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The Abyss
DVD Review by Yanman |
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A non-terrestrial intelligence? NTIs. Oh man, that's better than UFOs. Oh, but that works too, huh? "Underwater Flying Objects." If you have read Yanman.com's DVD most wanted list at our top 10 DVD list, you know that we have all been waiting for The Abyss for a long time. Well, the two disc Special Edition is here, sounds great, has a complete disc full of extras, and looks great (with the caveat that it is NOT 16x9 enhanced as is incorrectly stated on the package). While we all want every movie to be released on DVD as soon as possible, the Abyss Special Edition just goes to prove-- all good things to those who wait. A U.S. nuclear submarine spots a "bogey" and attempts to track and follow it, but it is out maneuvered, looses power, and crashes at an incredible depth. The tragedy of the loss is one thing, but this is a nuclear sub with live nuclear weapons on board. If either the engines reactors leak or if the weapons are detonated or fall into enemies hands, the world could be in very big trouble. A rescue/salvage mission is necessary even if there are no survivors. Nevertheless, there are multiple problems here, an impending storm, the nuclear problem, and a depth that makes getting to the sunken sub difficult at best. Since the military doesn't have the time needed to get a rig down to that depth, the only choice is to rely on an underwater oil drilling team that is already in place on the ocean floor. The crew led by Virgil "Bud" Brigman (Ed Harris) and Lindsey Brigman (Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio) already not happy to be there, find themselves in over their heads (by about 18,000 feet), as they come up against Navy seals, the weather, the Russians, aliens, and a nuclear weapon. Can this motley crew of civilian misfits save the world? There has been a lot of controversy on the Web, regarding the fact that this DVD was originally slated to be release Anamorphic enhanced (the DVD case even erroneously lists the transfer as "Enhanced for widescreen TVs"). While the added resolution of Anamorphic would have been much appreciated, the video here still looks good with only a small amount of artifacting (even in the darkest parts of the film) and incredibly little dirt. The seamless branching (see below) also takes place undetectably. Sound is Dolby Digital 5.1 and completely fills the room with sound, and deep bass. This THX mastered soundtrack won't disappoint. Why two discs you ask? Well, with the number of extras here, the choices were either DVD-18 (DSDL) or two discs. With the growing number of multi disc players (the Toshiba 5109 used for the review holds two, but there are also 5 disc and more changers on the market), it is easier just to change discs rather than get up and flip it. This Disc has so many extras that is going straight to the top of our list for "most extras" at Yanman's Top 10 DVDs. Depending on what you count as extras, your total may vary, but there are well over twenty different things here. There are two versions of the film (using the seamless branching feature of DVD to add in the needed missing scenes.), a text only commentary, a 60-minute documentary, a 10-minute featurette, storyboards, photos, and much more (more extras than can even be listed in our side bar). Add to this, one of the coolest menus we have ever seen (with the most hidden "Easter-eggs"), making The Abyss Special Edition an absolute must have for any DVD fan. Make sure that, when you sit down to watch this DVD, you have set aside plenty of time (our first sitting was just over 5 hours), because there is more material here than meets the eye, and all of it is worth watching. Just remember, "… when you look long into an abyss, the abyss also looks into you."-- Friedrich Nietzsche.
This DVD was reviewed on Yanman.com's Reference Theater #1, using a Toshiba SD-5109 DVD player, Toshiba TW56X81, and M&K 750 THX Speakers. Panamax protects all systems at Yanman.com. |
The Abyss The Abyss Special Edition just goes to prove-- all good things to those who wait. Staring: Ed Harris Directed By: James Cameron Running time: 171
minutes Bonus Materials
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