"I Think This Guy's A Couple O' Cans Short Of A Six-Pack!"...

Rating: 9/10 (15 July 2019)

Revisiting THE TERMINATOR after many years, was a lot of fun. Seeing how much Director, James Cameron did w/ his relatively small budget, is quite amazing! This movie was certainly groundbreaking, w/ Cameron reinventing the science fiction / action film. The result is a magnificent time-travel / pre-post-apocalyptic story, set in 1980's, urban Los Angeles. One aspect that boosts this into the stratosphere is the weaving of true horror into the story. There is genuine, malevolent menace hanging over the entire movie, and one classic scene of homicidal mayhem after another! Fast-paced and unrelenting, this movie delivers action that was rarely witnessed in its day. Perhaps, only the original, 1970's-early 80's MAD MAX or ROAD WARRIOR films could hope to compete w/ Cameron's hyper-speed vision. Who better to play the murderous, virtually unstoppable title role than Arnold Schwarzenegger? He was perfectly suited for it, both physically and vocally w/ his deep, Austrian accent. Linda Hamilton convincingly takes her Sarah Connor character from a meek and frightened "waitress", to a hardened, iconic warrior over the course of the film. Michael Beihn is the third part of this trinity, as the mysterious Kyle Reese. Paul Winfield and Lance Henriksen put in great supporting performances as the ill-fated cops on the case. Truly, one for the ages, and only the beginning of the huge, successful careers of both Cameron and Schwarzenegger!... EXTRA POINTS FOR: The flash-forward scenes of the futuristic wasteland! Though the robot models used are -a bit- dated, they are nonetheless effective...