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Favorite James Cameron Movie?

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ManaByte

Gold Member
True Lies is on HBO right now and it made me think of what my favorite James Cameron movie was. Sure, you have the original Terminator that cursed the Governator with one line that will haunt him to his grave. Then you have Aliens that kicked all sorts of ass. We have Terminator 2 which is the perfect action flick, and Titanic which hit Cameron so hard we may never have the same director that gave us those previous flicks.

But my favorite Cameron movie is the extended version of The Abyss.
B00009V7OL.01.LZZZZZZZ.jpg


This movie is why I feel that Cameron, not Spielberg, should've directed Jurassic Park as The Abyss actually as the same tone of tension and wonder that the book of Jurassic Park had. The Abyss is a very underappreciated sci-fi movie where the final act is really fleshed out by the extended edition. It also broke new ground with CGI effects with the water tenticle.

Fox re-released the previously out of print two-disc Special Edition of The Abyss just about a year ago so it's easy to find now.
 

Triumph

Banned
Abyss easily, original Terminator and Aliens are in distant pursuit. It's a damn shame he doesn't make good films like that any longer.
 

Kon Tiki

Banned
He wrote them. I do not see anywhere in the first post that it had to be directed by him. Story is just as important.
 

Pattergen

Member
Society said:
He wrote them. I do not see anywhere in the first post that it had to be directed by him. Story is just as important.

The man has got a point.

Too bad his point isn't that Piranha II is probably one of the funniest/worst movies of all time.
 

demon

I don't mean to alarm you but you have dogs on your face
hudson1.jpg


"Hey maybe you haven't been keeping up with current events but we just got our ASSES KICKED pal!"
 
Aliens, out and out. Abyss extendo is a very very close second.

as for BAA.... stop your grinnin and drop your linen

as i have posted here before, ALOT of preproduction has been done and Lightstorm are waiting on the Tyrant to decide his next project. BAA will be next...

\o/

in 3-d....
 

Dead

well not really...yet
Semjaza Azazel said:
Any specific reason why? I've heard nothing about it other than really vague ideas that it's in planning.
I dunno really, but I cant really picture it as a film in the first place and i havent heard anything that says the movie is in production or anything (unless someone can show me a link saying otherwise)....
 
Cameron has discussed BAA in several interviews, about the state of the project, about where his focus is at at the moment.

plus, i have a friend in Lightstorm.

Cameron direct quotes >>>>>>>>>> deadstar's feeling.

im sorry my friend ;)
 

Dead

well not really...yet
Hey i couldnt be more happy if the project does go through, Gunnm was one of my first favorite manga as a kid (though it was hardly approriate material for a kid my age at the time lol) so knowing that Cameron might adapt it would definately please me :)
 
im really interested how he will do it, there is ALOT of material to go through so i would guess that he would be starting a franchise.

he fucked himself with Dark Angel, which was clearly influenced from BAA.

Learn thy lesson oh great Tyrant!
 

Dead

well not really...yet
In any case, cyberpunk movies need a comeback, so hopefully this will go through :rock
 

B'z-chan

Banned
I've got to say it.....

Aliesn and Abyss are on the same lvl for me. Both are excellent movies.

Followed up by True Lies, T2,T1.
 

drohne

hyperbolically metafictive
aliens. and the sanctimonious new ending ruins the abyss director's cut; i prefer the original. which cameron thankfully hasn't suppressed. lucas could learn a thing or two.
 

dorio

Banned
Aliens by far. T2 was so overrated. T3 was much more enjoyable and funny because it didn't take itself so seriously.
 
B00009V7OL.01.LZZZZZZZ.jpg



AMEN BROTHA!!!


I was just watching this today on HBO (unfortunately not the extended version, although it gets rotation on FX every few months) and I seriously did not want to do ANYTHING until the movie was over. I was telling someone today about how spectacular a movie it was, and that I think the reason why is because it really did a great job, despite the fantastical subject matter (underwater exploration, nukes, aliens etc) of drawing you into the film and making you feel like you were experiencing what the characters themselves were experiencing.

