The Terminator
43% across 171 head-to-head matchups puts The Terminator on the wrong side of average. The record is below the midline, but the distance is not insurmountable. Made on almost nothing, and the shortage of money turned into a virtue — there was never budget for a scene to sprawl, so nothing does. Schwarzenegger's walk through the police station is paced like a slasher, not a sci-fi film, which gives it a meanness most of the genre never bothers with. It sits at #4 of the 4 James Cameron films tracked here.
Synopsis
In the post-apocalyptic future, reigning tyrannical supercomputers teleport a cyborg assassin known as the "Terminator" back to 1984 to kill Sarah Connor, whose unborn son is destined to lead insurgents against 21st century mechanical hegemony. Meanwhile, the human-resistance movement dispatches a lone warrior to safeguard Sarah. Can he stop the virtually indestructible killing machine?
40%, 55%, 35%. Not all bad — the semis at 55% are above average, which gives The Terminator something to build on even if the overall record hasn't caught up.
Star Wars at 50% is as close to a dead heat as the platform produces. Every vote matters in this one. The extremes tell a clear story — 67% against Blade Runner 2049 at one end, 31% against The Empire Strikes Back at the other.
In Original or Sequel? Classic Sci Fi, The Terminator regularly reaches the final — then runs into The Empire Strikes Back. At 31%, it hasn't found the answer.
James Cameron's 4 films span a wide range: Aliens at 60% to Titanic at 44%. The Terminator sits at #4.
#6 of 8 in Original or Sequel? Classic Sci Fi.
Near the bottom. Think that's wrong?
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