james cameron has a great talent for entertainment in his movies. but personally, i think this is one of his finest . simply because, while it does have action and eye-candy, they are rather understated, and are no better than equal to the amazingly crafted characters. every character is very realistic with plenty of flaws, dry, workplace humor and an underlying thread of goodness. they even let you know that the bad guy wasn't really evil, he just cracked because of the underwater pressure.