The Terminator ---- ****1/2 (out of 5) (1984)
Cast: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Michael Biehn, Linda Hamilton, Paul Winfield, Lance Henriksen
Director(s): James Cameron
Screenwriter(s): James Cameron, Gale Anne Hurd, William Wisher Jr.
Released on: October 26, 1984
Reviewed on: June 7, 2003
Rated: R - for sci-fi violence, language, sexual content, and nudity
Terminator's story has been rehashed several times in the form of films such as CYBORG. I've never actually seen that film but I've heard enough to know that it got its idea from TERMINATOR. The story revolves around a 30-something woman named Sarah Connor living in the year 1984. A Terminator from the future (specifically the year 2029) is sent back through time to kill her. The cyborg was created by a futuristic corporation called SkyNet. Sarah's destiny is to give birth to a boy that will grow up to form a resistance against the machines and will prevail. SkyNet wants to prevent this from happening. The Terminator looks just like a human, bleeds like a human, and even sweats like one but internally it has a robotic skeleton. A human soldier from the future named Kyle Reese is sent to the past as well to, on the other hand, protect Sarah from the Terminator. The story's entire background is not fully revealed but we get the gist of it, and it actually makes itself out to be very plausible. Terminator seems unparalled against any other sci-fi film to date, and it's still loved by many fans today considering the approaching release of TERMINATOR 3: RISE OF THE MACHINES this July 2nd.
I'm really trying not to be too biased with this review. I am a big fan of the Terminator genre, and I can't help but give it what I feel it truly deserves without coming off as a fanboy that just says great things without a second thought. I really want to show why I feel this way. The characters are extremely well developed. Sarah Connor does change a lot in T2 but "fans" who have not seen the original will be surprised to discover that she was originally a helpless young woman... with a bad 80's hairdo. But that's not relevant. Kyle and the Terminator (Arnold Schwarzenegger) aren't just badass movie heroes. They each have depth and background stories. Kyle's flashback to the war in the future is very realistic and very believable. The thing that makes everyone so well-developed as characters is the fact that they can all act, which is sometimes hard to find in today's action movie genre with films like XXX, FAST AND THE FURIOUS, or anything over-the-top with Vin Diesel as the star. Appreciate the actors and the roles they play for it is one of the highest points of the Terminator saga, next to the storyline.
No, this movie is not filled with mindless popcorn entertainment or eye candy (as they are called by critics). It does have terrific special effects and nothing too fake-looking or corny like the use and abuse of CGI, for example. Lighting on characters' faces in the darkness of the night actually makes sweat become visible, which adds to the intensity of the environment. All of these visual effects are very subtle rather than in-your-face, which is literally what separates TERMINATOR from the crap in movies today that contain wild gun-toting and wild explosions with no meaning behind any of it.
TERMINATOR was made to have a single theme with eerie thumping that is awesome to listen to if you have a surround sound system. I admit the soundtrack doesn't have a whole lot of variety. I almost prompted myself to say 'Who needs variety when you have this?' but again, that would be biased reviewing from a fan. I would have recommended maybe a couple more 80's tunes for a film made in that era, but the premise is too dark to have any upbeat music or even pop rock solely designed for mind-numbing thrill rides playing in the background. However, the score of TERMINATOR is effective and is very famous. The new theme in T2 is slightly different, but still gives off the same style of drama that is needed to pull of something like this.
TERMINATOR is nearing it's 20th anniversary. It's amazing that a film of its age is still hip and fresh to view today even with the 80's disco scene. Who doesn't love Arnold's menacing look and his catchy lines? He plays his part extremely well. His monotone voice and behavior makes him so much more inhuman. I promise you won't be disappointed by this movie if you're a sci-fi fan.
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