Arnold Schwarzenegger’s golden era. From about 1982 (Conan the Barbarian) to 1996 (Eraser), he was arguably the world’s biggest action star, with a level of fame that eclipsed that of his rivals (at least for a time). He was even able to cross over into other genres, such as comedy, with hits like Twins and Kindergarten Cop. At the time, we didn’t know it, but Eraser would be his last pure action film until 1999’s End of Days. By then, Arnold’s peak seemed to be behind him, although his story was far from over, as he would later go on to become the Governor of California.
But back to Eraser. This was his follow-up to James Cameron’s True Lies, and it was poised to be an event. It teamed him with Chuck Russell, the director of the Jim Carrey smash The Mask, and had him playing John Kruger, a U.S. Marshal charged with protecting witnesses — in this case, a whistleblower (Vanessa Williams) whose testimony reveals moles within Kruger’s organization. Sporting a huge budget for the time, it’s an epic action film that has held up well thirty years later thanks to its reliance on mostly practical effects (although the CGI alligators could maybe look a bit sharper).
To celebrate the anniversary, I was able to chat with Chuck Russell about his time working with Arnold, particularly how the film’s signature set piece — the jet ski dive — was put together using a combination of CGI and practical stunts. Russell remains proud of the film, which was one of Arnold’s last really big box office hits.
I also had to tell Russell about how, as a fourteen-year-old when it came out, I was plagued by a dumb law here in Quebec that prevented anyone under 16 from seeing it, even with parental permission (which seemed idiotic, as the movie is pretty tame). In fact, I’ve never seen Eraser on the big screen, although I now have a nice 4K disc to satisfy me, which you can buy HERE.
How do you think Eraser holds up? Let us know in the comments.
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