The Abyss (1989)

Ed Harris: Bud Brigman

Photos 

Quotes 

• Virgil 'Bud' Brigman : When it comes to the safety of these people, there's me and then there's God, understand?

• Virgil 'Bud' Brigman : Hippy, you think everything is a conspiracy.

  Alan "Hippy" Carnes : Everything is.

• Virgil 'Bud' Brigman : [regarding Lindsey Brigman]  God, I hate that bitch.

  Alan "Hippy" Carnes : Probably shouldn't have married her then, huh?

• Virgil 'Bud' Brigman : Goddammit, you bitch! You never backed away from anything in your life! Now fight!

  [slaps Lindsey] 

  Virgil 'Bud' Brigman : Fight!

  [slaps Lindsey again] 

  Virgil 'Bud' Brigman : Fight! Right now! Do it! Fight goddammit! Fight! Fight! Fiiiiight!

• Ensign Monk : Bud, give me a reading from your liquid oxygen gauge.

  Virgil 'Bud' Brigman : [typing]  5 minuts worth

  Lindsey Brigman : [whispers, shocked]  What?

  Alan "Hippy" Carnes : [panicked]  It took him *thirty* minutes just to get down there!

  Lindsey Brigman : Bud! Do you hear me? You drop your weights and start back now, Bud. The gauge could be wrong! Do you hear me? Just drop your weights and start back now! Your gauge could be wrong!

  [crying] 

  Lindsey Brigman : Your gauge could be wrong, you drop your weights and start back now!

  Virgil 'Bud' Brigman : [typing]  Going to stay awhile

  Lindsey Brigman : No, you won't stay there, do you hear me, you drop your weights! You can breathe *shallow*, do you hear me? Bud, please listen to me, *please*, goddammit, you dragged me back from the bottomless pit, you can't leave me here *alone* now, please...

  [sobs] 

  Lindsey Brigman : Oh god, Virgil, *please*... please...

  Virgil 'Bud' Brigman : [typing]  Dont cry baby. Knew this was one way ticket, but you know I had to come. Love you wife.

• Virgil 'Bud' Brigman : Keep your pantyhose on.

• [to the aliens floating behind the water-curtain] 

  Virgil : Howdy. Uh... How are you guys doin'?

• Virgil : [Is sleeping and snoring loudly] 

  Lindsey Brigman : Turn on your side, Virgil.

  Virgil : [Does so, still asleep, and stops snoring] 

• [the Deep Core crew are locked in the kitchen; Coffey is about to nuke the aliens] 

  Lindsey Brigman : Schoenick, your Lieutenant's about to make a real bad career move!

  Alan "Hippy" Carnes : The guy's crazier than a shit-house rat!

  Virgil : Schoenick!

  Lindsey Brigman : They're trying to make contact! Schoenick, *please*, listen to us!

  Ensign Monk : Can't you see he's lost it?

  Schoenick : Shut up.

  Ensign Monk : The shock wave will kill us.

  Schoenick : Quiet!

  Ensign Monk : [relentlessly]  It'll crush this rig like a beer can.

  Schoenick : Shut up man, what're you talkin' about?

  Ensign Monk : We've gotta stop him!

  Schoenick : Shut up!

  Ensign Monk : This is not our mission! We can't detonate without orders!

• [Bud is being put into the fluid-breathing suit] 

  Virgil : So, I can hear you, but I can't talk, right?

  Ensign Monk : The fluid prevents the larynx from making sound. Excuse me. It'll feel a little strange.

  Virgil : Yeah, no shit.

• [One Night is trying to disconnect the umbilical] 

  Virgil : How's it going, One Night?

  Lisa "One Night" Standing : All hell must be breakin' loose up there. This cable's pissin' me off. I can't get a grip on it!

  Virgil : Well, keep tryin' baby, just keep tryin'.

  Bendix : [back on the Benthic]  Shit! We've got a problem! We're losing number two thruster! Bearing's going... It's not holding! We're swinging out of position here!

  Benthic Explorer Captain : God damn it!

  [the cable slams into One Night's cab] 

  Lisa "One Night" Standing : Shit!

  Alan "Hippy" Carnes : The rig is movin'!

  Virgil : Yeah, I can see that!

  [to the radio] 

  Virgil : Topside! Topside, pay out some slack, we're gettin' dragged!

  Benthic Explorer Captain : [to the crane operator over radio]  Down on number one winch!

