The Abyss Movie
Storyline
TAGLINES
There's everything you've ever known about adventure, and then there's The Abyss.
A place on earth more awesome than anywhere in space.
Deep below the blue surface, there lies a place no one has ever dreamed of.....
An American nuclear submarine is attacked (during the cold war) and crashes underwater. The navy asks the workers of a nearby underwater oil rig who are joined by a number of navy SEALS to locate and investigate the cause of the crash. As the crew embark on their mission, they encounter a number of difficulties and discover that they may not be alone. There is something else down there.
| Ed Harris | Virgil 'Bud' Brigman |
| Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio | Lindsey Brigman |
| Michael Biehn | Lt. Coffey |
| Leo Burmester | Catfish De Vries |
| Todd Graff | Alan 'Hippy' Carnes |
| John Bedford Lloyd | Jammer Willis |
| J.C. Quinn | Arliss 'Sonny' Dawson |
| Kimberly Scott | Lisa 'One Night' Standing |
| Captain Kidd Brewer Jr. | Lew Finler |
| George Robert Klek | Wilhite |
| Christopher Murphy | Schoenick, SEAL Team Member |
| Adam Nelson | Ensign Monk, SEAL Team Member |
| Dick Warlock | Dwight Perry |
| Jimmie Ray Weeks | Leland McBride |
| J. Kenneth Campbell | DeMarco |
| James Cameron |
7.40 out of 10 (29976 votes)
Visitor Reviews
Mark of James Cameron all over it....
posted on 30 Aug 2009The Abyss , a production 20 years old still incredible in acting , production , camera work , FX and other special effects , CGI , script , editing ( well OK Special Editon is far better ) is a wonderful piece of art. It has James Cameron stamped all over it... Perfection..Getting best performance from everything , pushing limits hard...Ed Harris was solid as rock as main character , Bud Brigmann , captain of DeepCore underwater oil rig. He is a well established leader of men in underwater condition with a troubled personal life and collapsing marriage. Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio is also showing quite a performance as somewhat annoying Lindsey Brigman , Bud's soon to be ex wife who is also rediscovering herself and her feelings for her husband....But real ace in the hole of whole movie was Michael Biehn as Lt. Hiram Coffey , Navy SEAL Commdr. who arrives to DeepCore rig and began to descend into madness right after wards due to high pressure environment....Biehn definitely deserved an award for his characterization here. Rest of the supporting cast was also impressive with Leo Burmaster , Todd Graf , Kimberly Scott and Adam Nelson...If you like decent science fiction with "deep" themes don't miss this one...
Quite slow, but has many good intense moments.
posted on 21 Aug 2009The AbyssAn American submarine carrying nuclear weapons crashes under mysterious events, as a storm is coming along an underwater oil rig is called up for help. As the investigation of the submarine starts the wires to the controlling ship gets cut during the storm, the oil rig and the crew is stuck with a few navy seals who are afraid of the Russians, as the atmosphere gets desperate the crew encounters an unknown life form.Personally I feel James Cameron haven't made many wrong steps in his career, his movies always manage to amaze and entertain me, that includes Titanic. So i was looking forward to watching this movie, and despite a few flaws I found it very good. There were some things which i disliked, but overall I thought it was pretty entertaining and intense.Of the negative sides the movie is sometimes maybe moving a bit too slow, not much is happening, but actually that is sort of okay, because our interest is kept because we are eager to find out what is beneath, what is the secret. This makes the movie very unpredictable, it's sort of a mystery, and I thought i had guessed the end many times. I'll be honest, I love unpredictable movies as they keep my interest better, and I found this movie very original and unique.Even though the movie moves at a very slow pace it still creates many very intense scenes that had my heart pumping a few extra times per second, naturally it's the whole thing with the navy seals, and there is never any doubt either where the sympathy lies, even though you may wonder if they are actually doing the right thing, but as the sympathy is far from there, their leader is portrayed as the villain and he sure is a psychopath, and a total moron before he goes insane, down there.As always James Cameron has done a fantastic job with the directing, and especially the dramatic scenes of this movie is very well handled and extremely intense, especially the scenes where the oil rig is getting dragged towards the bottom were fantastic, another amazing job from Mr. Cameron here.On the acting I think many of the lead ones did a good job, they were all above average and made a very believable foundation for the movie. Ed Harris had a few flaws, but I also think he had many good scenes, especially the scenes with Mary Elizabeth were superb and their chemistry very good. But for me the star of the movie is the villain, Michael Biehn, his portrait of a nervous psychopath were fantastic, I could almost feel his wrath and damn did I hate him, absolutely terrific!To sum it all up a bit. I Found this movie very good, and it kept my interest all the way through, but even though it was a fantastic original idea and the details were thought through. But actually I have to admit that i disliked the ending, i loved that i didn't see it coming, but the final end was just too over hyped and classic for me, I was constantly hoping for a shocking end, but the end was just too melodramatic and reminded me too much of something I've seen a million times before, the classic "Happy End".8/10
