The Abyss

The Abyss (1989)

Director: James Cameron

Writer: James Cameron

Cast: Ed Harris, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, Michael Biehn, Leo Burmeister, Todd Graff, John Bedford Lloyd, J.C. Quinn, Kimberly Scott, Adam Nelson

Synopsis: 

When the U.S. Navy loses contact with one of its nuclear submarines, it enlists underwater drilling platform workers to locate the downed vessel. The foreman of the platform, Virgil "Bud" Brigman (Harris), must contend not only with a group of gung-ho Navy SEALS led by Lt. Coffey (Biehn), as well as his soon-to-be-ex-wife, Lindsay (Mastrantonio). Soon after locating the submarine wreckage, the reasons for its crash become clearer. Is it the work of the Soviets, or is it something else?

First Impressions:

I didn't see this one in theaters. In fact, I came upon this film several years later on home video. It was definitely after I'd seen Terminator 2 because I stumbled upon the film while looking for more stuff from James Cameron. I quite enjoyed the movie on first viewing, even though it really wasn't much like the other James Cameron films that I had seen up to that point. While his other films, such as the Terminator series and Aliens, were high-speed and focused on action, The Abyss was much more deliberate and dealt with many deep questions. Most of my friends didn't care for the film all that much but really enjoyed it, so much so that I've purchased it in several different formats over the years.

Story/Direction:

"We all see what we want to see. Coffey looks and he sees Russians. He sees hate and fear. You have to look with better eyes than that." 

As I've mentioned before in a few other reviews, I'm often surprised at how a movie released decades in the past can still hold a lot of truth for how modern life still operates. This film was released during the tail and of the Cold War, so it plays a lot on the paranoia that much of the world felt about the potential for a nuclear conflict. While the USSR was the villain du jour at the time, the questions raised by this film could still be applied in today's world. To me, that's what a good sci-fi story does; it informs us about the conditions of real-life through a fantastic set of circumstances. At its core, this is a film about peace and acceptance of others, even if we don't all agree on everything. In that respect, it's very much in the same vein as The Day the Earth Stood Still and other classics of the genre. I won't get too into specifics for fear of spoilers (I know, it's a 30-year-old movie, but it wasn't a huge film even when it released), but suffice to say, it takes an outside source to help us dumb humans see how dumb we're actually being. 

I've also talked a lot about my love for Cameron as a science fiction writer and director. He really has a knack for the genre and can clasp onto those themes of old to give his films an almost timeless quality. He's also an excellent storyteller, evidenced in this film by its pacing and excellent characters like most Cameron films. Regarding the pacing, Cameron opted to go more deliberate, and it works here. He keeps showing the audience glimpses about the reasons for the sub's crash but holds off on the big reveal until the third act. While it's slower going, this approach makes the audience curious because everyone's motivations are often obscured. As to the characters, I've mentioned before that Cameron has a knack for creating interesting characters, even if they're only in a couple of scenes. It feels as though everyone has a history, which makes the performances and interactions more believable. 

Acting:

There are some good performances to be found in this film, in particular, Ed Harris' turn as foreman Bud Brigman. Harris played the tool-pusher as a tough, no-nonsense type who's mainly concerned about those in his charge. However, there more to this character than the gruff exterior, as we see a man just trying to hold it together while the military commanders his drilling platform and gets verbally assaulted by his overbearing ex-wife. It's a good performance, one that Harris doesn't get enough credit for.

Speaking of the overbearing ex-wife, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio also turns in a solid performance as engineer Lindsay Brigman. Normally, a role like is a difficult tightrope to walk since an audience can easily turn on the character if they're too whiney or bitchy. Here though, Mastrantonio plays off the bitchiness of the character as a facade that she's had to put up to make it in the corporate world. In reality, you can see that she's a curious and thoughtful character when she lets that guard down. It really keeps the audience from going into full-on hate mode.

There are some other good performances, including Michael Biehn's turn as the antagonist Lt. Hiram Coffey and Todd Graff's conspiracy-minded Alan "Hippy" Carnes. Again, one thing that makes Cameron such a good director is his care in casting good actors for every role.

Visual/Special Effects:

Like Terminator 2 after it, The Abyss was an important film in special effects, particularly as it pertains to CGI. While starting to show its age a bit, the CGI in the film was revolutionary and paved the way for T2's T-1000 character. There's also a lot of practical effects in here as well, which a somewhat hit miss. I'm finding that, no matter how good it looked when the movie was released, many old-school green screen stuff just doesn't hold up well on modern HD TVs. 

However, I have to give all the credit to the production design team for making the sets look like they were actually underwater (that's because they actually were). In that regard, the movie looks very authentic, though, from what I've read, it made for a challenging shoot for both the actors and the crew. 

Score/Music:

This film's score was composed by industry stalwart Alan Silvestri, responsible for many iconic movie themes, including Back to the Future. Silvestri gives the music an ethereal quality to match up with the mysterious nature of the undersea world. Still, he also allows the score to swell up at the dramatically appropriate time. All in all, I'd say the score was quite well done. 

Action:

There's not much action in the film, but there are certainly some tense and exciting moments. A couple of fight scenes and a well-designed submarine chase are about all there is for action, but they're done well overall. Like all undersea movies, this film lives and dies with its tense moments. There's a good amount of those as well, including a 2-mile drop into a bottomless trench, avoiding falling debris from the surface and the desperate revival of a drowned companion. Desp[ite the slow pace, there's enough here to put the audience on the edge of their seat.

Final Verdict:

It turns out that this is one of those films that I enjoyed even more on this viewing. The story is tense and engaging; there are good performances and a solid musical score. Plus, the themes explored in the film still ring true today. If you're a James Cameron fan or just like solid sci-fi stories, this is definitely one to check out.