The Terminator

Directed by: James Cameron

Written by: James Cameron, Gale Anne Hurd; William Wisher Jr. (additional dialogue)









This is it: the film that launched the "Terminator" mini-empire.

Apparently, in the future, humans are at war with machines (and we're losing, I might add).  Our only hope is a man named John Connor, who is leading the resistance.  The machines decide to send a Terminator (Schwarzenegger) back in time to kill Connor's mother Sarah (Hamilton).  Connor sends his right-hand-man Kyle Reese (Biehn) back to ensure his mother's survival, with some interesting consequences.

Aside from the prominence of the 1980's clothing and hair styles, this movie has held up pretty darn well.

The Terminator - especially once stripped of his fleshy exterior - is still a terrifying image.  The pre-CGI stop motion animation of the skeletal robot is a little clunky at certain moments, but is mostly seamless as the jerky motion fits well with the movement of the machine.

The action is paced out well to keep the film moving without reducing the film to a mere chase film (which, at its essence, it is).  The beginning of the film strings the viewer along, tugging us toward the inevitable convergence of Reese, Connor, and the machine.  Even after that, there are enough breaks in the action, including some flashback / flashforward sequences, that the movie doesn't feel like one long pursuit.

For the most part, this is a pretty straight-forward sci-fi flick.  Perhaps the hardest part to wrap your head around is the time-travel element, which only occurs twice but plays a massive role in the long-term Terminator mythology.  Why did John Connor choose to send Kyle Reese back in time?  (Spoiler ahead.)  Because Kyle Reese is John Connor's father.  Think too much about this, and there's a major paradox waiting to explode, especially if you ascribe to the time-is-linear way of thinking.  How did Reese end up in 1984, if John Connor didn't send him back until the 2000's?  Unless Reese always existed as a time-traveller in 1984, meaning that John Connor's existence was inevitable and that time is not able to be altered.  Except, if time cannot be altered, then the Terminaor's attempt to, ahem, terminate Sarah Connor was futile?  Wait, what?  Yes, exactly.  It's the stuff like that which makes science fiction so fun.

This film is a little more brutal and violent than the typical sci-fi fare.  Perhaps not more violent, but definitely more brutal and visceral.  First time viewers be warned.

Come with me if you want to live...