Camerons under water masterpiece
posted on 21 Aug 2009Camerons under water masterpiece is the first movie I can think of that showed us how movies can be brought to life by C.G.I., now common place in most movies but ground breaking at the time.The film itself is one of the best sci-fi films ever made, with only the odd flaw ( some corny lines hear and there ). The movie also carries a good message about man's treatment of the planet.I highly recommend that people should watch the superior special edition which expands on the aliens presence.On my system 9/10 ( very good )
The Abyss, one of the greatest movie ever made in the history of time...
posted on 25 Jul 2009Excellent, Suspense, Action.. it has it all... Shot real for real, these scenes put on film make the Abyss one of the greats...The Abyss... the title says all you need to know about the movie. This film, done by well known and great James Cameron, should be known for two great things... Technical pioneering of things to come and the man who did it.... People seem to over look the Abyss and sometimes even call it the most successful failure... that is one way to look at it. Ask yourself a question... without the Abyss, where would movies be today... and where would James Cameron... Pioneering new technologies in not only computer graphics and design for the future, but also for Engineering designs of the so called "props" used in the movie which are real equipment in todays world of diving technologies.The Abyss takes home the gold for the HARDEST MOVIE EVER created, attempted, and filmed in history. With famous actors such as Ed Harris, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, Michael Biehn, and others, this movie creates a world of dark, tremendous pressure, with a love story that defies love within the realms of dryland.Anyone who hasn't seen this movie will be surprised at many things, and not even notice others... the fact this movie was shot over ten years ago, and still today holds its ground on action, suspense, tech., graphics, and even the actors dialog sounds like it could've been written today. The directors cut is amazing and puts some missing pieces together, and if you can, get a hold of the one hour making the Abyss called Under Pressure, and you will soon have great respect for this movie, its actors and director James Cameron.
The best underwater scenes in a film ever.........
posted on 25 Jul 2009The underwater scenes are amazing. Make sure you see the special edition (28 minutes extra on the UK version), it expands the story and makes more sense.This film is excellent, although a warning the ending is a bit disappointing. But don't be put off by this.A lesser known gem of a film, mention James Cameron and you get Titanic, Aliens, The Terminator or even True Lies, people forget The Abyss. Buy it or rent it today........
The first of the great underwater sci-fi's
posted on 07 Jul 2009This film is proof that an underwater sci-fi doesn't need a man eating monster for it to work. In his field James Cameron is one of the best, he is the master in making effects fit the story, not making a story fit the effects. Both the theatrical version and the special edition work as great films and could almost be viewed as two separate films, but if you haven't seen either I suggest you see the original first and then see the special edition, that way you will enjoy both, if you don't when you finally see the original you will feel like the film is missing something. Anyway enough out of me, enjoy.
Excellent Film - but here's one more goof that isn't listed
posted on 22 Jun 2009Very interesting reading all the goofs listed for this excellent film - I'm watching it now and trying to spot them! :) One goof that I saw when I first watched this film and I don't believe is listed here is when Bud and Coffey are fighting at the pool. Bud whacks Coffey with a huge metal pipe - it may even supposed to be a solid bolt - but when it hits Coffey's back it bends about 45 degrees! In the next shot it's straight again! :) :) :) If only the editor had cut another 1/10th of a second off the bit where it's bent over Coffey's back, we wouldn't have seen it.Overall though, it's a brilliant film and very touching in places - worth seeing again and again.
