Gargantuan

Rating: 10/10 (13 March 2010)

Yes, for a long time, I did avoid this one. Eventually, I realized that I had to; Cameron is talented enough to make this work. I've now seen every film he's directed, save for Piranha Part II(which I understand was taken away from him), and the man always does a nice job. No, not every single picture of his is excellent... but they're all worth the time(and with hardly any exceptions(and this certainly isn't one), the investment of emotions from the audience, as well), they entertain and he's yet to make the exact same thing twice(Terminator 2 is different from the original in notable areas, such as the tone). I don't blindly love all of them; I maintain that the quality of The Abyss lies mainly in the gorgeous under-water photography. He never phones it in, and he always has something to say, somewhere to go with what he does. I was apprehensive of the idea that this would focus on a small group of people(in particular, the two leads), when this was indeed something that actually did happen, and many were killed. However, when you think about it, it needed to be like that; that's what makes the incident(in this) have the devastating impact that I think we can all admit it does. Yes, the FX are amazing, and the production values offer a new definition of the term "grandiose" when applied to that aspect; the reason we "feel" it, though, is that we care about the ones we "know" to be on the ship. The characters are well-written, thoroughly developed, credible and all have something to do. Rose is a rather strong woman, and without it reaching anachronistic levels, either. She is not "just a wife", and she is fleshed out, something that many attempts at female role models neglect to do. The cast is spot-on, everyone is well-chosen. Every single acting performance is flawless. Arguably, this is somewhat black and white in its presentation of them; with that said, they are all convincing and have genuine personality. This is one of the greatest disaster movies, and epic love dramas, in the world of cinema. It is Hollywood and mainstream at its absolute best. Will it please everyone? Perhaps not, and probably not those who refuse to take it on its own terms. It was always clear what approach this took. And also, about hype... ignore it. Yes, you read that right. In this case and in all others, pretend like you can't hear what everyone is making something out to be, and watch what you feel like, as unaffected by popular opinion as you can be. Nothing can survive a viewing by someone who has heard nothing other than positives about it, regardless of its quality. The pacing is marvelous; for a running time of three hours, this is not boring at all. It has fun and humorous moments. Is it sappy? I suppose that's up to the individual to judge; I wouldn't say so. There is a bit of violence and disturbing content, infrequent mild to moderate language, a little sexuality(hinted at) and brief nudity in this. The DVD comes with a theatrical trailer. I recommend this to everyone. 10/10