James Cameron Reveals A Long-Awaited Upgrade Is Finally Happening To One Of His Best Movies
James Cameron is at his best when he is making movies about the water and deep sea, and 1989’s The Abyss is simultaneously one of his best for that genre as well as for its special effects and touching story. The Digital Bits reports that the director has confirmed that audiences will soon get to see this spectacular movie in 4K Ultra HD. The upgraded release of the movie will coincide with the home release of Avatar: The Way of Water, putting it sometime in the first half of 2023.
Never does James Cameron’s love of being underwater show more than in The Abyss, which is a deep-sea adventure about the search for a missing submarine with a classified torpedo onboard. As the United States and Russia try to outmaneuver one another to get to the submarine, the Caribbean drilling platform Deep Core is caught in the middle as it has been commandeered to be the American base for the search. However, there is more than merely a missing submarine in the depths of the waters, as an alien race has been watching humanity from within the deep trenches of the sea.
The movie stars Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio and Ed Harris as an estranged couple; she designed the platform and he is its foreman. It also stars Michael Biehn of The Terminator and Aliens as the commanding officer of the military unit based on the platform for the mission. There is an extended version of the movie that provides some context into these complex relationships and the aliens’ intentions for humanity.
The movie was awarded the 1990 Oscar for Best Visual Effects, which was earned for the depiction of creatures made from tendrils of living water. The effects also highlight James Cameron’s love of underwater filming, as much of the action in The Abyss takes place either in minisubs or on the flooded surface when events go awry. The upcoming Avatar: The Way of Water seems to promise the same vision, and The Abyss is a beautiful film that hints at what the director is capable of, especially after more than 30 years of special effects technology has evolved since it was made.
James Cameron has been to “the abyss” himself, as he is a deep-sea exploration enthusiast who has traveled into the Mariana Trench, one of only 22 missions to do so and the fourth to explore the bottom. While the director has always been fascinated with shipwrecks, the making of The Abyss ignited a passion to explore even deeper into the sea, and this, combined with his knowledge of filmmaking, has led him to pioneer new techniques in underwater filming. This would include the use of remote vehicles and a role in the development of the 3D Fusion Camera System, marking a place in film history for James Cameron as more than just a director.
James Cameron confirmed that the 4K Ultra HD release of The Abyss would coincide with the release of both Avatar movies in the same format, which will not take place until after Avatar: The Way of Water finishes its theatrical run. The new Avatar movie comes out in theaters this Friday, so audiences will have to wait a few more months to see The Abyss in 4k Ultra HD. However, it will be well worth the wait to see the Oscar-winning special effects in such vivid clarity.