Bigger and Better
posted on 01 Jun 2009Seeing the "Special Edition" on the DVD i can say this movie is different from the cinema version. Although can't really remember when i seen the original back in the 80's, this one promising something different from the cinema version.Some of the effects are better than now. Imagine the technology they have more than a decade ago. Overall, the movie is excellent especially the surround sound that i enjoy much about DVD.
Science Fiction At Its Best!!!
posted on 26 May 2009I saw "The Abyss" for the first time when I was 14 years old and I remember being pulled into its story, its emotion, and its spectacle like never before. At that age, if it doesn't have somebody die every 3 minutes or an explosion or funny joke every scene, I lose interest fast. With "The Abyss", I abondoned all criteria for viewing a film and let myself go because the film let me do that.I loved the story and the new twist on alien depiction. I liked the characters, the conflict, and the sub-plots. The special effects help tell the story rather than being the story. The movie was action-packed and thrilling beyond belief. The backstory and inner-conflict between Bud and Lindsey was compelling and very emotional. The large, global conflict was original and thought-provoking. The action scenes were fast-paced and extremely entertaining and often moving. I remember crying at the end when I was 14 and I usually didn't get emotional when watching films at that age. I have seen it many times since and still often have tears come to my eyes. "The Abyss" is one of the most under-rated films ever made and everyone who loves movies needs to experience the emotion, the power, the action, the spectacle, and the drama of James Cameron's best work. (Also look for a Director's Cut version with 30 extra minutes of footage).
Most boring blockbuster of 1989.
posted on 14 May 2009* 1/2 out of ****As some other viewers have noted before, 1989 was one of the better years for summer blockbuster. Batman was pretty good, Lethal Weapon 2 was even better than its predecessor, and Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade achieved escapist perfection. The Abyss, though, is another matter and a movie I've always considered among the most overrated I've seen.On the one hand, we've got this great premise. An oil drilling team headed by Ed Harris has been enlisted to participate in a search and rescue operation involving a downed nuclear submarine. They're "teamed up" with Navy Seals (one of whom, in particular, is supremely paranoid), but when disaster strikes from above, they've got to work together to survive in the underwater habitat, but the Seals seem unwilling to correspond. To make matters "interesting," strange lights deep in the nearby abyss indicate the possibility of alien life. Question is, are they friendly or hostile?Better question, do I even care? I've seen both the theatrical and director's edition of the film and the latter is certainly not an improvement over the former. James Cameron's always been a self-indulgent filmmaker, but he often makes good use of the running time. But rather than actually paying focus to the intriguing situation the characters find themselves in, Cameron chooses to play the premise as an underwater survival flick.This means he places action above characters and plot. I can't even begin to mention how frustrating it is that for all the wondrous possibilities of the premise, we instead have to waste time with repeated standoffs between the oil drillers and the Navy Seals. I might have found such moments tense if I even gave a rat's ass about the characters, but aside from Harris ad Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, everyone in the cast is a clichéd loser, Michael Biehn playing the predictable "unpredictable psycho" and some other guy who's obviously there for comic relief but only makes good on maybe two chuckles.As a love story, Harris and Mastratonio have a strong rapport that keeps parts of the movie afloat, but once again, too much of the movie's attention is shifted to those standoffs. It's only in the last forty minutes the pace finally picks up when the characters I cared about most have to face some pretty challenging decisions.Harris' odyssey into the alien world is visually spectacular, but I kept thinking, shouldn't the movie have done this earlier? Shouldn't it have explored this alien civilization with more detail and attention? Instead, we get a half-assed "war is bad" message and a deus ex machina climax. Most people I know agree it's rather cheesy that the hero is saved by the aliens, but I find the extra conclusion in the director's edition just as weak, when the movie turns into a possible "end of the world" flick. Wasn't this whole film about oil drillers and Navy Seals trying to survive in an underwater habitat just about fifteen minutes before? When it finally gets to the material I'm interested in, Cameron takes it in a direction that's out-of-balance with much of what came before it.If you're fans of Ed Harris and Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, it might be worth checking out, but it disappointed much on virtually every other level.
