Director: James Cameron
Story: James Cameron and Gale Anne Hurd and William Wisher Jr.
Cast: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Linda Hamilton, Michael Biehn
Music: Brad Fiedel
Time: 102 minutes
Bottom-line: James Cameron's best film
James Cameron may have directed the two highest grossing films in Hollywood so far (Avatar - $2 billion+; Titanic – also $2 billion +), but his debut feature, The Terminator is perhaps his best film in terms of the impact it left behind on Hollywood cinema. Inspired by Star Wars (1977), Cameron decided to go into the world of cinema, and this blockbuster kick-started his career as a director. What makes his first film so famous? Let’s find out.
This is one of the first films to introduce the concept of ‘man versus machine’: a scenario where in the future, intelligent machines take control over humans and dominate the world. That’s how the story begins. In 2029, a small group of humans fight against machines, which are fast establishing control over the world. The humans are led by a man named John Connor. The machines send a Terminator (Schwarzenegger) back in time to 1984, to assassinate Sarah Connor (Hamilton), the future mother of John Connor, before John is born. Simultaneously, the humans also send a protector, Kyle Reese (Biehn), back in time to prevent the terminator from killing Sarah. Meanwhile, in 1984, an innocent and care-free Sarah is oblivious to how crucial her life is. It is only a matter of whether man or machine reaches her first.
Cameron’s films are mainly known for special effects. This film did not feature much of effects (though it had an 'effect' on Hollywood cinema), compared to his later films. In fact, Cameron initially thought of a film where two Terminators are sent back in time, one made of liquid metal. As sufficient technology was not available then, Cameron decided he would go with one cyborg and one human. In the sequel, Terminator 2: Judgment Day, the liquid metal Terminator was shown, and by that time, Cameron had established himself as a good director and technology was also advanced. So, perhaps one drawback is that I feel the special effects could have been better. But I don’t know about the technology then, so this is just my opinion as a viewer. In this film, there were no reputed actors, there was a new director, not much money could be spent on special effects, but yet, this film was such a hit.
Main credits for the success go to the story. Reese explains how the future would be, to Sarah. Sarah, like most other humans, doesn’t believe him. At that time, this sort of a futuristic scenario was unheard of. Yet, after this film, everyone has that fear: people start thinking whether machines can really take over and exterminate humans on Earth. In the first 3-4 minutes and for some 5 minutes elsewhere in the film, the world in 2029 is shown, full of machines moving over thousands of crushed skulls and bones. Cyborgs were also new to the world of cinema. Sarah, nor the cops, believes that there can be such a thing as a cyborg (a metal endoskeleton covered with human flesh and tissue).
The camera work is good: capturing many fast action sequences well. The car chases as well as the fight in the police station have been shot superbly. The dialogues are catchy, and there are just about enough dialogues to explain about the cyborgs and intelligent machines, without taking too much time. The Terminator’s character has less than 100 words to speak, yet Schwarzenegger plays a terrific villain. Of course, in my opinion, Schwarzenegger does look like a robot with that sort of a body, and his Austrian accent also sounds like the mechanical voice of a robot. Hamilton and Biehn have acted well. Schwarzenegger may not have acted well, but his character made his role a convincing one.
The story is excellent. It is fast paced, thrilling and has a fair amount of suspense. The romance between Reese and Sarah does not take too much of screen time. Except for a few scenes in the beginning, which are boring and off beat, all the other scenes contribute to the story. The action sequences are paced well, that is, along with action, the story is also built, unlike the film’s sequel, where there is very little story and more of action. The ideas of time travel and man versus machine are used well by Cameron. The score by Brad Fiedel is also good.
This film has many pros and cons compared to its sequel. The special effects and action sequences are terrific in the second part, whereas the acting and the story are better in this film. After the second film, Cameron stopped directing Terminator films, but apparently, other directors thought that a couple of robots could make a new film. The third film in the series was an average one, but the fourth film was a major flop.
To sum up, The Terminator is an action-packed science fiction thriller. With memorable characters, excellent story, good acting and good dialogues, it is no surprise that Cameron firmly established himself as a Hollywood director. Like the Back to the Future trilogy, which became a standard reference for time travel, this trilogy has become a standard reference for man versus machine.
