I agree, way ahead of its time and if released today would probably be a massive hit. Also might be in the minority here but I think this is Cameron's best film.

@howardburns said:

I agree, way ahead of its time and if released today would probably be a massive hit. Also might be in the minority here but I think this is Cameron's best film.

It under performed at the box office, because people expected something like Aliens but in some ways a thoughtful movie.

Yea I noticed that but was surprised. 90m worldwide gross, wasn't even in the top 10 for the year. Production budget was 70m.

@nkanemo said:

Yea I noticed that but was surprised. 90m worldwide gross, wasn't even in the top 10 for the year. Production budget was 70m.

The summer of 1989 was one hell of a year when it came to summer blockbusters. In fact a game changer.

Batman, Indiana Jones 3, Lethal Weapon 2.

Casualties at the box office included The Abyss, Licence to Kill.

Star Trek 5 and Ghostbusters 2 also underperformed.

@DanDare said:

@howardburns said:

I agree, way ahead of its time and if released today would probably be a massive hit. Also might be in the minority here but I think this is Cameron's best film.

It under performed at the box office, because people expected something like Aliens but in some ways a thoughtful movie.

Yeah I think it'd have fared much better possibly further into the 90s after T2 made the impact it did.

I wish it had done better, but I like the fact that it's not a well known movie because when I recommend it to someone or watch it with them they always think "Christ, why have I never seen this before!"

Just goes to show that not every flop is a bad movie, they just got marketed badly or went in to theatres at a time when there was a lot of competition.

I liked it and saw it in the theaters upon its release--I was already a fan of Cameron's style after The Terminator and Aliens--but I feel like the ending lessened the film's impact. (Yes, even the "Director's Cut" with the massive tsunami.) After the harrowing scene when Ed Harris' s character swim/drags Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio's character back to the main platform, drowning her in the process, the "aliens just want us to tell us to take better care of the Earth" seemed trite and obvious. You can almost see the nascent threads of Cameron's environmentalism, in full bloom for Avatar, in The Abyss.

I'd still put Terminator 2 at the pinnacle of his talent, both as a screenplay and visually, but The Abyss is great. It's one thing to get great performances out of great actors like Harris and Mastrantonio, but another thing altogether when you can get a good one out of Schwarzenegger. Only he, Verhoeven, and maybe Reitman (Twins and Kindergarten Cop) succeeded.

@howardburns said:

I agree, way ahead of its time and if released today would probably be a massive hit. Also might be in the minority here but I think this is Cameron's best film.

Probably my favorite from Cameron also. Just ahead of Aliens.

You know, they're making a sequel to The Abyss . . .

They're calling it Son of Abyss.

Effects wise it has aged well, but suggestions it rivals some of Cameron's best work seen wide of the mark to me. The submersible chase scene, the Navy Seal "villain" Coffey and the science defying immortality of the two leads are all weak points. I didn't think the backstory between the two leads was sufficiently fleshed out either despite the extended run time, but I'm not sure if that was a bad thing.

This is what happens when you focus on a little thing called "STORY"! Abyss is timeless because of it.

I love this film but I do agree that in both versions the ending is a bit flat. You can afford to have flaws in your film, but if you flub the ending people are way less likely to recommend the film to others.