Rent The Terminator (1984)

Superb horror dressed up as scifi - The Terminator review by JD

Like many of camerons films the stories from the making of this film sound like there was serious challenges for those involved. Steming from Camerons drive for perfection and extracting every last dime from the limited budget.

And from that there is a pattern. Both Arnie and Michael have ridden through other tough productions without complaining - these are tough actors playing there hardman roles. And importantly this goes for Linda Hamilton to. She is brilliant in this and its clear to see why her character is today recognized as one the greatest of all action heros. Few start off so completely out of there depth and grow into someone who remains flawed - yet is crushingly effective at there task. Its a brilliant character and brilliantly played (both from T1 through T2)

Its just a couple of small parts of what is a fantastic film start to finish. And Cameron was just warming up with this piece of cinematic glory.

If i was measuring this film by 2022 standerds its an easy 5 star film.

Still A Fantastic SciFi Action Film - The Terminator review by GI

Although it spawned a series of films this, the first and original, is still an important and utterly entertaining science fiction action thriller. It cemented Arnold Schwarzenegger as a major star and opened up the future for director James Cameron. Viewed today the sharpness of the editing and the completeness of the story shine out. It is a brilliant conceived plot and as time travel narratives go it is well thought out. Even the obvious model work is extremely well done and doesn't detract from the films look nor its achievements. There have been a few films that place humanity against machines or AI that include such classics as 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968), Blade Runner (1982) The Matrix (1999) and Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979) each exploring slightly different themes. Here the story commences in 2029 after a nuclear war and intelligent machines have risen from the war intent on destroying what remains of mankind. To do this they send a killing machine back in time to 1984 to murder the mother of a future resistance leader. To try and stop this the human leader sends back a soldier to protect her. What follows is a really exciting action film with Linda Hamilton playing the naive teenager suddenly finding herself pursued by a relentless and unfeeling killer and finding help and eventually love in her protector, Reese (Michael Biehn). Terminator 2: Judgement day (1991) broke new ground in special effects and is often cited as the best in the Terminator series but this the first is still a key science fiction film and is equal to the sequel for it's audacity, vision and superb story. It's an important film in the genre and TechNoir sub genre. Worth checking out again to remind yourself just how good it is.

Never Stop - The Terminator review by Steve

If this has dated at all, it's only in good ways. The pre-CGI effects/models look astonishing. Plus the incredible stunts. The pulsing '80s techno soundtrack is just right. And even though its budget is clearly a limiting factor, this just adds to its cyberpunk/tech-noir charm. This is the blockbuster-action picture which plugs in and turns on for non-genre audiences.

And it's where Arnold Schwarzenegger crossed over to a mainstream, multiplex audience. The role of a monosyllabic cyborg from the future with an Austrian accent is an ideal fit. The Terminator must kill Sarah Connor (Linda Hamilton) because she will be the mother of the rebel who brings down Skynet, the computer network which controls the dystopian future.

Michael Biehn is the dissident who travels across time to protect her, and more. There's a classic sci-fi script; it's loaded with necessary exposition, but the info is so thrilling it doesn't matter. It's also full of punchy, laconic dialogue. The mechanical SFX are crucial, but the human factor is primary; Hamilton establishes herself as the ultimate female action hero...

And not a 1D sex symbol in lycra either. Her evolution from good-girl doormat into the mother of the revolution is the emotional core of the story. Plus the long climax is as intense as the action film can be. Yes, this is sci-fi, but absolutely convincing within its own genre rules and the themes have entered the culture. It's now a factor in how we fear the future...