A Return To Titanic: Somewhere Across The Sea

Titanic has been re-released in theatres for a limited time to commemorate the centennial of the sinking of the luxury liner. James Cameron's masterpiece has been glossed over into the 3D format, and so Scarlett and I thought we'd do a review of the film, in the way that only we can, of course....

When it comes to movies, we don't always agree, but there's one thing we both agree on: we hate 3D! I think far too many filmmakers have come to rely on special effects and 3D (George Lucas and James Cameron, I'm talking about you) instead of story and character. Titanic is, in my opinion, one of the best movies ever made. To reissue it in 3D is absurd. But following Titanic with Avatar was a harbinger of things to come from Cameron...

The film is told as a story in the present day. An elderly survivor of the disaster (Gloria Stuart) recounts her story to her granddaughter and a salvage crew led by an eager salvager (Bill Paxton) out at sea, above the site where the ship came to rest. The elderly Rose tells them how, as a young woman (Kate Winslet), while she was heading home to America, to an impending wedding to Cal (Billy Zane) a man she didn't love, she met another man, Jack Dawson (Leonardo DiCaprio), who changed her life.

I absolutely loved the love story between Jack and Rose! Poor boy meets rich girl-- all right, so it's not original, it still works. But then I'm a sucker for a good love story... as you well know, my love. I thought Kate Winslet was wonderful as the elegant but troubled Rose. She's been one of my favourite actresses ever since I first saw Titanic back in 1997.

She's certainly an exceptional talent. The story really is hers, the person she becomes through this all too brief voyage. Meeting this rough and tumble wanderer from the proverbial other side of the tracks changes every expectation about life she ever had. Jack sees the world in a very clear way.

As she says in the movie, he saved her in every way a woman could be saved. I liked that after he was gone, she went off to do all the things he told her she would do. He gave her courage... courage to walk away from her overbearing fiancee and her selfish, manipulative mother (Frances Fisher). Rose narrowly escaped drowning in more ways then one.

And the rest of the cast rounds out things. Billy Zane is dastardly and rotten as Cal, contrasting to Jack's basic goodness. And he's backed up by that contemptuous valet of his (David Warner), to make matters worse, not to mention, as you say it, that selfish and manipulative mother of hers...

The film consists of other good performances from character actors like Victor Garber, Bernard Hill, Jonathan Hyde, and many more. Beyond that, it's a spectacle, going into as much detail as possible about the ship, the class differences of the time, and ultimately the sinking itself. Cameron is definitely one who pays attention to the slightest thing, and it shows in the final product.

Darling, you pay attention to detail! You analyze every film we see. That's why you're such a good reviewer. I just go on my gut. If it evokes the right emotions from me, I'm good. I may be aware of these things on some level, but I want to be so caught up in the story and the characters that I forget it's just a movie. Like that scene in which Rose poses nude for Jack, wearing only that necklace... I got turned on just watching that!

Remember when we took a hint or two out of that scene and sketched each other nude?

You're actually quite a good artist, love. But then you've always been good with your hands.

I've had an inspiring model, goddess!

Well, the movie's out there again in theatres. If you can manage the 3D, go and see the epic love story played out against the sinking. We missed watching the sinking this time out. We ended up going down together... or getting off together... or going down on each other. Take your pick.