The Terminator: 4K UHD Review
James Cameron’s iconic sci-fi/action flick, The Terminator celebrates its’ 40th anniversary this year and to celebrate the occasion, they released the film on 4K UHD for the very first time. I believe Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines is the only film in the franchise not yet available in 4K. While I feel T2 is a superior film (much like Cameron’s Aliens over Scott’s Alien), there is no denying that the original Terminator feature is genre cinema greatness.
Set in 1984 Los Angeles, Sarah Conner (Linda Hamilton) is a 20-something server in a local diner. She is just a normal young woman, who works long hours, gets stood up by her dates on the weekend and has a roommate and a pet iguana. Little does she know that her world is about to be completely changed when a cyborg (Arnold Schwarzenegger) travels back in time from 2029 and its’ only objective is to locate Sarah Conner and terminate her. Thankfully, the Terminator wasn’t the only one that arrived from the future. Resistance fighter Kyle Reese (Michael Biehn) was sent back to 1984 to find Sarah first and protect her. You see, in the future, Sarah will have a child named John Conner and he will grow up to lead the resistance that would eventually win the war against the machines. If Sarah is killed before John is born, then the machines would win. Of course, the many unnecessary sequels have really screwed up much of the sci-fi logic. However, that doesn’t make the original (and its’ first sequel) any less awesome.
There are so many reasons why The Terminator has gone on to be such a beloved classic. Not only did Cameron create such an incredible and dark world with such a limited budget, but the casting was perfect. Arnold, Linda and Michael made each of their characters memorable. Supporting characters like Detective Hal Vukovich (Lance Henriksen) and criminal psychologist Dr. Peter Silberman (Earl Boen) are memorable. Boen would go-on to reprise his role in the next two films. The action is top notch. From the Terminator’s assault on the police station, to the numerous Los Angeles car chases, Cameron is-able-to keep the action moving. Even our glimpses of the dreaded future stand out. Even 40 years later, The Terminator stands out and was the perfect project to really launch James Cameron’s directing career (not counting Piranha II)
The 2013 remastered Blu-ray was a vast improvement over the film’s initial 1080p release. The new 2160p presentation with Dolby Vision/HDR is a modest improvement but may not be very noticeable by many. While the 4K release of T2 was a disappointment, the folks at Park Road were actually able to clean up the original without compromising the organic look. The blacks are much deeper here than in the 2013 Blu-ray, which improves upon many of the nighttime scenes. A perfect example would be not only the future war zone, but Sarah and Kyle’s final chase with the T-1000. The Los Angeles streets also really pop and so do some of the colors of the apparel worn by the cast. The clothing worn by the gang (including a very young Bill Paxton), shows off much more detail. We also get a new Dolby Atmos track that really ramps up the action and the score. While there are no new bonus features, we do get some that were nixed from the previous Blu-ray.
Bonus Features:
- Creating The Terminator: Visual Effects & Music
- The Terminator: Closer to the Real Thing
- Unstoppable Force: The Legacy of The Terminator
- 7 Deleted Scenes
By: Marc Ferman