The characters were very well fleshed out (ok most of the Seals were a little cliche), and you had genuine empathy for them and their situation. And the movie had some GREAT scenes!!

- When the redneck (can't remember the character's name), half asleep, sees the water tentacle and reaches back to grab the potted plant to defend himself

- When Ed Harris is rescusitating ME Mastrantonio.."You bitch!! You've never backed down from anything in your life -NOW FIGHT!!" Extremely moving scene..superbly acted

- Approaching the underwater alien colony

- After Ed Harris' long swim, he's getting his ass kicked by Michael Beihn and suddenly you hear "HEY!!" before senor redneck bombs on him with the overhand right..one of those "stand-up and cheer" moments

- The intense ride when the rig is dragged along the sea floor


But I agree that after seeing the extended directors cut that the edited version feels far less complete. The narrative just seems more trite, as though the alien (NTI? heh) intervention was merely to save the crew of the oil rig, not a function of helping to deter the potential nuclear holocaust brought on by the new tensions in the cold war. It seemed more like a tale of individual survival than one of the mutual responsibility we all share for the survival of this planet.

Either version still makes for a fantastic film though, and while he's had some other remarkable movies, the more times I see The Abyss the more I'm convinced that it's his best and most cinematically (if not pop culturally) enduring movie. Only Aliens approaches the level of cohesive casting, quality narrative, thrilling action, and underlying (though not preachy) moral. I give The Abyss the edge just because Ed Harris is the freaking man..I kid I kid. Fantastic movie however, a prime example of the kind of 80' movies I miss. They had a good helping of everything you want in a movie, and managed to do it all right without insulting your intelligence or bombarding you with heaps of cliche.
 

AniHawk

Member
Cameron did True Lies!? I never knew that!

My fave is probably Aliens. Terminator 2 is a very close second. Saw The Abyss split into two segments. I'll need to watch it all the way through for the full effect.
 
Terminator 1 & 2 are two of my very favorite movies of all time, so I guess they get my vote.

I really need to see The Abyss again, I don't think there's a DVD with anamorphic video for it, right?
 

Hitman

Edmonton's milkshake attracts no boys.
I've never seen The Abyss but I'm thinking I should after seeing how many people in this thread liked it.

Anyway, I've seen all his other films and would rank them like this:
Terminator2>Aliens>True Lies>Terminator 1>Titanic

BTW, Titanic was a good movie you turds.
 
The only reason I can even remember Titanic... At the end of the movie when they're floating on the piece of wood/wreckage this girl sitting behind me said to her boyfriend, "I wonder if she is going to live?" I wanted to turn around and scream, "YOU STUPID BITCH, SHE IS TELLING THE STORY! OF COURSE SHE FUCKING LIVED." But her boyfriend was already hanging his head in shame, so I laid off and let it slide.

Oh, and I was laughing when the people were falling and bouncing off various parts of the boat. Besides that the movie sucked ass.
 

AniHawk

Member
Cerebral Palsy said:
The only reason I can even remember Titanic... At the end of the movie when they're floating on the piece of wood/wreckage this girl sitting behind me said to her boyfriend, "I wonder if she is going to live?"

LOFL!

I was a HUGE "fan" of the Titanic disaster (and other disasters like Mt. St. Helens, various other volcanoes, and tornadoes), and I was expecting something totally different from what was in the movie, Titanic. It should have been done like A Night to Remember, focusing on various people from various classes rather than just two from rich and poor, and how everyone reacted to the ship sinking. Thought the best parts of Titanic were when it wasn't focusing on Jack and Rose.
 

Willco

Hollywood Square
The Abyss is so boring.

I just watched Aliens last night, the first time I ever watched the first two films with my sister, and I think that's the best Cameron movie. It's like an action/sci-fi remake of Assault on Precinct 13.
 
V

Vennt

Unconfirmed Member
Damn it, I read the thread title as "Favorite John Carpenter Movie", don't ask why coz it beats me :p

I think I had too much to drink at work last night... yeah, thats it :p

Freeburn.
 
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