One of the most anticipated of the three James Cameron films released in March, 2024 is James Cameron’s sci-fi The Abyss. The film has never made it to Blu-ray disc, making this 4K Blu-ray a substantial upgrade from previous DVD editions and digital presentations. (Although, of course, the movie was released back in December 2023 in Digital 4K). What can we say about The Abyss on 4K Blu-ray? It’s a must-own for anyone who is a fan of the film and has been waiting for this upgrade.
Is this remaster perfect? Not exactly, but the good aspects drastically outweigh any negativity about this film that you have heard about noise (grain) reduction and automatic image processing.
Video
What you get with The Abyss on 4K Blu-ray is true to the recent limited theatrical presentation of the remaster, which looked absolutely gorgeous on the big screen. Is there some loss of grain? Yes. At some points there are issues with overprocessing of the image, resulting in a bit of what you might call waxiness to skin surfaces. We’d rather have grain than any type of airbrushed look that derives from the original film elements. We love celluloid and all its imperfections, although the beauty of digital transfers is that scratches and imperfections can be removed, resulting in what we may perceive as a perfect film transfer. But, maybe Cameron sees things differently.
Sharpness is well-defined in the 4k presentation of The Abyss. We can only compare the 4k Blu-ray to standard-def DVD presentations of the movie because that’s all that existed (unless you want to talk laserdisc or VHS). Details emerge everywhere with the added resolution. Looking at this shot of Bud, you can almost count the number of stitches in his Yankees baseball hat. And, look at the dirt on its white letters. Can’t say we’ve ever noticed that before! There are times when it seems processing has sharpened some elements and dulled others, but if compared to True Lies, The Abyss is a far better representation of a restored film from the 80s and 90s.
What about HDR? Colors are so much better than previous disc and digital presentations with a more vibrant range and accurate color rendering. The movie (most of it taking place underwater) is less cyan and more realistic. Skin color is more lifelike and warm. And, there is more detail in the shadow and highlight areas given the expansion of color depth with Dolby Vision/HDR10. Bitrates averaged just over 52 Mbps, with higher peaks and lower rates depending on the scene.
Audio
As far as audio, say what you want about the video but the soundtrack is reason enough to buy The Abyss on 4K Blu-ray. The Dolby Atmos remix is nothing short of impressive, with low frequencies and surround sound that doesn’t rely on gimmicks, but rather improves upon and delivers a new take on the audio elements that are award-worthy (in fact, the film was nominated for an Oscar for Best sound).
The sounds of the submersibles travel through the audio space like never before. The explosion of the drilling rig is enhanced with a solid mix of low and high frequencies. And, the dialogue is clear and forthright above the sound effects and music score by Alan Silvestri. The sounds of the submersibles travel through the audio space like never before. The explosion of the drilling rig is enhanced with a solid mix of low and high frequencies.
Bonus Features
What’s better than an entire disc devoted to bonus features? The Abyss 3-disc Ultimate Collector’s Edition from 20th Century Studios Disc 3 includes Deep Dive: A Conversation with James Cameron, The Legacy of The Abyss, Under Pressure: Making The Abyss, Archives – Stills and Video, including the shooting script, original treatment, storyboards, and more.
Summary
The Abyss on 4k Blu-ray gets a “Highly Recommended” rating on this channel. The fact the movie has never even made it on Blu-ray is reason enough to make this 3-disc edition part of your library. The Abyss was stranded in standard-definition exile for so long it was almost as if a high-definition presentation would never emerge. But it did, and the color accuracy, sharpness (albeit with some processing and grain loss), and expanded bit depth render beautifully on 4k HDR screens from the Ultra HD disc. The audio experience has been given a second life with a masterful Dolby Atmos / TrueHD 7.1 mix that is exceptional and true to the nature of the film.
Scores
Movie
5/5
Video
4.5/5
Audio
5/5
Bonus Material
5/5
