IN SEARCH OF THE ULTIMATE DVD.

• Position: Terminator 2 and Men in Black - Brief Article

With much of America heavily invested in their VCRs and VHS cassettes, there is some reluctance to switch technologies to adopt the DVD format. Admittedly, the pictures and sound are superior, but, on the other hand, movies are still running at least $5 higher in DVD, though prices have started to ratchet down. The deciding factor may turn out to be the bonus features tagged onto most DVD films, with the trend being to pile one upon the other to outdo the competition. In a few recent cases, the add-ons are beginning to overwhelm the original feature.

Terminator 2: Judgment Day (Artisan Home Entertainment, 156 minutes, $39.98) is a case in point. The 1991 sequel to the 1984 apocalyptic Arnold Schwarzenegger thriller, "The Terminator," arguably the greatest "junk film" ever made, "T2" took cinematic technology to new heights in its initial release. The next generation of terminators is even more awesome than the original model in its abilities, relentlessly plowing forward to accomplish its time-travel mission, with Schwarzenegger switching sides to protect "humanity's last hope" On its own, the picture would be more than enough to attract action-loving purchasers, but, in today's battle over home theater dominance, enough is hardly enough.

"T2--The Ultimate Edition DVD" handsomely packaged in a wrap-around metal sleeve, adds 17 minutes to the 139-minute version that showed in theaters, restoring a variety of scenes cut out of the original release. Then, it piles on one special feature after another, until the package requires two DVD discs. This is not to quibble, since the result is an often-engrossing comprehensive exploration of the film that will especially appeal to aficionados of the genre. The "Making of ..." feature amply details the technological effects that went into the movie, some, thanks to computer magic and the imaginations of the director and co-writer James Cameron and the ubiquitous special effects maven Stan Winston, mindboggling. The shape-morphing abilities of the new-edition terminator were a particular challenge, and the explanation of how it was done is enthralling. A feature entitled "More Than Meets the Eye" shows scenes restored from the original cut, with the filmmakers...