Top SFX shots No.24: Terminator 3

It's not every ILM shot that makes it into arguably the most esteemed show reel of any effects house on the planet, but the sight of Arnold Schwarzenegger's half-man/half-robot face in T3 is unfaultable and a sure candidate. The camera lingers on it, and it can afford to. Similarly astonishing work was achieved with Aaron Eckhart's mutilated visage as Two Face in The Dark Knight, but unfortunately common sense kicks in after the shock and one realises that there's no way Eckhart's lower lip could maintain tension with that much damage to the left cheek. Here there are no such issues. With lighting, textures and fusion between actor and illusion absolutely pristine, it's a perfect 'trick', selling the reality of the Terminator character as never before.

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