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Arnold Schwarzenegger was born to play a cyborg. In his iconic role, the tight-lipped, square-headed Austrian warped into the minds of many '80s youths (myself included) and made them believe that there really were killer robots aiming to wipe out the human race some time in the near future. Even today, the haunting science behind the fictitious tale of The Terminator contributes to the cynical outlook that many have regarding humanity at war with machines.

By now, it is pretty much common knowledge to movie fans that John Connor is at the pinnacle of humanity's resistance when the nuclear war begins sometimes in the 21st century (the central plot of The Terminator heavily involves the concept of time travel). So, the machines, fully aware of this threat, take it upon themselves to send a T-800 model (Arnie) back in time to kill Connor's mother, Sarah (Linda Hamilton), so that John's existence can be eliminated prior to him even being born. Fortunately for us, freedom fighter Kyle Reese (Michael Biehn) has also been sent back, and is willing to protect Sarah, and John, from the seemingly-indestructible cyborg by any means that he is capable of.

The horrifyingly original concept, combined with the memorable performances from lead characters, make The Terminator a raw, emotional and incredibly involving battle between humanity and its most feared creation right on the edge of extinction. Schwarzenegger and Biehn together are a conflict in species, which is fascinating to watch as the story develops: The T-800 shows no remorse in its killings and will stop at absolutely nothing until Connor is dead; whereas Reese is the determined saviour who we admire for his sheer humaneness in putting his life on the line just so our species has the chance to live on. Both actors have incredible screen presence here.

The low-budget action scenes may seem unspectacular by today's standards -- The Terminator is basically one big foot and car chase -- but director and screenwriter James Cameron manages to create and sustain an incredible amount of suspense and tension via his clever sense of pacing that the journey always seems dark and exciting for the viewer. Even with stop-start animation, the finale -- which involves the cyborg being stripped of all its flesh and hunting down Sarah and Reese in a robotics factory -- is a truly breathtaking moment in cinema, and it'd be unfair to knock the film purely for having a lower budget than most.

Perhaps most surprisingly, though, for a film filed under the science-fiction and action-thriller genres, Cameron also manages to slickly execute an underlying love story, without threatening the intensity of the action. The sex scene between Sarah and Reese, in particular, is arguably one of the most powerful moments within the whole film as it emphasizes the importance of human emotion bringing two people together as a form of anarchy. Together, they aspire to resist and eventually overcome humanity's most threatening creation (this exploration of human characters, as well as the species they are at war with, was something Cameron developed as an ingenious trademark in his post-Terminator movies -- Aliens, for example).

At the time of its release, the frightening theory of technology becoming self-aware and turning on humanity meant that the film soon became the nation's most-feared cinematic nightmare. The haunting Brad Fiedel score adds to the compelling, relentlessly entertaining and obsessively technophobic nature of The Terminator; and, special effects aside, the film doesn't feel dated even in today's context. The Terminator is still an indelible wake up call for evolution in the near future and should be seen by all.

(C) Andy Carrington, 2008.