  Virgil : We're gettin' dragged!

  Benthic Explorer Captain : [shouts]  Down on one!

  [he gestures frantically through the window at the crane operator; the crane operator signals that he can't hear; the crane breaks off the ship and falls into the water] 

  Benthic Explorer Captain : Shit! Get him on the UQC!

  [into the radio] 

  Benthic Explorer Captain : Bud! We lost the crane!

  Virgil : Say again, what?

  Benthic Explorer Captain : The crane! We've lost the crane! It's on its way down to you!

  Virgil : All right, all right everybody brace for impact! Close all the exterior hatches, let's go go go go!

  Lt. Coffey : [to SEALs]  You two help secure the rig! Let's go!

  Virgil : One Night! One Night, can you hear me? Get the hell outta there, the crane's comin' down!

  [part of the cable hits One Night's cab, but she manages to get away] 

  Lisa "One Night" Standing : I'm okay, I'm clear, Bud!

  [the crew braces for impact; Hippy puts Beany in a plastic bag] 

• Virgil : Linds, I want you to stay away from that guy. I mean it.

  Alan "Hippy" Carnes : The guy is gone. Did you see his hands?

  Lindsey Brigman : What? He got the shakes?

  Virgil : Look, he's operating on his own. He's cut off from his chain of command. He's showing signs of pressure-induced psychosis, and he's got a nuclear weapon. So as a personal favor to me, will you try to put your tongue in neutral for a while?

  Alan "Hippy" Carnes : [nervous]  I got to tell you, I give this whole thing a sphincter-factor of about nine point five.

• Virgil : You know, I can't believe you were dumb enough to come down here. Now you're stuck here for the storm. That was dumb, hot rod. Real dumb.

  Lindsey Brigman : I didn't come down here to fight with you.

  Virgil : Yeah? Well, why did you come down then?

  Lindsey Brigman : You need me. Nobody knows the systems on this rig better than I do. Once you're disconnected from the Explorer you are on your own for however long this storm lasts. I mean, what if something was to happen after the surface deport clears off? What would you have done?

  Virgil : Yeah, right. Us poor, dumb old boys would've had to think for ourselves. Coulda been a disaster!

• [the cab is flooding] 

  Virgil : All right, all right, here.

  [takes off his dive suit collar] 

  Virgil : You put this on.

  Lindsey Brigman : No, no! What are you doing?

  Virgil : Don't argue with me, goddammit, just put it on!

  Lindsey Brigman : Look, this is not an option, so just forget about it, all right?

  Virgil : Lindsey, shut up! Shut up, and put this thing on!

  Lindsey Brigman : If you'll be logical for one second...

  Virgil : FUCK LOGIC!

  Lindsey Brigman : Please, listen! Just listen to me for one second. Now you've got the suit on, and you're a much better swimmer than I am, right?

  Virgil : [reluctantly]  Yeah, maybe...

  Lindsey Brigman : Right? Yes! So I've got a plan.

  Virgil : What's the plan?

  Lindsey Brigman : I drown, and you tow me back to the rig.

  Virgil : No. No!

  Lindsey Brigman : Yes! This water...

  Virgil : NO!

  Lindsey Brigman : ...is only a couple degrees above freezing! I g-go into deep hypothermia, my blood'll go like ice water, right? My body systems will slow down, they won't stop...

  Virgil : Linds...

  Lindsey Brigman : You tow me back and I can, I can be revived after, maybe ten or fifteen minutes. Ten-fifteen minutes!

  Virgil : [pushing the suit collar at her]  Linds, you put this on, you put it on!

  Lindsey Brigman : [pushing the collar back at him]  No, it's the only way! Just put this on! Put this on, you know I'm right. Please, it's the only way, you've got all the s-stuff on the rig to do this! Put this on, Bud, *please*...

  Virgil : [putting the collar back on]  This is insane.

  Lindsey Brigman : Oh my God, I know. But it's the only way.

• Alan "Hippy" Carnes : You know, we got Russian subs creepin' around; anythin' goes wrong they can say whatever they want happened! Give their folks medals!

  Virgil 'Bud' Brigman : Relax, will ya? You're makin' the women nervous.

  Lindsey Brigman : Cute, Virgil.

• [about the rig] 

  Lindsey Brigman : I got over four years invested in this project.

  Virgil : Yeah, you only had three years invested in me.

  Lindsey Brigman : Well you have to have priorities.

