25 Years ago on an Autumn day we would be introduced to a film that would set that standard for futuristic films of today! I figure how fitting it would be to feature this movie for our Rewind Wednesday! Drum Roll please (LOL)... it would be none other than The Terminator starring Arnold Schwarzenegger as The Terminator, Linda Hamilton as Sarah Connor and Michael Biehn as Kyle Reese."In the Year of Darkness, 2029, the rulers of this planet devised the ultimate plan. They would reshape the Future by changing the Past. The plan required something that felt no pity. No pain. No fear. Something unstoppable. They created 'THE TERMINATOR' "
This 1984 science fiction/action film directed and co-written by James Cameron would introduce the concept of a "terminator", specifically the titular character (Arnold Schwarzenegger), a seemingly unstoppable cyborg assassin who has been sent back from the year 2029 by a race of artificially intelligent computer-controlled machines bent on the extermination of the human race. The Terminator's mission is to kill Sarah Connor (Linda Hamilton) whose future son leads a resistance against the machines. A human, Kyle Reese (Michael Biehn), is also sent back from the future to protect her.
James Cameron got the idea for The Terminator (1984) while shooting another film in Europe. His vision was of a metal endoskeleton emerging from flames and most of the script was written backwards from there. The endoskeleton would have to be futuristic, and Cameron couldn't afford to set the film in the future. The solution was to bring the future to the present, hence the 'time travel' aspect of the script was written in. Cameron originally envisioned the Terminator as a small, unremarkable man, giving it the ability to blend in more easily. As a result, his first choice for the part was Lance Henriksen. O. J. Simpson was on the shortlist but Cameron did not think that "such a nice guy could be a ruthless killer". (Hmmm really...lol) According to him and co-writer William Wisher, Schwarzenegger was offered the role of the human soldier Reese. However, they realized that he would be better suited as the Terminator, which as a result became large and muscular. Michael Biehn was also on the shortlist for the Terminator, and not the hero Kyle Reese. It would go on to win several awards including the Saturn Award (1985) for Best Make-Up, Science Fiction Film, and Writing.
Considering that, The Terminator was a low-budget movie, at roughly $6.4 million, it would turn out to be a box-office hit, earning $38,371,200 domestically. The film would then go on to gross more than $78 million worldwide. Although stereophonic sound existed in 1984, The Terminator (1984) was filmed in monophonic. This was because during the production, the budget was too low to allow the filmmakers to get all the effects they wanted and still allow for the film to be shot in stereo. Although a stereo remix was produced later for the Hemdale VHS release, it was not until MGM acquired the rights to the film that a fully recognizable 5.1 stereo soundtrack was created, for the 2001 Special Edition DVD. Now here is something else that was quite interesting, Arnold Schwarzenegger's famous debut line 'I'll be back' was originally scripted as 'I'll come back'. And now that I think of it, that has a better ring to it too!!
This 1984 science fiction/action film directed and co-written by James Cameron would introduce the concept of a "terminator", specifically the titular character (Arnold Schwarzenegger), a seemingly unstoppable cyborg assassin who has been sent back from the year 2029 by a race of artificially intelligent computer-controlled machines bent on the extermination of the human race. The Terminator's mission is to kill Sarah Connor (Linda Hamilton) whose future son leads a resistance against the machines. A human, Kyle Reese (Michael Biehn), is also sent back from the future to protect her.
James Cameron got the idea for The Terminator (1984) while shooting another film in Europe. His vision was of a metal endoskeleton emerging from flames and most of the script was written backwards from there. The endoskeleton would have to be futuristic, and Cameron couldn't afford to set the film in the future. The solution was to bring the future to the present, hence the 'time travel' aspect of the script was written in. Cameron originally envisioned the Terminator as a small, unremarkable man, giving it the ability to blend in more easily. As a result, his first choice for the part was Lance Henriksen. O. J. Simpson was on the shortlist but Cameron did not think that "such a nice guy could be a ruthless killer". (Hmmm really...lol) According to him and co-writer William Wisher, Schwarzenegger was offered the role of the human soldier Reese. However, they realized that he would be better suited as the Terminator, which as a result became large and muscular. Michael Biehn was also on the shortlist for the Terminator, and not the hero Kyle Reese. It would go on to win several awards including the Saturn Award (1985) for Best Make-Up, Science Fiction Film, and Writing.
Considering that, The Terminator was a low-budget movie, at roughly $6.4 million, it would turn out to be a box-office hit, earning $38,371,200 domestically. The film would then go on to gross more than $78 million worldwide. Although stereophonic sound existed in 1984, The Terminator (1984) was filmed in monophonic. This was because during the production, the budget was too low to allow the filmmakers to get all the effects they wanted and still allow for the film to be shot in stereo. Although a stereo remix was produced later for the Hemdale VHS release, it was not until MGM acquired the rights to the film that a fully recognizable 5.1 stereo soundtrack was created, for the 2001 Special Edition DVD. Now here is something else that was quite interesting, Arnold Schwarzenegger's famous debut line 'I'll be back' was originally scripted as 'I'll come back'. And now that I think of it, that has a better ring to it too!!
And now just think in 2008, The Terminator was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant. This movie has truly stood against the test of time, and hopefully the third installment Terminator: Salvation will continue the legacy. Check out the trailer below:
It hits theaters tomorrow May 21st, 2009.
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