Director's Cut gets a 10, regular cut gets a 4
posted on 11 May 2009The difference in my rating between the 2 different versions of this film ought to clue you in on how important the material that was cut is to the plot, character development and theme of the movie. I have never understood director James Cameron's decision to remove as much of the end as he did yet retain the opening (unnecessary & expository)sub scene- all the details of which are later recapped in dialog anyway.Despite the terrible "Titanic" script, Cameron proves here he actually is capable of writing a solid romance. This film *is* a romance that happens to be set against the backdrop of aliens at the bottom of the ocean. Again, the director's cut is needed to get the full impact of Bud & Lindsey's relationship, as it includes an important conversation between Bud & One Night which is built on later during the descent as well as a much more detailed argument between Bud & Lindsey prior to him disposing of his wedding ring.If your judgement of this film is based on the version you saw in the theater you owe it to yourself to watch it again, all 3 hours. The additional 25 minutes will answer so many questions you won't believe it's the same movie. I had the good fortune to see the director's cut on the big screen and it was amazing!The "Making of the Abyss" documentary is a fascinating companion piece, perhaps second only to "Hearts of Darkness- A Filmmaker's Apocalypse" as far as showing the trials of getting films made in the most difficult of circumstances.
Get the director's cut!
posted on 02 May 2009The Director's Cut is actually one of James Cameron's best efforts. Storyline and acting are solid, FX are spectaular! Underwater drama between alien creatures, a deep sea drilling crew, and a crazed miliary guy - certainly worth a rental.Make sure you get The Director's Cut which adds lots of plausibility and depth the story.
The best of movies, the worst of movies
posted on 29 Apr 2009The first hour of this movie is one of the most boring movies ever made. It is a basically an instruction manual on the dangers of underwater construction, complete with laconic military males barking orders, some obligatory fires, and lot of water, sort of like endless Titanic retakes. I could not for the life of me figure out where I was or what was happening, and I did not care. The only character I cared lived or died was a pet rat. "Full of sound and fury signifying nothing..." The special effects water creature is legendary, and that sequence is utterly magical. Those few seconds alone makes the movie worthwhile.The psychotic Lt. Coffee and his Dr. Strangelove need to set off a nuke, really turn up the emotional volume. At that point, you begin to know the characters and care about them.Then the movie takes a 180 degree turn and becomes about emotion, love, the survival of our species, in long heart-wrenchingly emotional scenes that were so intense I had to take a break, reminiscent of Leonard di Caprio's death in Titanic (another James Cameron film). The tail end of the movie reminded me a bit of Stanley Kubrick's 2010 with its quasi-religious awe, though I burst out laughing at the Atlantean city that seemed to be modeled on Euro bathroom fixtures.This movie handles alien intelligence exceptionally well. They are properly mysterious and awe-inspiring, not just silly drooling monsters or cutesy muppets.The extended version was almost 3 hours long, a grueling experience.
Scuba divers encounter E.T.
posted on 17 Apr 2009Underwater salvage crew takes on a government job and runs afoul of a hurricane, damaged equipment, and a rogue Navy Seal. Then they meet spacemen. I saw the cut version so to me this was just an average sci-fi adventure with lots of tension and your standard high voltage dialogue. Adequate, but no big deal.
My number 130 movie ( contains story + spoilers )
posted on 30 Mar 2009Abyss is my number 130 movie.
The story : The crew of a diving station search for a submarine that is full of nuclear warheads. They get in contact with a kinda alien lifeform there. I do not like maybe a fifth of the movie´s runtime, but there are some parts that I actually love. The first one is when Bud Brigman ( Ed Harris ) dives to the submarine. And the second one is the most famous part of this film, when they see the „water monster". That was great. Those two were not the only moment that I liked/loved, but those two are the only ones I remember at the moment.
