The Terminator
40th Anniversary
[4K/Digital Code]
I remember seeing Terminator as a kid and being terrified of it. I think I wasn’t even ten, yet. To be honest, I’m surprised I remember so much about it. The one thing that stuck with me, for sure, is how terrifying Arnold Schwarzenegger looked in the movie. He was the scariest thing in the world to me, and I kept that feeling with me all these years. Later when I saw T2, I was convinced that they just made the Terminator look more Hollywood which is why he looks so much slicker. I was getting ready to dive back into the OG movie and have the daylights scared out of me.
But, guess what, the Terminator is a handsome man in this one too. Right off the bat, he’s looking like an adonis with great hair. It turns out what I was remembering was the Terminator look after he jumps through that fire which yellows his skin and gets his hair and eyebrows singed. This whole time I thought that was his look! That’s why I was so surprised as soon as he shows up in the movie. I guess it worked, because it just made him more menacing and imposing.
The Terminator is still a cool as hell movie even after all these years. It’s a simple but engaging sci-fi story, with very 80s special effects (read: puppets and stop-motion), and can kind of be considered the punk rock little brother of the behemoth that would come seven years later. THAT movie is downright cozy compared to this scrappy production. But still, I love it. It’s ambitious, smart, dynamic, and filled with enough complexity to keep it as satisfying now as it was when it came out. Before James Cameron lost his mind and started telling bloated stories about blue people on other planets. Come back to earth, James!
