New at BOP: Review: Matrix Resurrections Movie Review: Moonfall Movie Reviews: Scream The #1 Movie in America November Forecast The Many Saints of Newark October Forecast New Trivia Question All site updates Share & Save   Tweet Print this column

We love The Terminator because it’s a thrilling story about two very human people who want to live, and who grow before our very eyes as they fight to survive. Yes, Arnold is appropriately menacing as the towering cyborg who doesn’t feel pain, fear, pity or remorse and will not stop - ever - until Sarah Connor is dead. But if you have a tendency to use your brain when you watch movies, like I do, it’s a little hard to buy a six foot two, 230 pound man with 27 inch biceps as an “infiltration unit." Michael Biehn’s bulging bug eyes scare me a hell of a lot more than Arnold’s massive lats and rock hard abs. What does it for me is the story of Sarah and Reese.

Sarah is a meek, self conscious child who’s never been in love and “can’t even balance her checkbook” when we meet her. Reese is a battle hardened soldier who’s seen nothing but death and devastation from the moment he fell out of the womb. As they struggle to escape this relentless killing machine, Sarah begins to grow into the tough as nails Grizzly Mama we know she will later become. And Reese develops an new appreciation for what he’s fighting for. Having traveled back into the past and actually SEEN the world as it was, and experienced a few moments of peace and freedom rekindles his warrior spirit, infused now with a generous helping of humanity.

I’ve never considered Linda Hamilton to be much of an actress, but her expressive eyes mostly overcome her inability to emote consistently. Michael Biehn is a B-movie favorite, and is best known for his tightly coiled intensity and crazy serial killer eyes. But he also brings a sad vulnerability to Reese that makes you feel for the guy as he bravely accepts his duty and grimly faces his fate like the solider he is.

Like most great science fiction, The Terminator is not about machines, or aliens, or outer space, or even really time travel - and that’s a good thing because I could write a whole article on how The Terminator’s time travel plot cancels itself out and makes the whole damn plot completely irrelevant. Instead, the Terminator is about humanity and what it means to be human. It’s about what all of us should truly value in life. The people we love, the world we share and the freedom we have (most of us anyway) to determine our own future. There is no fate but what we make, and that’s anyone should be able to appreciate - whether we’re a waitress from Culver City, a soldier from the future, a Giant Smurf, or even the freaking King of the World.

Continued:       1       2       3