Based on the short experimental film ‘La Jetée’, it is a warning to those in power today not to forget that our children will inherit our mistakes. Director James Cameron has created a post-holocaust nightmare… set in A.D.2029, where brainy machines have crushed most of the human populace. From that point, Arnold Schwarzenegger as the cyborg Terminator is sent back to the present (1980s) to assassinate a young woman named Sarah Connor (Linda Hamilton) who is, in the context of a soon-to-be-born son and the nuclear war to come, the mother of mankind’s salvation.
There aren't a lot of special effects in this film. It relies mainly on traditional shoot-em-up and chase sequences to fill its action quota, which is to the directors credit and all the better for it. Cameron wisely created memorable action set pieces (like the Terminator's assault on the police precinct), as he made the whole film feel like a non-stop thriller ride.
It's also extremely good, testosterone-toting fun, as Arnie demolishes buildings etc. in his pursuit of Hamilton! Actually Schwarzenegger is excellent in the title role; although he speaks barely sixteen lines of dialogue, his mere physical presence perfectly conveys the essence of an emotionless, unstoppable cyborg. Possibly one of the best sci-fi, action films ever to grace the big screen.
There aren't a lot of special effects in this film. It relies mainly on traditional shoot-em-up and chase sequences to fill its action quota, which is to the directors credit and all the better for it. Cameron wisely created memorable action set pieces (like the Terminator's assault on the police precinct), as he made the whole film feel like a non-stop thriller ride.
It's also extremely good, testosterone-toting fun, as Arnie demolishes buildings etc. in his pursuit of Hamilton! Actually Schwarzenegger is excellent in the title role; although he speaks barely sixteen lines of dialogue, his mere physical presence perfectly conveys the essence of an emotionless, unstoppable cyborg. Possibly one of the best sci-fi, action films ever to grace the big screen.