My Rating: 4/5
Rotten Tomatoes rating: 100%
Story: James Cameron and Gale Anne Hurd and William Wisher Jr.Cast: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Linda Hamilton, Michael Biehn
Music: Brad Fiedel
Time: 102 minutes
Bottom-line: James Cameron's best film
James Cameron may have directed the two highest grossing films in Hollywood so far (Avatar - $2 billion+; Titanic – also $2 billion +), but his debut feature, The Terminator is perhaps his best film in terms of the impact it left behind on Hollywood cinema. Inspired by Star Wars (1977), Cameron decided to go into the world of cinema, and this blockbuster kick-started his career as a director. What makes his first film so famous? Let’s find out.
 |
| Schwarzenegger as The Terminator (T-800) |
This is one of the first films to introduce the concept of ‘man versus machine’: a scenario where in the future, intelligent machines take control over humans and dominate the world. That’s how the story begins. In 2029, a small group of humans fight against machines, which are fast establishing control over the world. The humans are led by a man named John Connor. The machines send a Terminator (Schwarzenegger) back in time to 1984, to assassinate Sarah Connor (Hamilton), the future mother of John Connor, before John is born. Simultaneously, the humans also send a protector, Kyle Reese (Biehn), back in time to prevent the terminator from killing Sarah. Meanwhile, in 1984, an innocent and care-free Sarah is oblivious to how crucial her life is. It is only a matter of whether man or machine reaches her first.
 |
| Linda Hamilton as Sarah and Biehn as Kyle Reese |
Cameron’s films are mainly known for special effects. This film did not feature much of effects (though it had an 'effect' on Hollywood cinema), compared to his later films. In fact, Cameron initially thought of a film where two Terminators are sent back in time, one made of liquid metal. As sufficient technology was not available then, Cameron decided he would go with one cyborg and one human. In the sequel, Terminator 2: Judgment Day, the liquid metal Terminator was shown, and by that time, Cameron had established himself as a good director and technology was also advanced. So, perhaps one drawback is that I feel the special effects could have been better. But I don’t know about the technology then, so this is just my opinion as a viewer. In this film, there were no reputed actors, there was a new director, not much money could be spent on special effects, but yet, this film was such a hit.
Main credits for the success go to the story. Reese explains how the future would be, to Sarah. Sarah, like most other humans, doesn’t believe him. At that time, this sort of a futuristic scenario was unheard of. Yet, after this film, everyone has that fear: people start thinking whether machines can really take over and exterminate humans on Earth. In the first 3-4 minutes and for some 5 minutes elsewhere in the film, the world in 2029 is shown, full of machines moving over thousands of crushed skulls and bones. Cyborgs were also new to the world of cinema. Sarah, nor the cops, believes that there can be such a thing as a cyborg (a metal endoskeleton covered with human flesh and tissue).
The camera work is good: capturing many fast action sequences well. The car chases as well as the fight in the police station have been shot superbly. The dialogues are catchy, and there are just about enough dialogues to explain about the cyborgs and intelligent machines, without taking too much time. The Terminator’s character has less than 100 words to speak, yet Schwarzenegger plays a terrific villain. Of course, in my opinion, Schwarzenegger does look like a robot with that sort of a body, and his Austrian accent also sounds like the mechanical voice of a robot. Hamilton and Biehn have acted well. Schwarzenegger may not have acted well, but his character made his role a convincing one.
The story is excellent. It is fast paced, thrilling and has a fair amount of suspense. The romance between Reese and Sarah does not take too much of screen time. Except for a few scenes in the beginning, which are boring and off beat, all the other scenes contribute to the story. The action sequences are paced well, that is, along with action, the story is also built, unlike the film’s sequel, where there is very little story and more of action. The ideas of time travel and man versus machine are used well by Cameron. The score by Brad Fiedel is also good.
This film has many pros and cons compared to its sequel. The special effects and action sequences are terrific in the second part, whereas the acting and the story are better in this film. After the second film, Cameron stopped directing Terminator films, but apparently, other directors thought that a couple of robots could make a new film. The third film in the series was an average one, but the fourth film was a major flop.
To sum up, The Terminator is an action-packed science fiction thriller. With memorable characters, excellent story, good acting and good dialogues, it is no surprise that Cameron firmly established himself as a Hollywood director. Like the Back to the Future trilogy, which became a standard reference for time travel, this trilogy has become a standard reference for man versus machine.
My Rating: 4/5
Rotten Tomatoes rating: 100%
No comments:
Post a Comment