"Titanic" (1997)

A treasure hunter (Bill Paxton), looking for a diamond in the wreck of the Titanic, discovers in a safe the nude picture of a young woman. After it is shown on television, Rose Dawson (Gloria Stuart) aged 101, comes forward. She, Rose (Kate Winslet), was that young girl on the ship. She was travelling with her mother (Frances Fisher) and her wealthy fiancé (Billy Zane) but whom she desperately didn’t want to marry. About to throw herself over the rails once aboard the Titanic, she was stopped by Jack (Leonardo DiCaprio), a young man who had won his steerage ticket in a poker game.. They fell in love and spent every moment together until the iceberg broke the ship apart and even then were determined to stay together.

I’ve been deliberately avoiding doing a review of this film because…well, above all else I don’t know where I could possibly begin! Over the years I have developed a very love/hate relationship with this film. Frankly, and quite honestly, I absolutely love and hate it in equal measures.

I can still remember the first time I watched it. I was twelve. It was a  huge deal for me to finally be allowed to watch it at the time. In fact I think it could have even been my first 12s movie. Having heard so much about it, I wanted to see what the fuss was about. Thus, one afternoon, I sat down with my dad to view the film, that in my eyes, was nearly as famous as the ship itself. By the time it came to the end, I remember I was battling tears because I knew what was coming (everybody did) and I felt stupid crying since I never really cried-cried for any other film before. (Huh that isn’t so much the case anymore…) However, Dad sort of turned to me to see how I was taking it I guess, and asked if I was ok sort of jokingly and that was the moment I opened my mouth and just cried. A lot. I think we had to pause the film. I was even asked if I wanted to see the rest of it but you can’t start watching a film and then not finish it‼

And there you have it. It took me years not to burst into tears anymore. I remember one particular Christmas (they always play it on TV around Christmas) I wandered into the living room and it happened to be on at that particular scene. I hadn’t even been watching the film and I instantly somehow burst into tears to the point it took Mum several minutes to compose me in the kitchen, only for me to then walk back in to the scene where Rose arrives at the Statue of Liberty, and, realising Jack never would, I was fighting tears again. It seemed that with each viewing I’d notice something different that sparked my ears: from the Statue of Liberty, to the fact Rose actually says “bye” as she lets him go. As it stands presently, 8 years later, I no longer make such an ass of myself by crying so abundantly. But it took years for this.

However, I’ve never forgiven James Cameron for killing Jack. There was no need. NO NEED. And the entire thing is completely his fault. He wrote it, he directed it – ok it obviously wasn’t his fault the ship sank in the first place but THAT IS COMPLETELY BESIDE THE POINT. I mean, why in the world would you create a character like Jack Dawson just to kill him??? You get so attached to characters like this and then…And it's not as if they had a shortage of time on their hands! It would have been something to pass the time and distract them from worrying as they waited! 'If at first you don't succeed, try and try again' - I bet you anything they could have fitted Jack on that wooden panel with Rose if they were so inclined to maneuver themselves more than they did! But no. Urgh! Interestingly though, this wooden panel is supposed to be based on a genuine artifact that survived the sinking and is now on display at the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic in Halifax, Nova Scotia. 

Ok, But THIS is why I’ve avoided writing about this film because I knew it would turn into a rant. *clears throat* I’m so sorry. But it’s just…I cannot forgive James Cameron for this. Call me dramatic, tell me I’m over reacting, that it’s just a film…your words will inevitably be futile I’m afraid. I just... I don't even know why I get this angry about Jack in particular because there are other characters that I did get particularly attached to throughout a film who had all of (or at least most of) the qualities Jack has with an equally as unjustifiable demise. But...I don't know what to tell you.

(There are now some raised eyebrows and pitying looks I'm sure, but bare with me. I promise this will eventually become an insightful and informative review.)

People always sort of brush me off when I do express the fact I cried so much, just because of the movie that it is - Titanic. It seems that to cry is almost cliché at this stage, and the film itself has just been brushed off as just this big mushy romance story that made/makes people cry. And in fact, I think people almost look down on you a bit if you say you love it or that it’s a brilliant movie. That’s why I tend not to admit I love it (well, that and I hate giving the satisfaction to James Cameron of liking his film after what he did) But people seem to overlook just how well made the film actually is.

