Overview
James Cameron's THE TERMINATOR is one of the tightest, tensest sci-fi films ever made and a landmark in the genre. In the year 2029, battles rage between the superintelligent machines that rule the world and the last vestiges of humanity. In late-20th-century Los Angeles, Sarah Connor (Linda Hamilton) suddenly finds herself stalked by an unstoppable killing machine--a Terminator (Arnold Schwarzenegger) sent from the future to kill her and her unconceived son, John Connor, the future leader of the human resistance. Sarah can rely only on Reese (Michael Biehn), a soldier sent from the future to protect her from the seemingly indestructible Terminator and save humanity. This low-budget masterpiece was the breakthrough film for director Cameron, who weds special effects, thrills, and understated romance to create one of the finest action films of the 1980s, which spawned many imitations but few equals. Science fiction author Harlan Ellison sued over the film's similarities to his own works, especially the OUTER LIMITS episode "Demon with a Glass Hand," and won acknowledgement in the film's credits. Schwarzenegger will forever be known as the relentless Terminator, a heartless killing machine who returns (in a kinder, gentler form) in 1991's TERMINATOR 2: JUDGMENT DAY.
Awards:
Main Cast & Crew:
James Cameron - Director
Arnold Schwarzenegger
Linda Hamilton
Michael Biehn
Paul Winfield
Lance Henriksen
Rick Rossovich
Bess Mott
Earl Boen
Dick Miller
Shawn Schepps
Details
- Format: DVD (New Box Art)
- Run Time: 108
- Color Format: Color
- UPC: 883904330929
- Genre: Science Fiction
- Rating: R (MPAA)
- Release Date: December 1998

Movie Reviews
Reviews:
"...A B-movie with flair....Set forth engrossingly by [Hamilton and Biehn]..." - 10/26/1984 New York Times, p.C19
"...A blazing, cinematic comic book, full of virtuous moviemaking, terrific momentum, solid performances from the three leads, and a compelling story..." - 10/31/1984 Variety
"...Kineticism and suspense, combined with strongly conceived characters....Made [Cameron] a talent to watch..." -- Rating: A- - 01/13/1995 Entertainment Weekly, pp.66-8
"...A nerve-bludgeoning, relentlessly exciting action movie masterpiece..." - 04/01/2001 Total Film, p.104
"A model of economic storytelling....[It] raised the bar for movie action to a bionic level." - 12/01/2003 Premiere, p.13
"[It] has a seriousness and depth of feeling that belie initial expectations." - 12/01/2005 Sight and Sound, p.91
