Joined by his
personal friend Bill Paxton and a team of the world's foremost
historical and marine experts, director James Cameron journeys
back to the site of his greatest inspiration - the legendary wreck
of the Titanic. During the voyage, viewers will explore
inside the entire ship, deck by deck, room by room, encountering
mysteries that have remained hidden for almost a century.
Revolutionary underwater robots (ROV's) were designed and built
solely for the purpose of allowing the explorers to peer deep into
the remains of the once-great ship and bring those surreal and
haunting images back to the surface world.
CRITIQUE
Ghosts of the
Abyss is somewhat of a draw, but one that's more or less
positive. In one respect, the film offers the viewer great images
of the wreck. Not images, but in fact footage of the inside of the
ship, such as D deck, the firemen's mess, the storage room where
the cars are parked, the dining room, the grand staircase (notably
featured in Cameron's Titanic), and many other places where
no one has gone before. That doesn't sound like Star Trek,
does it?! The film uses the most advanced technology to get up
close (and personal) with the wreckage that once was the beautiful
Titanic.
On the other hand,
Ghosts of the Abyss doesn't explore that much more new
territory. Titanic, the highest grossing film of all time,
did an excellent job covering numerous aspects of the wreckage,
and the ship's doomed voyage and eventual sinking. I didn't feel
like I learned a great deal of new information from this film,
plus the numerous wow's and aah's of Bill Paxton got annoying
rather quickly, not to mention feeling staged. There are two or
three more bits that feel staged, which takes away a little from
the natural way of a documentary. Two conversations with Paxton
and two guys (one at a time) pick up in midway through, and after
about thirty seconds the discussion feels staged rather than
genuine.
The single most
rewarding factory about this film is the underwater footage. The
video quality of the specially designed cameras is great but
visibility is made possible by the pre-planning, specifically by
having a separate vessel atop the Titanic lighting the subject. To
make the experience visually stimulating, Ghosts of the Abyss
uses photos and computer effects (CGI) to compare footage of
ruined rooms or places as they looked originally. This technique
also aids in giving the viewer a clearer and detailed idea of the
ship's construction and the proceedings of the mission. The film
was shot in the middle of 2001 for several months, and also
address the September 11 attacks for a brief moment. One crew
member reflects on the attack and the current deep sea
exploration, feeling the Titanic became sort of trivial for a
period of time.
The film also takes
a break from Titanic and briefly shows life on the Keldysh, the
science and exploration vessel that served as a home for
everybody. This life, for the allotted duration of the mission, is
documented more in the sense of snippets and clips of on-board
activity. Crew members take turns narrating portions of the film,
but it is mostly Paxton who reads from the script. Late in the
film there is a rescue attempt by Cameron and the others to save
one of the ROV bots that lost its battery and swims dead inside
one of Titanic's many rooms. The sequence is rather entertaining
to watch because of what the outcome will be, or maybe won't be.
It's like watching a good car chase on the news, except that it's
really not and without the insipid newscaster commentary and
meaninglessness.
I didn't see
Ghosts of the Abyss in its IMAX 3-D presentation, so I'm
unsure of its effectiveness on the large screen format. The DVD
offers two versions of the film, the 61-minute theatrical edition
or the 92-minute extended edition exclusively put together for
home video. I watched the extended version and gathered that
despite the added footage, most of which explores more parts of
the Titanic, as well as one whole chapter is devoted to life on
the Keldysh, the 61-minute version is good enough and more tightly
paced.
In the end, I have
to say I enjoyed most of Ghosts of the Abyss, but also felt
it could've been more interesting. In fact, I remember hearing
from someone in the film that the documentary wasn't "scripted."
Well, it should've been.
THE VIDEO
Ghosts of the Abyss is
presented in 1.78:1 anamorphic widescreen. This home video
edition drops the IMAX 3-D format (now significantly modified)
as noted in a title card before the film. Colors range between
bright and muted, which adds to the film's look. Colors are also
well-saturated and clear. Grain appears in several scenes,
especially in the darker areas of the ship, but this is not a
flaw in the presentation. Image quality is pretty good, except
for minor edge enhancement in a few scenes. Compression
artifacts do not appear, and black levels are deep. Video
quality is quite crisp and the amount of clarity in the
underwater shots is exceptional. A really nice THX-certified
presentation. Optional subtitles include English and French
(90-minute presentation only).
THE AUDIO
Ghosts of the Abyss is
presented in English 5.1 Dolby Surround Sound. Dialogue is clear
and easy to understand at all times. This is not a very
aggressive soundtrack, but both the film's score and sound
effects (or natural effects, like waves) are nicely reinforced
by the surrounds. The presentation gets the job done just fine,
and a little more. A French dub track is available for the
60-minute presentation.
THE EXTRAS
The first disc
only features some sneak peeks for Buena Vista titles,
while the second disc holds the bonus material. There's not much
there to warrant the additional disc, however. Reflections
from the Deep (35:53) includes unseen footage from the
filmmakers' risky dives to the ocean floor as well as interviews
with director James Cameron, star Bill Paxton and the Keldysh
crew. The other extra is The
MIR Experience, a roughly 10-minute multi-angle feature
where viewers can choose to watch scenes of the dive to the
ocean floor from different camera angles. That's it for the
extras.
The
61-minute feature is organized into fourteen chapters, while the
extended 92-minute feature has eighteen chapters.
The discs come in an Amaray keepcase with a paper insert that
lists scene selections.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Ghosts of the Abyss
is not superfluous per se, in fact, it explores the Titanic a little
further by utilizing advanced technology to provide the viewer with
in-depth looks at the inside of the ship. The underwater footage is
terrific, however, not a great deal of new information is learned from
this film. Enthusiasts are likely to find the proceedings entertaining
and exciting, but others might just as well re-watch Cameron's
Titanic.
Disney's video/audio
presentation is pretty nice, yet the limited, decent bonus material is
not enough to warrant a second disc. I'm recommending Ghosts of the
Abyss as a rental.
