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The Abyss Review

· superuser

Review Ratings

Art/Style: 
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final_score: 8.2
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final_score: 8.2
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final_score: 8.2
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final_score: 8.2
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final_score: 8.2
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final_score: 8.2
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final_score: 8.2
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final_score: 8.2
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final_score: 8.2
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final_score: 8.2
Production Value: 
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final_score: 8.2
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final_score: 8.2
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final_score: 8.2
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final_score: 8.2
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final_score: 8.2
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final_score: 8.2
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final_score: 8.2
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final_score: 8.2
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final_score: 8.2
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final_score: 8.2
Content: 
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final_score: 8.2
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final_score: 8.2
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final_score: 8.2
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final_score: 8.2
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final_score: 8.2
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final_score: 8.2
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final_score: 8.2
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final_score: 8.2
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final_score: 8.2
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final_score: 8.2
Personal Enjoyment: 
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final_score: 8.2
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final_score: 8.2
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final_score: 8.2
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final_score: 8.2
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final_score: 8.2
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final_score: 8.2
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final_score: 8.2
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final_score: 8.2
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final_score: 8.2
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final_score: 8.2
Overall Popularity: 
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final_score: 8.2
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final_score: 8.2
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final_score: 8.2
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final_score: 8.2
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final_score: 8.2
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final_score: 8.2
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final_score: 8.2
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final_score: 8.2
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final_score: 8.2
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final_score: 8.2

Final Review Score

8.2 / 10

Great

In The Abyss, a deep-sea drilling crew becomes involved in a dangerous military recovery operation beneath the ocean. James Cameron uses the isolated underwater setting to explore fear, sacrifice, and the possibility of contact with an unknown intelligence.

Performances and Direction

Ed Harris gives the film a sturdy emotional center, and Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio brings intensity to the strained relationship at its heart. Michael Biehn supplies escalating tension as the mission unravels. Cameron’s underwater photography, practical staging, and pioneering visual effects create a vivid, claustrophobic world.

The Final Verdict

Technically remarkable and often suspenseful, The Abyss is an ambitious science-fiction adventure with a humane streak. Its tonal shifts can be uneven, but its immersive setting and visual imagination make it a distinctive Cameron film.

Movie Information

  • Title: The Abyss
  • Year: 1989
  • Director: James Cameron
  • Cast: Ed Harris, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, Michael Biehn
  • Genre: Science-fiction adventure, thriller