The Terminator

The Terminator (1984)
Starring: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Michael Biehn, and Linda Hamilton
Directed by: James Cameron
SC=5 V=8 C=7
Grade: A++

I know I have reviewed this movie before, but it was a long time ago, I just rewatched it, and these movies are just that awesome. This movie is about the first time a Terminator is sent back, in the year 1984, to kill Sarah Connor (Hamilton). Sarah is just a normal girl, but her son, John Connor, will change the world. In the year 1997, Judgment Day happened. A company called Cyberdyne Systems creates a new kind of defense network called Skynet, which makes everything defense related controlled by machines. These machines soon decide that humans are its only enemy and tries to kill them all. Judgment Day is when Skynet started a nuclear war, almost wiping out all of the humans. But, some survived. The survivors had to face a new horror: the war against the machines. One man taught them to fight and banded them together: his name is John Connor. And it is because of him that the war against the machines is won. So, the machines send back a Terminator (Schwarzenegger), a cyborg (metal on the inside, skin on the outside) that kills without mercy, to kill Sarah Connor, which will keep John from being born. But John is able to send back a soldier to protect Sarah. His name is Kyle Reese (Biehn). But can Kyle, a human, keep Sarah safe from a machine that won't give up until she's dead?

Movie Review: The Terminator

The Terminator (1984)
Starring: Michael Biehn and Linda Hamilton
Characters: Kyle Reese and Sarah Connor
Directed by: James Cameron
Tagline: Your future is in his hands
Grade: A++

This is one of my very, very favorite movies. I LOVE this movie. It's one action packed movie. Stuff blows up, people shoot other people, and the plot is so confusing that it literally blows your mind. (And The Terminator has to be one of the coolest movie characters of all time, besides John Connor and the amazing Kyle Reese). This movie is about a waitress named Sarah Connor, who's son, John Connor, will one day become the leader of the human resistance against the machines. (She doesn't know this when the movie starts, of course.) A Terminator (Arnold Schwarzenegger) comes back to the year 1986 to eliminate Sarah...Kyle Reese, a soldier from 2029, comes back to protect her. She doesn't believe this when he tells her, of course. Neither do the police when they eventually capture them. They think he's crazy. So, when the Terminator comes to...well...terminate Sarah, Kyle is able to get away and grab Sarah in the process. They get away to a hotel, where they build bombs. Then, they...well, let's just say Kyle ends up being John's father...which is one of the confusing parts. When John meets Kyle in the future, Kyle is a teenager and John is an adult. Then they have an epic battle at the end and the movie ends with an alone Sarah Connor driving off into the distance, which is one of the coolest scenes of all time. The gas station guy says, "There's a storm coming," ..he's talking about the weather. Sarah answers back, "I know."...meaning Judgment Day. Then she drives off into the distance, with the storm (both real and metaphorical) brewing in the distance. My review of it does it no justice, so people really have to watch it for themselves. All I can do is reccomend it...very, very strongly.
-MOT

Just finished: Terminator 2: Judgment Day
Watching now: Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines
Excited to see: Dear John

Movie Review: Ferris Bueller's Day Off

Ferris Bueller's Day Off (1986)
Starring: Matthew Broderick and Alan Ruck
Chracters: Ferris Bueller and Cameron Frye
Directed by: John Hughes
Tagline: While the rest of us were just thinking about it...Ferris borrowed a Ferrari and did it...all in a day.
Grade: A+

I love 80's movies...they're all awesome, but the best of the best are John Hughes films. He was one of the best directors of teen movies. It was like he truly understood what hard things went on in teen lives. He didn't just portray them as stupid, flighty girls or cocky guys...he actually gave them personalities...awesome ones at that. Between The Breakfast Club, Pretty in Pink, Sixteen Candles, and this movie, there are some of the best characters in any movie...ever. And they're all teenagers...which is a major score for us. This great movie is about a teen called Ferris, who is an expert at ditching school. It's a perfect day outside, so he decides to ditch another day of school (this makes his ninth "sick"day). So, he decides to make this one count. He calls his friend Cameron, who's always sick, and they get Ferris' girlfriend Sloane (Mia Sara) out of school. Then they go on a spree across the city in Cameron's dad's Ferrari. They even get in a parade. Ferris is the coolest, most smooth talking person ever. And John Hughes did a really cool thing where he had Ferris talk to the camera, as if telling advice to the people watching. Overall, a really fun, really cool 80's teen movie from the master himself.
-MOT

Just finished: The Terminator
Watching now: Terminator 2: Judgment Day
Excited to see: Percy Jackson & The Olympians: The Lightning Thief

Movie Review: A Far Off Place

A Far Off Place (1993)
Starring: Reese Witherspoon and Ethan Embry
Characters: Nonnie Parker and Harry Winslow
Directed by: Mikael Saloman
Tagline: A far off land, a far off journey, a far off adventure
Grade: A++

I've loved this movie for a long time. It's just a great feel good movie. One of Reese's first movies. She's a great actress and Ethan Embry is great as Harry, the spoiled boy. The only other movie that he was in after this that anyone even heard of was That Thing You Do!, where he played TB Player (The Bass Player). At least he got a name this time. This movie is about Nonnie, who's parents are Americans, but she's been raised in Africa. Her dad works to get rid of poachers and, because of the work he does, he, his wife, and his wife's friend (Harry's dad, the two were visiting the Parkers). Nonnie, her dog Kensa, and Harry are helping Nonnie's bushman friend Xhabbo when all of this happens, so nothing happens to them but Nonnie goes back to the house and sees the evidence of what happened. So, they decide to cross the Kalahari ("The wind can do it, we can do it.") with the bad guys in pursuit. Then they find out that the bad guy isn't at all who they expected. Another great family friendly movie with lots of heart and even some star power. I would reccomend this to anyone who loves great heart warming movies.
-MOT

Just finished: Ferris Bueller's Day Off
Watching now: The Terminator
Excited to see: Tomorrow, When the War Began