I think „Abyss" was a good sci-fi-mystery-movie with great special effects, as you have them in every James Cameron film. This one is definitely not his best, there are 4 better ones ( the 4 big T´s : Titanic, True Lies, Terminator 1 & 2 ). Maybe you wonder why I did not mention Aliens, but I thought that that one was worse than this. And it is not the best Ed Harris movie, The Truman Show and The Rock were better. All in all, I rated Abyss 8/10, and recommend it to sci-fi fans.CU; Rinho
Sci-fi without Sci (Spoiler Warning!!!)
posted on 03 Mar 2009Well, I found that movie just a Sci-fi without Sci (and logic). I agree sometimes we have to believe what is shown, but this time... People swimming in light suits (or even WITHOUT) that deep? A guy going down as far as 5km and able to move and breath (not even to mention that his helmet is not broken immediately while.... his robot IS broken by the pressure as well as the sub of the evil Navy Seal). No logic in all that at all. And why are those Aliens for (except from saving lives of the characters)? Stanislaw Lem said once: "Science fiction IS science fiction if one cannot remove the science fiction elements without damage to the plot". In this case one could easily do so as the aliens are mere ornaments. Besides, movie is quite dull and far too long as for thriller without much surprises.Oh, quite thoughtless decision of drowning of the main female character: why not take a deep breath and let Ed Harris drag her to the platform? Seems like quite better chance to survive (even when drowned on the way) than drowning in the damaged sub...As a plus: quite nice special effects.
An excellent film!!
posted on 28 Feb 2009This is by far one of the best films I have ever seen. Ed Harris does a fantastic job. Michael Biehn does a good job playing a psychotic marine. Each character you get to know very well and you miss them if they die.There are several times that I actually feel the emotions that the characters are feeling*spoilers beyond this point* *also profane language* When Lindsey (Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio) dies and Virgil (Ed Harris) is trying desperately to revive her, he says a great line "Goddammit, you bitch! You never backed away from anything in your life! Now fight!". When he finally revives her, it is an intense emotional moment. I always get goosebumpsThe other scene that I love is at the end, when Virgil comes walking out of the alien "craft" and Lindsey and the rest of the Deep Core crew sees him, god that scene is powerful. I am filled with such joyOverall though, it has a great story and some awesome scenes. The effects are quite good.Any Sci-Fi fan would love this movie. Also, any fans of Michael Crichton's Sphere will love this film (and if you haven't read that book, if you liked this movie, the same applies)
Not bad.(Not good but not bad either).
posted on 13 Feb 2009A pretty average film. Great is patches, poor to mediocre in others. Compliments all round on the visuals & some stunning cinematography. The main problem I had was the same problem I have with all submarine films. Nobody ever gets on with each other. It's as if a job on a submarine is the natural route for any miserable, argumentative sod & everyone with a gripe against the world. Sadly all the other cliches that come with 'Saving the World' films are here including the Crown turd of them all - 'The Pointless romance with an unnecessary & over emphasized previous history'. What made this one worse was that I never knew exactly what hat the female lead was wearing. She started as some super bitch who struck fear into all men & ended up like Dale Winton, as far opposite from that as you could get. The version I watched wasn't far off three hours, & though I kept interested through 75% of it there were times I lost the will to live & consequently couldn't keep up with exactly what the Biehn character was up to, partly through lack of interest. Given that I don't enjoy Sci-Fi this was still one of the better films I've seen in the genre.A high 5/10.
Great movie with an interesting ending....
posted on 04 Feb 2009First thoughts were : "Yuk, another deep-sea based movie about a submarine accident and a resue-team too stupid to scratch their own backs getting themselves in trouble" BOY, WAS I WRONG.... Not only does this movie has suspense from the beginning on, it just keeps on getting weirder (and I like that a lot in a film) and weirder until finally the end of this film strikes you (and especially the DVD special - edition, click on DVD-details to know more)and leaves you wanting more.... A great example to all the film-makers who think a movie has to be entertaining only from the beginning on and has to have a dull ending attached to it....8/10
Beautiful underwater epic...
posted on 30 Aug 2009Okay, I'll start off by saying I'm a sucker for underwater epics and so this movie was a must see for me. Though slow going at times, especially the Special Edition version which has an extended length of 171 minutes, there are some lovely underwater shots which I thoroughly enjoyed. Personally, I would have preferred it if, instead of going with the alien presence, the writers had inferred that the creatures were natural to earth. There are vast amounts of ocean still unexplored and, truth to tell, we have no idea what all lives beneath the surface. This said, I feel confident in recommending this movie to all who enjoy the water. I for one, thoroughly enjoyed it and will be watching it again.