I regret waiting so long to see it. A nice start for James Cameron's career, and Arnold Swartzenegger for that sake.

Rating: 8/10 (5 February 2010)

I regret waiting so long to see it. A nice start for James Cameron's career. And Arnold Swartzenegger career for that sake, although he had made two movies prior to this, but this kinda put him on the "map". Also it's cool to see him as the bad guy, and not the invincible hero. i know it's a bit ironic as he is an almost invincible cyborg here, but it fits better for a foe rather than a friend. hero's need to struggle, while the enemy seem almost impossible to kill. It builds up tension, and this movie is packed with it.
I don't think I neither need or should tell the plot. it's about a robot trying to prevent a person to be born, so he goes back in time to kill his mother. That's about it, unless you want details, but then I advise you to see the movie instead.
The effects are great, especially considering it's budget; US$6.5 million. Not much for Hollywood standards, and it hardly shows. Even though some times the robot is a stop-motion effects, and the terminators's eye looks a little fake, it's nothing you really should bother to point out. It's from 1984, has a small budget, and it's about a cyborg killer, I'm impressed by what James Cameron achieved in this film.
I really look forward to see Terminator 2, and sadly I saw the third one first. Seriously skip it, it's horrible. I recommend the two made by James Cameron and that's number 1 & 2. I give this film a 8/10.