The Terminator (1984)

The simple premise: A killer android (played by Arnold Schwarzenegger) is sent back to 1984 to assassinate the mother (Linda Hamilton) of a resistance leader of the future. A soldier of that resistance (Michael Biehn) is also sent back to protect her from harm, but the killer android is virtually unstoppable in its mission.

The Terminator is written by director James Cameron himself, along with Gale Anne Hurd, who would eventually go on to marry him not long after the film’s release. Reportedly, the idea came to Cameron in a nightmare he had once had of being stalked by a menacing robot’s metallic skeleton that rises out of a large fire. Despite this, he was later sued by sci-fi author Harlan Ellison due to similarities between The Terminator and a short story he had written in the 1950s called “Soldier from Tomorrow”, which was also adapted into an episode of TV’s “The Outer Limits” (as “Soldier”) — Ellison accepted an out-of-court settlement and credit at the end of home video releases, despite Cameron maintaining that Ellison was a greedy opportunist and he was forced into the baseless settlement by the producers seeking to minimize potential damages.  He wrote an early treatment while working on his first film, a cheapie b-movie that he really didn’t have much creative control of called Piranha II: The Spawning. Not wanting a repeat of that experience, Cameron moved quickly to secure his Terminator in the form of Arnold Schwarzenegger to ensure that the most critical piece would be in place to realize his vision.

The Terminator is not a film that one might conceive of as propelled by strong performances, but given the fantastical nature of the story, the fact that it is well cast is a great benefit in making the tale believable and weighty.  After a plethora of potential leading ladies was mulled over, including Debra Winger and Kathleen Turner (who turned down the role because they found the subject matter uninteresting), Linda Hamilton would end up being cast as Sarah Connor.  Sarah must undergo a wide character arc, starting off as a carefree young waitress to someone who must, seemingly within the course of a day and night, fall in love, and become a battle hero. It’s far-fetched, but within the scope of the film, it is completely believable.

Arnold Schwarzenegger had originally been courted by Cameron for the Kyle Reese role but had trouble with the heavy moments of expository dialogue he would have to churn through.  Cameron, however, was struck by how imposing the muscle-bound actor was and reconsidered the Terminator appearance from an every-man that would blend in (initially, Mel Gibson was a prime candidate for the role, as Cameron’s style had been influenced by his impressions of The Road Warrior), and rewrote the Terminator to have a bodybuilder frame.  Despite his qualms about playing a bad guy, Schwarzenegger is, of course, the perfect casting, despite thinking that the film itself would turn out to be terrible based on how he felt about the story-line.  He initially only took the role to gain more exposure in Hollywood with something more modern than a sword-and-sorcery epic like Conan the Barbarian, at that time thinking his role would be too one-dimensional to propel his acting career otherwise. Interesting to note that other actors that had been considered for the role included O.J. Simpson, who was dismissed from consideration for being too charismatic and likable, and not really the kind of person who would be believable as a remorseless killer.

As for Kyle Reese, it’s hard to imagine anyone else in the role than Michael Biehn now, but rock star Sting was the actor that Orion Pictures had their hearts set to cast, but he was already committed to David Lynch’s Dune.  Many other actors were considered, but they ended up settling on Biehn, despite his flubbing of the audition while still in character from auditioning for another project in which he had to have a Southern accent. Luckily, he was given a second chance after his agent apologized.

Themes abound, obviously beginning with our inherent fear of artificial intelligence and building our safety net on the backs of technology that could, if sophisticated enough, begin to think on its own. In such a case, we humans would become the greatest threat to its existence. Another theme is of how anyone could become a hero of significance in the right circumstances, even those among us who you would never suspect could have the character and resolve to do so, such as waitress Sarah Connor.

As much as I love The Terminator, and will give it the highest grade on just scales, there are a number of moments within the film that don’t quite work for me in terms of suspending disbelief. One example is a phone call between Sarah and her mother in which it is revealed that the mother, who was presumably just killed, is actually the Terminator emulating the mother’s voice. While I can buy that technology could progress to the point where a computer can replicate the tone and cadence of a human voice, the way it plays out here seems hard to believe given that there wasn’t much of a representative sample for the Terminator to go on to completely make a personality convincing enough for a woman’s own daughter to not think something was off at any point during the conversation. That whole scene could have played out with the Terminator merely able to eavesdrop on an actual phone conversation between Sarah and her mother; there is no critical need for the Terminator to actually be the mother’s voice for the purpose of the plot.

Although people today might conceive of The Terminator as a huge 1980s blockbuster, it actually is a relatively low-budget film, with a working budget of only $6.5 million.  It pays, more so than any of its sequels, like a stalker/slasher horror movie a good deal of the time, complete with final-girl tropes. Film critics at the time of its release gave the film generally positive but mixed notes, saying it’s an effective action flick but a drive-in caliber b-movie at its core, as fun to watch as it is inconsequential in its story.  The film may have been thought of as good-but-not-great in its early days, resulting in a solid but unspectacular box office take in the U.S. of $38 million (it would double that with international money), which Cameron blames on Orion not pushing a better advertising campaign for the theatrical run. However, it quickly became a major success once it hit the home video and premium cable markets, where repeat viewings and word-of-mouth would make it one of the most watched and re-watched films of the 1980s.  Nowadays, it is considered one of the most influential science fiction films of its era, and ranks at 100% on Rotten Tomatoes, at the time of this review’s writing.

My personal pick for the greatest sci-fi-based action film ever made. The Terminator impresses on every conceivable level. It’s a terrifically conceived story, features flawless direction, solid acting, and action as relentless as the Terminator himself. It’s also one of the most influential sci-fi films ever, with a man vs. computer theme that still rings true today. Terrific special effects despite the modest budget. Not a frame of film is wasted in this film that should be recognized for the masterpiece that it is.

Qwipster’s rating: A+

MPAA Rated: R for strong, graphic violence, language, and a scene of sexuality/nudity
Running time: 108 min.

Cast: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Linda Hamilton, Michael Biehn, Paul Winfield, Lance Henriksen, Bess Motta, Earl Boen, Rick Rossovich, Dick Miller (cameo), Bill Paxton (cameo)
Director: James Cameron
Screenplay: James Cameron, Gale Anne Hurd

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