There have been many films made around the famous liner over the years such as “A Night To Remember”. As far as I know, this version is the most accurate in terms of set design and portraying what the interior of Titanic looked like. Not only this, but the film actually shows real footage of the wreck itself. And of course, you can’t deny the special effects are just superb! Among its eleven Academy Awards was Best Visual Effects. It was the most expensive film ever made up to its time at approximately $200,000. Computers were used to create

• The digital passengers seen on the ship's deck
• The ship's launch
• The Titanic's engine room
• The helicopter fly-bys
• The transition shot of Jack and Rose at the front of the ship transformed to an underwater shot.
• Kate Winslet's iris that was digitally inserted and morphed into one of Gloria Stuart's
• Both CG and miniature models were used to portray the Titanic as it tilted, split in two, and sank in the finale into enhanced CG water.

The detail that went into this film is just unreal!!

In terms of the story, well, this is less accurate! Obviously the characters of Jack and Rose and Cal (Rose’s fiancé) are fictitious. But many of the real people that were aboard the Titanic feature: Captain Smith, Bruce Ismay, Mr Andrews, Mr Lightoller, and Molly Brown (played by Kathy Bates). And I actually think the actors playing them look really like the actual people!! They did a really good job with this!! However, in order to make the story more interesting their roles on the night in question may not be entirely a blow-by-blow account! For one thing, Bruce Ismay is portrayed as “the baddy” almost. It was his idea that the ship’s speed be increased and he’s seen as being quite manipulative when it comes to this bright idea. I’ve always thought this very unfair really. Particularly after reading Derrick Mahon’s poem “After The Titanic” during my Leaving Cert in school.

                                

And just as we're on the subject of Titanic passengers, after James Cameron finished the script, he discovered that there was a real “J. Dawson” who died aboard the Titanic.- Just thought I'd throw that nugget of information in there. Of course, one can't get too excited because the "J" stands for "Joseph". But you have to admit that's a pretty cool coincidence nonetheless. 

It truly gauls me to admit this, but I do think as a story it’s written extremely well. I love the recurrence in themes. Older Rose remarks how she likes to have her pictures with her when she travels in the beginning; later we see young Rose unpacking all her paintings by Monet, Degas, Piccasso; Jack himself is an artist who draws; and all this theme-building is leading us up to the infamous “portrait scene”; while also at the very end of the film we find out what Rose has done/achieved since that tragic night through the pictures she brought with her at the beginning of the film. I love this continuous recurrence. Although, I would like to point out that Jack remarks on Monet’s painting “Waterlilies” at one point in the film. This particular series of paintings was not actually painted until 1914. Titanic sank in 1912. – Therefore this painting couldn’t possibly be on the ship‼‼‼! It wouldn’t actually matter only for it being so glaringly obvious, you can’t ignore it. I feel very proud of myself watching the scene where Rose is unpacking her paintings now after doing my Leaving Cert because I can now recognise and name a number of the paintings having studied them!

    

My absolute favourite scene (not just in this film, but in general of all movies) is the Third Class Party scene. I love it so much. Everyone is just so elatedly happy. James Cameron said he wanted to create a scene that would put all thoughts of anything possibly going wrong out of the audience’s heads – and he certainly achieves this. You can’t not smile watching it. The music, the freedom and pure unadulterated fun and enjoyment of everyone there – I almost want to be there to join in whenever I watch it! And of course the moment Jack says “You’re still my best girl, Cora” is just the sweetest thing ever! I love the contrast made too where it cuts briefly to Cal with his associates in the smoking room: the silence, the deadness of their conversation – compared to the fun going on downstairs! Why wouldn’t Rose choose Jack?! It’s just the happiest scene ever in all movies!

