THE TERMINATOR

Arnold Schwarzenegger

THE TERMINATOR (1984). Director: James Cameron.

In the year 2029 Los Angeles and the world are in the midst of war started by rogue robots who want to destroy mankind. When a cyborg killing machine known as a "terminator" (Arnold Schwarzenegger) is sent back in time to murder the mother of the leader of the resistance -- John Connor --  he is followed by Kyle Reese (Michael Biehn of Deadly Intentions), whose mission is to save her life at any cost. At first Sarah Connor (Linda Hamilton) is resistant to Reese's approaches, but after the Terminator wipes out a police station she realizes that his fantastic story is utterly true ...

Michael Biehn and Linda Hamilton

I confess I was never all that carried away with this picture at the time of its release, and my opinion hasn't changed all these years later. The Terminator uses a number of sci fi and comic book tropes to tell its story, which is mildly interesting, and the characters are hardly that dimensional. (Harlan Ellison felt the opening moments of the film were too close to one of his stories and received a settlement and a credit on the DVD.) Although the movie moves at a very fast pace, it seems better edited than directed. The performances are good -- Schwarzenegger only needs to look determined and grim and he does that okay -- and the film has an undeniably exciting climax in a factory when the robotic infrastructure of the Terminator is revealed. The obligatory sex scene is tiresome, but necessary in some ways for the plot.

The Terminator sheds its Schwarzenegger skin

Although these questions may have been answered in the sequels -- to date there have been five -- one has to wonder why the unmarried Sarah doesn't ask Reese why her son in the future has the same last name that she does. And why does the cyborg have an Austrian accent? Bill Paxton has a very small role as a thug but in a few years he would be co-starring with both Schwarzenegger and Biehn [Aliens] in different productions (both directed by James Cameron). Dick Miller [A Bucket of Blood] has a cameo as a gun shop owner who gets on the wrong end of Schwarzenegger's shotgun. Brad Fidel's score is generally pretty cheesy, but the FX work by Stan Winston and others is fine.

Verdict: Odd that this mediocre and highly over-rated little film started such a successful franchise. **1/2. 

ALIENS

Sigourney Weaver and Michael Biehn

ALIENS (1986). Director: James Cameron. Extended edition/director's cut.

After the climax of Alien, Ellen Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) has drifted in space for 57 years. (In a scene omitted from the theatrical version, we learn Ripley had a daughter who grew up and died while she was away, which intensifies her feelings for the little girl, Newt, that she meets later on.) The powers-that-be, including corporate employee, the slimy Burke (Paul Reiser), first "disbelieve" Ripley, but then they learn that a colony that was established on LV-426, from whence Ripley escaped, is no longer in communication with earth. Stripped of her rank, Ripley is promised a promotion if she returns with Burke, android Bishop (Lance Henriksen), and a contingent of marines to LV-426 to see what's up. Naturally they find a whole host of alien monstrosities, along with the sole survivor, Newt (Carrie Henn), and a monstrous mother queen who is laying more eggs on a regular basis. Unlike the first film and in spite of its sci fi/horror trappings, Aliens is more of a war movie/action film than anything else, but on that level it is extremely exciting, although, as in the first movie, there are too many long scenes of Ripley running and running through smoky corridors. One especially good and scary scene has Ripley and the child discovering that a face-hugger (the creature that wraps itself around your face and deposits a parasite) has gotten into their quarters and they're locked inside with it. The acting from Weaver [Tadpole], Reiser [One Night at McCool's], Henricksen [AVP] and Henn is excellent -- I rarely like Weaver in anything but the Alien movies -- and there are also noteworthy performances from Michael Biehn as Corporal Hicks, William Hope as his commanding officer, Lt. Gorman, and especially Bill Paxton as the overtly cocky but understandably terrified Private Hudson, with some nice work from Jenette Goldstein as the tough, Hispanic Private Vasquez. This vision of the future is already dated, and the movie has several illogical moments, but it is very, very entertaining. Followed by Alien 3.

Verdict: Like quite a few people, the aliens have acid for blood. ***.