10 Essential Time Travel Movies

By Daniel Mumby / May 25, 2013

4. The Terminator (dir. James Cameron, 1984) Of all Roger Cormans pupils, James Cameron is the one who has least adhered to the masters teaching about narrative discipline. But whatever the excesses of his more recent works, The Terminator remains a lean and intelligent science fiction film. In case you needed reminding, it follows the journey of Sarah Connor (Linda Hamilton) as she attempts to evade a Terminator, a killing machine set back in time from 2029 when the human race has been largely exterminated by sentient machines. The Terminator is notable for any number of reasons. It made Arnold Schwarzenegger a star, lifting him from the high camp of the Conan films into something more powerful and threatening. It kick-started Camerons career, leading not just to the acclaimed sequel but Aliens and The Abyss. But beyond the star power or it terrifying effects, the film is an interesting work in the post-apocalyptic canon, taking the imagery and concerns of The Time Machine or Mad Max 2 and bringing them into the later Cold War age.

Time Travel Trivia: Arnie originally didnt want to say the line Ill be back, feeling that he couldnt pronounce Ill convincingly with his accent. He tried to persuade Cameron to change the line to I will be back, but Cameron refused, telling him to say it the best he could.