Also while we're on the subject of happiest scenes, the one "Take Her To Sea Mr Murdoch" (some might say it's sad that I know the names of most of the scenes at this point...) I think this is also just one of the happiest scenes because everybody is now on board, they've left port, they're heading out to sea, out on this new and exciting adventure to start their new lives on this incredible ship. We are shown the huge enormous mechanics in the engine room turning, the men shoveling in the coal to this insanely perfect soundtrack. Then we've got Jack and Fabrizio at the head of the ship looking out over the railings at these dolphins jumping up over the water. I love Jack in this scene, I'm not going to lie. This scene really cements the kind of carefree grateful happy-go-lucky character that he is. His line "I'm the king of the world!" was apparently ad-libbed by Leonardo DiCaprio, which is kind of ironic considering it's probably one of the most quoted lines out of the film!! I think there is something really magical about this scene. It's like building up the excitement so that you're so completely caught up in the thrill and adventure, the mere idea that something could possibly go wrong so far away from your minds. It gauls me to say this but I do love the way James Cameron builds this up throughout the first half of the film.

Another scene I love is the “I’m Flying” scene. I love it. The music, the simplicity – how could you not? I also like it because it was foreshadowed in the previous scene I just talked about when Jack gleefully shouts “I’m the king of the world” earlier in the film. So it’s not random, it has an origin, a purpose. This scene also introduces the song “Come Josephine In My Flying Machine” which features later during the “death scenes” shall we call them. It also features in a deleted scene after the Third Class Party scene, that I loved, and would have loved to have made it into the finished film, but I also understand why it didn’t.

Interestingly, in the “portrait scene”, it’s actually James Cameron’s hand that’s seen drawing the picture of Rose in place of Leonardo DiCaprio’s. The drawing was mirrored onto the screen as James Cameron is left-handed but Leonardo DiCaprio is right-handed. Also, the line “over on the bed, the couch” was a genuine slip up made by Leonardo DiCaprio but James Cameron liked it and decided to leave it in there! After finding out that she was going to be naked in front of Leonardo DiCaprio, Kate Winslet decided to break the ice by flashing him the first time they met.

I love the soundtrack. Ok, ironically enough after that statement I have to jump in and say that I really do not like Celine Dion's "My Heart Will Go On". I just can't listen to it, Hate is a very strong word but I really don't like it at all. However, I love James Horner's variations of the song composed for the film. At this point I can see each scene in my head listening to each of the tracks. But it's like there's a kind of magic in them particularly the track titled "Southampton" (I'll use this as an example) because I mean you can imagine how exciting it must have been to a lot of people stepping on board such a ship about to start their new lives. It was a huge adventure. And I think this track captures the awe and wonder of the whole experience as good as any could. I love the piano variation in the background of the portrait scene too. And it's the music that makes the Third Class Party scene, really. Also the scene when they're running through the ship down to the cars. And of course it's the music that makes the death scene (well, the acting too obviously!!! haha) Some of my friends have remarked that for them to listen to the soundtrack all the tracks sound the same, and if I'm honest I can see where they're coming from, but I still love it. It just makes me smile.

Apparently Gwyneth Paltrow was up for the role of Rose. When I found this out I was like 'no, no, no, no' because Kate Winslet is so perfect. Oh yes and apparently studios wanted Matthew McConaughey to play Jack but James Cameron insisted on having Leonardo DiCaprio play the role! At least he was able to make one decent decision. Can you imagine Matthew McConaughey playing Jack??? I'm sorry but no, no, no, no, no!!! Where did they think they were going with that master plan? No! This makes me even more annoyed to know this due to Matthew McConaughey recently receiving an Oscar that both he and Leonardo DiCaprio were up for. Leonardo DiCaprio deserved it more for The Wolf of Wall Street. Hands down. *clears throat* But this review is about Titanic. *sigh* I’ve read the studio also wanted Tom Cruise or Brad Pitt to play the role of Jack. I’m not even going to comment.

Back to Kate Winslet. Kate Winslet apparently really wanted the role of Rose, so much so that she sent James Cameron a rose with a note saying “From your Rose” and got the part. To think that she was just 19 years old during filming is incredible. She really is an amazing actress. She won Best Actress In A Leading Role for this film and she more than deserves it. She's amazing.

