A review by lefthandedmatt
The Abyss, by James Francis Cameron, Orson Scott Card
4.0
Less of a novelisation, more of a novel. Card adds a ton of depth to the story and characters, as well as revealing the workings of the alien creatures. He mentions in an afterword that it was a true collaboration between the author and the filmmaker. He was allowed on the set and had access to the dailies as the film was being shot. The backstory chapters he wrote were given to the actors so their performances could be informed by the material. The results speak for themselves.
It's easy for emotion to be lost when translating a film into a book, but here I found it just as powerful. There are a couple of scenes in the film which bring me close to tears and they happened here too, but I found the writing affected me differently.
Side note, this book is based on the longer (and far superior) special edition of the film, with the extra scenes and story elements.
Now when the hell is The Abyss going to finally be released on blu-ray or 4K disc? I love my non-anamorphic DVD set but it looks like blurry garbage on modern TV screens.
It's easy for emotion to be lost when translating a film into a book, but here I found it just as powerful. There are a couple of scenes in the film which bring me close to tears and they happened here too, but I found the writing affected me differently.
Side note, this book is based on the longer (and far superior) special edition of the film, with the extra scenes and story elements.
Now when the hell is The Abyss going to finally be released on blu-ray or 4K disc? I love my non-anamorphic DVD set but it looks like blurry garbage on modern TV screens.