Pretend we have our own time machine as we go to the past in two time lines. 1912. The year when the RMS Titanic, built by the Harlott and Wolff shipyard in Ireland, sailed out of Southampton, England. It was labeled the "ship of dreams" as it sailed on its maiden voyage from England to New York where 2224 passengers and crew were waving goodbye to their loved ones and to other residents. People from the first, second and third class were not anticipating the disaster that was going to swallow the whole ship and sadly kill most of its passengers. Insurance and aid were provided for the survivors and also a few of the crew of the Titanic and all of the U.S.S. Carpathia while investigations had begun surrounding the questions what caused the Titanic to sink and why. It is unbelievable to research the statistics of the percentage of men and women and children in first, second and third classes that perished because there was definitely a status problem, which was shown in the movie.
Now, let's transport to the year, 1996, when the filmmakers start making the movie and doing research. The budget was crazy at the time with $200 million, mostly because of special effects and actually building the model of the ship. It is a huge model almost exactly of the ship on the set. James Cameron, the director, is a perfectionist trying to get every detail right from the story to the casting to the costume design to the details of the silverware and dishes. It is maybe one of those reasons why he does not make as many movies based on his filmography. Even though I was very young, I remember them showing the news regarding the budget and also its stars and some scenes. But, I do not think anybody expected, not even its cast, this result of a movie being an epic and phenomenon.
So, everybody knows the story 20 years later. Brock Lovett (Bill Paxton), a treasure hunter/documentarian in 1996, is aboard his research vessel searching the Titanic wreck for a necklace of a rare diamond. However, they recover a safe containing the drawing of a naked young woman dated in April 14th, 1912, the date of the sinking of the Titanic. As an old lady named Rose (Gloria Stuart) is sculpting clay, she overhears Brock on the television as she sees the same drawing on the television. She calls Brock and claims that it is her so she and her granddaughter, Lizzy (Suzy Amis) helicopters to the Keldysh.
After she witnesses the computer simulation of the Titanic sinking, Rose decides to tell Lovett and the others her experiences were on the Titanic. The movie flashes back to 1912 in Southampton as Titanic is about to embark on its journey. 17-year-old Rose DeWitt Bukater (Kate Winslet) travels with her mother, Ruth (Frances Fisher) and her fiancé, steel tycoon Cal Hockley (Billy Zane) with his loyal bodyguard, Lovejoy (David Warner). Ruth tells Rose that it is a good idea for her to marry Cal because it would solve their family's financial problems and will still maintain their high-class persona.
Meanwhile, we meet a penniless artist named Jack Dawson (Leonardo DiCaprio), who, with his best pal, Fabrizio (Danny Nucci), won a poker game to climb aboard the ship. While lying down on the bench looking up at the stars the following night, Jack witnesses Rose running and trying to commit suicide by throwing herself off the ship. Jack intervenes and discourages Rose to jump off as he saves her life. Cal gets angry because he thinks Jack assaulted Rose but they both tell a lie that gets him off the hook. Cal invites Jack to dinner to discuss certain topics over dinner. Rose is flattered but Jack gets her to go out to a "real party" as she has the time of her life. Rose and Jack both fall in love and while so, Titanic hits an iceberg causing a major puncture in the ship, flooding in the lower compartments that is enough to sink the ship.
SPOILER ALERT! (But, come on. Everybody has seen this movie, I hope.)
While watching this movie again, I noticed a lot of foreshadowing in this movie. The main one is a nice subtle one in which Jack tells Rose that he may go on adventures such as riding on a horse which is display on one of the pictures near an elderly Rose near the end of the movie. She was inspired by Jack the whole time even though he never told the story to her husband before or to her granddaughter. Plus, there is a moment in the movie where Rose observes a girl being dressed as a "porcelain girl" as she is folding her napkin on her lap and she did not want Jack, in a now-infamous scene, to draw her like a porcelain doll but a free woman, simply letting go by being naked wearing the diamond. (No, I will not post the clip because of discretion.) Remember, Rose was trapped in a situation in which she has to be formal because of her mother and also in a way, Cal loves her. He has everything.
But, also, a nice foreshadow is when Jack, while playing poker, says when he has nothing, he had nothing to lose. Jack knows it while he confesses his love to Rose even though he is poor, but he has been a traveler since he left Wisconsin. Rose was bored and wanted to let go of her formalities and in a nice comparison of themes of status and class, Cameron shows that the first class have proper regalia and a few certain people can be snobby, whereas, in the third class in the lower decks, they are having a party, having the time of their lives and celebrating their life with other people from other worlds. And, Rose, in the first time of the movie, even though she is drunk, she is having the time of her life. Rose breaks from that routine to have an ultimate, happy life. Here are a couple of clips showing what Jack really sees in her.
Continuing on the themes of class and society but also adding love to the mix, let's go to Jack's side. He is living his best life as possibly he can because he is excited to go back to America in the beginning. We observe that the first-class passengers do not interact with passengers that have no commonality with them but Rose is different because of Jack. As he is invited for dinner, Jack is so cool and calm, escorting both Rose and Molly Brown, played well by Kathy Bates, even though he is nervous on the inside. He is very comfortable as Rose's mother judges his character because of his class. He controls the conversation in such a delicate manner that for one minute, the other people in the table forgot they were in first class and is enthralled by his story and his philosophies in life in him "waking up every day, not knowing who he is going to meet and that life is a gift and that is should not be wasted." Plus, in the dinner conversation, there is also another subtle foreshadowing of how everything is going to be handled as the ship start to sink as the people panic.
They risk their lives throughout the movie as Rose rescues Jack from the masters-at-arms and as they both attempt to rescue a child as the deck on the ship becomes heavily flooded. But, again, their love never fades even though they remain on the sinking ship. And, this is when the tears start to happen, while the two and many other passengers are in the frigid water, Rose remains on top of a door with Jack holding on, sacrificing himself to the hypothermia. He saved her for the last time to live on the many years of her life and live on a legacy and not let go of her promise. It is sad but let me ask you a frustrating question, would they both be alive if they have taken turns or they both be on a door? Well, the entire structure of the movie would be ruined and it would not be as memorable plus the ending would be ambiguous.
Even though this is a fictionalized story in a non fictionalized event, we must not forget the other tragic things going around the ship as Mr. Andrews failed to make a robust ship, Captain Smith not knowing what to do, observing some passengers losing hope as they sleep on their bed as the water start to rise. Many lives were lost because of statistics and because of rules according to class, unfortunately. (Again, look up the statistics.) 706 survived out of about 2200. At least 1500 people died to the hypothermia.
James Cameron is a master of craftsmanship as the visual effects still stand the test of time 20 years later. Heck, I thought they made a real ship in some shots going through most of the ocean. But, the computer simulation in the beginning of the movie is a great blueprint to what will happen as the sinking is done in such grand fashion and detail. It is unlike anything I have ever seen. His structure in the screenplay is quite good as the first half is a love story and/or origin story of the Titanic and the second half is a disaster movie but underneath it all, there is the strong romantic chemistry between Jack and Rose that quite works. I will admit a bit of the dialogue is a bit clunky in places but Cameron is not as much a great writer as he is a director. Is it one of the best romantic epics? Yes, it holds up. We do not have many of these in our lifetime and this 194-minute film zips by quickly because you are engaged with the characters, the history and the story.
I know what y'all are thinking. Because it's the holiday season...here are the movie's two infamous clips.
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