A quick bit of trivia that might be of interest to you - Apparently Rose's name is said roughly 75 times throughout the film, while Jack's name is said approximately 84 times throughout the film. That's crazy but I can see how it would add up!! Someone clearly had a lot of time on their hands... *clears throat* (but who am I to talk?!)

The film effectively splits into two parts. On the DVD there are 30 scenes. Scenes 1-16 are the happier half of the film, and from scene 17 on it literally just goes downhill. There is no up again.

Supposedly if all of the present day scenes were deleted, leaving only the scenes that take place in 1912, the film would run 2 hours and 40 minutes, the exact time it took for the Titanic to sink. Sure the happy-half of the film (as I like to refer to it) is actually only an hour and a half I think or thereabouts. The rest is all sinking. Lovely.  Kate Winslet was one of the few actors who didn’t want to wear a wet-suit during the water scenes. As a result, she got pneumonia. The coat Rose wore when the ship was sinking was made larger to make Rose look more vulnerable in the sinking scenes. The water in which the actors acted the "death scenes" was just a big pool 3 feet deep. To make the bodies in the water appear frozen, a powder was applied to the actors’ faces, which then crystallized when exposed to water. Wax was also applied to everyone’s hair and clothes, which gave everything a glossy, frozen look. To be honest I thought they’d just got mannequins!!!! I didn’t realise they were actors!!! I always find their faces kind of creepy particularly this one body that’s lifted slightly, eyes still open unfocused and highlighted by the flashlight Mr Lightoller is holding. But those scenes are harrowing to think about anyway. Poor people. Because I mean there's a shot where the boat is actually pushing against them to move them out of the way. There were so many. It's horrible. *sigh*

In the scene where the water comes crashing into the Grand Staircase room, the film makers only had one shot at it because the entire set and furnishings were going to be destroyed in the shot. The pressure must have been unreal. During the final scenes of the movie, when Rose meets Jack at the Grand Staircase, the clock reads 2:20 a.m., which is the exact time the Titanic sank! (I think that's pretty cool - I'm telling you, the attention to detail here is just...) There's a shot somewhere around this time when the inside of the ship is completely submerged in water and we just see this body floating and the dress sort of splayed beautifully. Is it really bad of me to say that I really like that shot? I just think it's kind of beautiful, just the way the dress is splayed out in the water and the colours...Given the content it does sound kind of bad, but in terms of filming I think I'm allowed to say so!! 

There's actually a shot I really like too earlier in the film when Jack and Rose are running down towards the cars. They pass the men shoveling coal and they run through smoke and I just love how their silhouette runs through the smoke and the way Rose's dress moves through the smoke.

  

 

The elderly couple who lie in bed as water floods the room is a tribute to real passengers aboard the Titanic named Ida and Isidor Strauss, who were owners of the Macy’s department store, and who died on the Titanic. Ida was offered a seat on a lifeboat but turned it down because she wanted to stay with her husband. She is quoted as saying: “As we have lived together, so we shall die together.” James Cameron provided more than 150 extras with names and backstories of real Titanic passengers. That’s pretty amazing. The entire film contains over 100 speaking parts, with more than 1,000 extras!  

Gloria Stuart was the only person who worked on the production of the film who was actually alive during the Titanic’s maiden voyage in 1912. Titanic was the first film to have two people nominated for an Oscar for portraying the same character. Gloria Stuart won Best Actress In A Supporting Role.

It cost more money to make the movie Titanic than it did to actually construct the original ship!! The cost to construct the Titanic in 1910-1912 was $7.5 million which was about $120 to $150 million in 1997 dollars. The movie cost $200 million to make. Titanic was the first film to be released on video while it was still being shown in theatres. Paramount had to send out replacement reels because theatres literally wore out their copies!!!!! The film was nominated for 14 Academy Awards, making it the most Oscar nominated film ever. Of the 14 it won 11 including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Cinematography.

I don't think there's anything else to say. This is a film everyone should see at least once in their lifetime. - Not everyone is going to feel quite as passionately about it as I inadvertently do... But no matter what anyone says, it can't be denied that this is an incredible film and I don't see anything coming close to it for a very long time, if even ever. So...yeah: Tissues and some moral support at the ready and you're good to go! Enjoy!

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