Rent The Abyss (1989)

Good movie, but Low resolution 4:3 non anamorphic letterboxed DVD version - The Abyss review by GC

The movie is good, but at the time of writing it is only available as a 4:3 letterboxed (not anamorphic) DVD. This makes for a ridiculously low pixel resolution which would be less than ideal on an SD screen and (for me anyway) is painful to watch on a HD or higher screen even with AI upscaling.

Unfortunately I can't recommend watching this movie in this format.

Liquid Aliens, Solid Feelings - The Abyss review by griggs

I’m not usually a sci-fi person, but The Abyss won me over almost immediately. In the 4K Special Edition you can feel Cameron in his element: the vast water tanks, chunky miniatures, that liquid-face probe and the infamous liquid-breathing rat test, all strangely convincing rather than show-offy. It stakes out the “cosmic beings and big feelings” territory decades before Interstellar tries something similar, and where Nolan’s film left me cold, this one quietly pulled me in.

What really anchors it is the human mess. Ed Harris and Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio sell a half-sunk marriage better than most earthbound dramas, and the drowning/resuscitation sequence is still brutal. The extended cut leans harder into Cold War jitters – twitchy SEALs, a stray nuke, everyone one bad decision away from disaster – and when Cameron sticks to blue-collar problem-solving under impossible conditions, the whole thing sings.

The non-terrestrial intelligences are luminous, benevolent and a bit New Agey. It all builds to a cosmic “be nice to each other” message that the longer cut spells out a little too clearly. But it feels oddly generous rather than preachy. For someone who claims not to like sci-fi, I could happily sink back into this more often than I’d care to admit.

Fantastic Adventure Film - The Abyss review by GI

This is James Cameron's most underrated film probably because it faired poorly at the box office but it is an absolutely fantastic adventure film and one of the very best set almost entirely at the bottom of the ocean. It has that claustrophobic atmosphere and tense threat that being stuck on the seabed creates. If you've never seen this then it's one to seek out because it has a great story that mixes disaster, action, a bit of romance and science fiction and it's a great example of Cameron's storytelling expertise. Starring Ed Harris as Bud Brigman who runs a deep sea drilling rig with a small crew. It can manoeuvre along the seabed in search of mineral deposits. When a US nuclear submarine mysteriously crashes on the edge of a deep trench Bud and his crew are recruited to assist in a rescue mission, aided by a Navy Seal team led by Coffey (Michael Biehn) and joined by Bud's estranged wife and designer of the rig, Lindsey (Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio). But when a severe hurricane leaves the rig damaged and stranded they have to figure out how to get back to the surface and Coffey starts to show signs of psychosis. To add to their problems they keep seeing strange lights coming from the depths of the abyss on which they are teetering. Cameron pioneered stunning new CGi effects for this film which he later improved upon for Terminator 2: Judgement Day (1991), and he created some beautiful imagery and the film is a real visual delight and exciting stuff. In 1992 Cameron reinserted some key scenes, removed for the theatrical release, in a 'Special Edition' and this is the version to watch. It has, in particular, a major scene at the end which gives the entire narrative a sense of meaning. A great adventure film that is full of surprises and well worth checking out.