Abyss, which to watch, theatrical or Special edition feature? (1 Viewer)

[jeff lam]

I just picked up this DVD at costco for $10 and will watch it with my wife. She hasn't seen it before and it's been a few years since I have seen it. I saw that it had two versions on the disc. Which should I watch? Is there anything in the special edition feature that will make the movie experience better for a first time viewer?

 

[Brian Kidd]

The Director's Cut has a much more satisfying ending as well as a great deal of added depth to the characters. It's the better of the two cuts. That's not to say that the original wasn't good, it just seemed to be missing something, IMHO.

 

[Jay Taylor]

Definitely the Director's Cut.

The movie actually makes sense with the large amount of extra footage in the Director's Cut. It's a much more enjoyable movie with the extra footage.

I can't imagine ever watching the theatrical release again.

Jay Taylor

 

[Tom Morgan]

I think the Director's cut is the one to watch. There are alot of things explained in the DC that are not in the TC. The wave is not even in the TC if I recall correctly.

 

[Jeremy Stockwell]

jeff,

I almost always choose to see the theatrical version, but for this disc, I do prefer the SE version with added scenes. The added scenes make the point of the movie more clear (some will say "too clear"). Cool DVD, Cool movie, either way. Enjoy!

JKS

 

[Lou Sytsma]

Another vote for the SE. It is a much better cut and improves on the original in so many ways.

 

[wally]

Yup, Directors Cut is the way to go, even though it is a bit too long IMO.

wally

 

[TheoGB]

Hmm. I seem to remember the director's cut depressed me by it's cloying schmaltzy sentimentality, somewhat diluted in the theatrical version...

I thought the ending was still pretty 'empty'...

 

[Lyle_JP]

Definately go for the Director's Cut. The theatrical cut is so gutted that the ending of the film is positively out of left field.

One suggestion, however, is to use the 2.0 Surround track (which is on by default) for the director's cut, not the 5.1 track. The 5.1 track, being based on the 70mm mix from the theatrical release, was sloppily tacked on to the Director's Cut on this video releae, actually bringing in line readings from the theatrical cut that had no place in the Director's Cut and causing some very jarring music cuts between the score from the original and the score from the Special Edition in the final scenes.

The 2.0 track, on the other hand, comes straight from the 35mm film prints of the Special Edition and is a mix specifically created for this version of the film.

-Lyle J.P.

 

[DanaA]

For some reason, I wasn't that satisfied with the original Abyss. A couple of weeks ago, I rented the director's cut and found it to be much better.

 

[Chris Sypal]

Here's another one for the Director's Cut. However I do have one minor problem. I felt like the beach scene that was added didn't work and was way out of place. Most of the movie dakes place underwater in these dark environments, and then all of a sudden you have this scene at a sunny beach. It really stood out pretty badly.

 

[Rob Gillespie]

I prefer the theatrical cut. It's tighter and more focused. I really dislike the preachy Day The Earth Stood Still ending. That said, the ending for both versions is pretty poor.

 

[Greg Br]

Directors Cut makes the film so much clearer, and for us dense people that helps.

 

[Neil Joseph]

I agree with the director's cut as well. The whole experience is better. The way they did the whole disk and branching is great.

 

[Jeffrey Forner]

Not to get picky, but technically the longer cut is a Special Edition cut and not a Director's Cut. Cameron had final cut of the film when it first appeared in theaters, therefore that was technically a director's cut. Hence the longer version is just a Special Edition of his cut of the movie.
Oh, and I've always prefered the Special Edition cut of the film.

 

[Sam Davatchi]

Here we go again! Both cuts are Director’s Cut. If you like serious movies with thought provoking questions that don’t explain everything like 2001, David Lynch’s movies and many other masterpieces, watch the theatrical version which is the only version of Abyss to me.
If you don't mind some questionable moments of acting, prefer movies like Vanilla Sky that take the audience for dummies and explain everything or basically if you want to see an average summer movie, watch the Special Edition, so special that I don’t want to see it again!

 

[Dick]

I, too prefer the long version. In either version, I have a problem with the aliens (close-ups) as they look frightfully Spielberg-y and phony-looking eye blinks. And the surface of the spaceship when it surfaces is truly awful- looks like it's been covered with garish spray paint.

 

[HenrikTull]

I have a quote here from James Cameron about the Director's Cut:

"This restored cut includes 28 minutes additional material and ...is now the film we set out to make five years ago... and fulfills the original goals of the script".

Anyway, Director's Cut for me. Much more climatic ending.

 

[Tim Ke]

go with the director's cut. that's the one i saw first, then i watched the theatrical cut and wondered how the hell it would've made any sense...

 

[oscar_merkx]

The longer version is far superior.
The hour long documentary is one of the best I have seen on any movie. Very meticulous and very detailed indeed