"Titanic" -- An Unforgettable Experience
by Homer Yen
(c) 1997
In 1912, the Titanic would set sail on it's first and only voyage across the chilly North Atlantic. History has well-documented its inevitable doom, and expeditions have just recently discovered the remains of the Titanic resting peacefully in its watery grave. But, what must have it been like to be a passenger on board the greatest and most luxurious ship of its time? What stories are hidden deep beneath the Atlantic?
For one particular passenger, Rose (Kate Winslet), the Titanic was nothing more than a prison ship escorting her to America, where she will marry an odiously snooty but terribly wealthy Cal Hockley (Billy Zane) in order to help her cash-poor mother. But to Rose, the engagement is the equivalent of a slow death. One of the passengers that she eventually meets up with is an artistic drifter, Jack Dawson (Leonardo DiCaprio). While his social status is far beneath that of hers, a romantic bond begins to develop as she begins to identify with his sense of freedom. Soon they're gallivanting through the corridors, cargo holds and steerage sections - all the places that a proper lady ought not to go. Her mother is furious, her fiancé is madly jealous, and all attempts are made to thwart their continued relationship. It may take an act of God (or an iceberg) to tear these two apart. Can a relationship work out on a 'ship of dreams' even when doom is imminent?
This is just one of the terrific elements that makes this movie unsinkable. Through an ingenious storytelling technique, Camerron allows the audience to absorb ourselves with the developing romance without being distracted by the ship's fate. Oscar-worthy Winslet is charming and strong as the free-spirited socialite. DeCaprio is also appealing as the young vagabond that introduces her to the ways of the wicked world. Their tale is engaging and is a terrific, all-around, old-fashioned love story. But this movie is more than a fictional account of two lovers from dichotomously different backgrounds. That's just the tip of the iceberg.
It's also an eye-popping historical piece. No doubt, much of the purported $200 million spent on making this movie was used to recreate an almost-full-scale Titanic. Director James Camerron gives us little peeks into an era that was dominated by class and social distinction and into the Titanic, a symbol of the times. We see the luxury of first class, replete with ornate rooms, fine crystal and china. After dinner, the tuxedo-clad men retreat from their wives to smoke fine cigars and sip fine brandy amongst themselves. In the engine room, we feel the sweat of the men that furiously shovel coal into the furnaces that power the steam engines. We revel with the people in steerage who dance among themselves and drown themselves in beer. But the most impressive sequence comes in the latter part of the movie just after the Titanic runs into that fateful iceberg. Not only is the technical production of the Titanic's sinking spellbinding, but we get a further glimpse into the panic, chaos and brief moments of courage displayed. Steerage passengers are forced to wait as first class passengers are allowed to evacuate first; lifeboats can only accomodate less than half of the passengers; and Rose and Jack desperately try to cling on to each other, their love and their lives. Despite the pandemonium, Camerron's Oscar-worthy direction skillfully manages to keep our attention focused on Rose and Jack, never for a moment allowing us to stray from the central love story.
This movie is a 198-minute epic that successfully brings history and drama into proportion. And if Camerron had the time to tell us more, I would have gladly sat and watched for another 3 hours. Visually stunning, intelligently constructed, and thoroughly engrossing, this film is a wondrous achievement about an era and a ship that was equally so.
Grade: A-
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