The Abyss - A worthy investment of your time

After the success of sci-fi blockbusters 'The Terminator' and 'Aliens,' writer/director brought us 'The Abyss' in 1989, which was marketed both on its special effects and - to a lesser degree - 'aliens underwater.' However, most people took this as meaning that there would be hordes of xenomorph-like creatures picking off hapless divers.  Yes, there are aliens contained within the movie, but, no, they're not the kind that want to burst out of your chest.  And, sadly, a lot of people felt let down by the film and it didn't quite live up to its two predecessors.

In the near future a mobile underwater drilling rig is hired by the military to rescue a crashed American nuclear submarine.  A small team of Navy Seals joins the rig's crew and they dive down to see what happened to the sub.  This was the - very - basic plot of the film and, if you told someone there were aliens in the movie, you'd kind of expect this to be the point where they make their entrance.  Again, not the case - 'The Abyss' is so much more.

I should point out that I own - and are therefore always referring to - the 'special edition' of the film.  It's longer and contains vastly more information regarding the plot of what's (really) happening.  The fact that so much was cut out in the original cinema cut was another reason it didn't really gel well with audiences.  It's a long film and if you choose to sit down and really watch it (i.e. no fiddling with your mobile phone!) you'll get some of the most breathtaking underwater scenes ever filmed (certainly at the time).  The special effects were cutting edge, utilising miniatures for the rigs and combining them with some of the best ever (again, for the time) computer-generated technology bring audiences of the day believable sights that they'd never seen before.

And, on top of a fantastic looking motion picture, you get a decent 'human interest' story to hold it all together.  Ed Harris and Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio play the leads - a pair of estranged rig workers who get caught up in all this.  You could almost call this a bit of a 'love story' as it's about the two of them reestablishing a connection with each other in the fact of not only the weather raging above them, but also the unknown 'threat' of what lurks at the bottom of the ocean and an increasingly psychotic Navy Seal, perfectly played by (James Cameron favourite) Michiel Biehn.

If you're looking for some sort of sci-fi 'blast-a-thon' full of action and fight scenes, then you're probably better sticking with 'Aliens.' However, if you're in the mood for something a little slower-paced and deeper, but at the same time brilliantly acted and spectacular to look at, then definitely try to get into the special edition of 'The Abyss.'

8/10 The Force is definitely strong with this one