THE ABYSS
A film review by Steve Copold
Copyright 1989 Steve Copold
A review of THE ABYSS that reaches beyond technical descriptions is, at best, very difficult to depersonalize. This is a film that does not lend itself to neutral feelings. THE ABYSS literally assaults the viewer's senses within moments of the opening credits. The style of the film, now well established by Gayle Ann Hurd and James Cameron in the earlier TERMINATOR and ALIENS, is that of forcing the viewer into a participatory role. Only in a very few shots is one allowed to sit back as an observer and watch the ongoing scene. Rather, Cameron is relentless in making the camera maintain an active role in the narrative.
This motion picture attains new heights (or depths) of cinematic claustrophobia. The one film in memory that comes even close to THE ABYSS in this area, is DAS BOOT with its hydraulically operated steadicam plunging headlong through the narrow passage- way and water-tight doors of the German U-Boat. In THE ABYSS, this is far surpassed as the camera doesn't limit its high speed charges to straight lines, but runs around corners, ducking bulkheads, power cables, and walls of rushing water. Most of the people sitting near me in the theater were tightly gripping the armrests on their seats and moving visibly in reaction to the events on screen.
The cinematography is simply astonishing. Underwater photography can often be really distressing to watch. Often the view is muddled, the voice-overs and foley work are guesses, and the lack of continuity between the two is very disconcerting. There is none of this in THE ABYSS. Working in the controlled environment of an abandoned nuclear power facility, Cameron was able to maintain a near perfect balance of sight and sound. The specially made diving gear always allows a full view of the actor's face, and built-in microphones, provide a measure of realism that has never been seen before in an underwater film. It takes awhile to realize that most of the brilliantly conceived miniatures and matte paintings you're seeing are not miniatures and paintings at all, but full-size set constructions. The few models and mattes utilized in THE ABYSS are so clever in their construction and use, that it will require some serious nit-picking to spot most of them. The special effects are the best that Industrial Light & Magic has to offer.
The acting is top notch, with Ed Harris really coming into his own in the lead. An interesting choice was that of ALIENS and TERMINATOR veteran, Michael Biehn, as the "pressure psychotic" heavy. Aside from Harris, Biehn, and a few others, the cast is pretty much made up of little known character actors. They form a terrific ensemble, and are thoroughly convincing in their respective roles. Chris Elliot, of the David Letterman Show (The Guy Under the Seats) has a small role as a technician on the surface support vessel.
As disorienting as the relentless pace of the film is, the viewer never has problem staying with the film's tightly woven narrative. This is due in part to Cameron's direction, but equal credit must go to the intelligent screenplay and "world-class" editing. Any entertainment that can achieve this frenetic pace and still hold you for well over two hours is remarkable indeed.
One of the texts we use in a History & Significance of the Motion Picture course states that, "To succeed in all respects, a film must tell a story, set a mood, and entertain the audience." On this score THE ABYSS is right on target. I cannot recall another film which more quickly, or effectively , suspends reality and draws you into the world on screen. As a film, THE ABYSS gets four stars....as a roller coaster it gets five!
Steve Copold SCE316@PANAM.BITNET
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