84
Metascore
21 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 100Austin ChronicleMarjorie BaumgartenAustin ChronicleMarjorie BaumgartenDirector James Cameron and producer Gale Anne Hurd (both of whom co-wrote the script) demonstrate their storytelling virtuosity.
- 100Dallas ObserverLuke Y. ThompsonDallas ObserverLuke Y. ThompsonThe movie's scares are intense, but the notion that the Terminator would move on to politics is even more frightening.
- 91Entertainment WeeklyEntertainment WeeklyKineticism and suspense, combined with strongly conceived characters....Made Cameron a talent to watch. [13 Jan 1995, p. 67]
- 90TimeRichard CorlissTimeRichard CorlissPlenty of tech-noir savvy to keep infidels and action fans satisfied.[26 Nov 1984, p. 105]
- 88PremierePremiereA model of economic storytelling....It raised the bar for movie action to a bionic level. [1 Dec 2003, p.13]
- 80TV Guide MagazineTV Guide MagazineAn amazingly effective picture that becomes doubly impressive when one considers its small budget.
- 75The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Jay ScottThe Globe and Mail (Toronto)Jay ScottAn efficient, cold-blooded sci-fi splatter movie that never makes the mistake of forgetting that on some level it is deeply ridiculous.
- 70Chicago ReaderDave KehrChicago ReaderDave KehrSchwarzenegger is presented as a lumbering slab of dumb, destructive strength--the image is more geological than human--and Cameron plays his crushing weightiness against the strangely light, almost graceful violence of the gunplay directed against him. The results have the air of a demented ballet.
- 60The New York TimesJanet MaslinThe New York TimesJanet MaslinA B-movie with flair.