Review Of "The Terminator"

Rating: 8/10 (8 September 2011)

I honestly don't think that this movie needs an introduction, but I'll give it one anyway - "The Terminator" is a 1984 film crafted by legendary filmmaker James Cameron. The film follows tells the story of a cyborg assassin (Schwarzenegger) who is sent back in time from 2029 to 1984 to kill a young woman (Hamilton). Well, starting from the top, the movie's premise is certainly bizarre and outlandish, though Cameron and team seem to successfully transcend this obstacle by presenting the film's plot with utmost realism and seriousness. Quite possibly the greatest aspect of the film is, in fact, Arnold Schwarzenegger's truly menacing portrayal of the titular character. I wouldn't go so far as to say that this was a difficult performance, but Arnold pulls off one of his earliest acting roles with an intense amount of menace. The action sequences were also a masterstroke aspect of the film. Nearly every set piece in the film contained a good dose of thrills and jaw-dropping moments. The movie itself is, arguably, one of the greatest and most revolutionary science fiction films in film history. "The Terminator" was one of the first films to introduce the concept of self-aware artificial intelligence to the big screen, it catapulted the careers of Arnold Schwarzenegger and James Cameron to new heights, and simultaneously introduced several memorable lines of dialogue that most people are familiar with. In 2008 "The Terminator" was selected by the Library Of Congress for preservation in the United States National Film Registry, being deemed "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant". Did it deserve this honor? I believe so. For, "The Terminator" was a fun, intelligent, novel film for me to experience.