• Ensign Monk : Bud, give me a reading from your liquid oxygen gauge.

  Virgil : [typing]  5 minuts worth

  Lindsey Brigman : [shocked]  What?

  Alan "Hippy" Carnes : It took him *thirty* minutes just to get down there!

  Lindsey Brigman : Bud! Do you hear me? You drop your weights and start back now, Bud. The gauge could be wrong. Do you hear me? Just drop your weights and start back now. The gauge could be wrong! The gauge could be wrong, you drop your weights and start back now!

  Virgil : [typing]  Going to stay awhile

  Lindsey Brigman : No, you won't stay there, do you hear me, you drop your weights! You can breathe *shallow*, do you hear me? Bud, please listen to me, *please*, goddammit, you dragged me back from the bottomless pit, you can't leave me here *alone* now, please...

  [sobs] 

  Lindsey Brigman : Oh God, Virgil, please... please...

  Virgil : [typing]  Don't cry baby. Knew this was one way ticket, but you know I had to come. Love you wife.

• Virgil : [over the phone]  Brigman here. Yeah, Kirkhill, what's going on? Yeah, I'm calm. I'm a calm person. Is there some reason I shouldn't be calm?

  [long pause, then...] 

  Virgil : [furious]  WHAT?

• Lindsey Brigman : [as the Pseudopod approaches]  Bud! Bud! Get up!

  [Bud sits up, stares at the pseudopod] 

  Virgil : [throwing a pillow at Cat]  Hey, Cat. Cat!

  Catfish De Vries : [half-awake]  Hey, lemme alone.

  [sees the pseudopod, jerks awake and grabs a flowerpot as if to throw it] 

• Virgil : [looking at the picture Lindsey took of the alien craft]  That's a great shot, Linds.

  Catfish De Vries : You drop your dive light?

  Lindsey Brigman : No, come on you guys, come on. Now that's the small one, that's the small one here. You can kinda see how it's zigging around.

  Alan "Hippy" Carnes : Yeah, whatever it is.

  Lindsey Brigman : I'm *telling* you what it is, you're just not *hearing* me.

  Catfish De Vries : Now Lindsey, you...

  Lindsey Brigman : There is something down there! Something not us.

  Catfish De Vries : You could be more specific.

  Virgil : [humorously]  Somethin' that "zigs".

  Lindsey Brigman : Not *us*. Not *human*, get it? Something non-human, but intelligent... A non-terrestrial intelligence.

  Alan "Hippy" Carnes : A non-terrestrial intelligence. NTIs. Oh man, that's better than UFOs. Oh, but that works too, huh? "Underwater Flying Objects".

• Lew Finler : Bud, did you know your hand is blue?

  Virgil 'Bud' Brigman : Finler, why don't you just shut up and put your gear on?

• [last lines] 

  Lindsey Brigman : Hi, Brigman.

  Virgil : Hi, Mrs. Brigman.

• Virgil : [about Lindsey]  She didn't leave me. She just left me behind.

• Lindsey Brigman : [the pseudopod mimics Lindsey]  It's trying to communicate.

  [the pseudopod changes to Bud's face] 

  Lisa "One Night" Standing : It's Bud!

  Lindsey Brigman : [laughing delightedly]  It's wonderful!

  Virgil : [grinning]  It's me!

• Virgil : [to the Alien]  How do you know they're really gonna do it? Where do you get off passing judgment on us? You can't be sure. How do you know?

  [the aliens show him gruesome footage of war and conflict; Bud bows his head] 

• Virgil : [after the aliens call off the tidal wave that would have wiped out humanity]  You could've done it. Why didn't you?

  Aliens : [via the water screen, in Bud's typing]  Knew this was one way ticket, but you know I had to come. Love you wife.

• Virgil 'Bud' Brigman : When you're hanging on by your fingernails, you can't go waving your arms around.

• Lt. Coffey : Let's get something straight. You people are under my authority.

  Catfish De Vries : Look, partner, we don't work for you. We don't take orders from you. And we don't much like you.

  Virgil : Hey, Cat. Cat.

  Catfish De Vries : Yeah?

  Virgil : Why don't you take the first watch on sonar? Okay?

• Virgil 'Bud' Brigman : [Lindsey is driving the small sub and slams into a rock outcropping]  Jesus Christ, Lady!

  Lindsey Brigman : Bud, if you think you can do any better you're welcome up here!