Titanic Review
Summary: A seventeen-year-old aristocrat falls in love with a kind but poor artist aboard the luxurious, ill-fated R.M.S. Titanic.
- Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Kate Winslet, Billy Zane
- Director: James Cameron
- Writer: James Cameron
- Rating: PG-13
- Runtime: 3h 14m
- 3D Type: Post-Conversion
Story:
*SPOILER*
This is the version where Jack survives and Rose drowns.
Just kidding. I can’t count the number of times I’ve seen Titanic. Now becoming a timeless classic. James Cameron throws everything into this movie.
It’s about the story of Jack Dawson (Leonardo DiCaprio) and Rose DeWitt Bukater (Kate Winslet), whose very different lives cross aboard the ill-fated Titanic, and fall in love with each other. The chemistry between the two could not be better, it’s a wonder why they never ended up with each other in real life. It is arguably still both of their best performances after all of these years.
There are a few cheesy lines in it. Probably like a few people, I never understand the line when Jack says “I saw that in a Nickelodeon once”, I thought he is referring to the kids’ cartoon channel that I used to watch! But now I know a Nickelodeon was a small movie theatre in the early 1900s.
Picture:
Cameron has achieved great 3D depth, without sacrificing picture quality. All of the original grain and warmth of the original film are intact, considering it was originally shot on 35mm film. Since 3D causes a noticeable loss in brightness when viewing through glasses, the film’s brightness has been bumped up to compensate. Aside from a few outdated CGI effects, the final image is clear, vibrant, and sharp.
Sound:
The DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 soundtrack features everything you could want from an audio presentation. A wide soundstage with voices detailed close and far, particularly during crowded scenes on the promenade deck where you can hear the many conversations that are being held, creates an immersive atmosphere.
James Horner’s musical score spreads across the speakers with persuasive fidelity and the audio really comes to life in the second half of the film as the action notches up.
3D
The 3D conversion here was done by Studio D, who did a meticulous and careful job, showing much love for the film. It cost James Cameron over $30 million to convert Titanic, he wanted to give us a good reason to watch it all over again. Here it helps to display the grandeur and scale of the ship, which of course, was the largest and most luxurious of its time.
Pop:
There’s the odd water splashing out at the viewer, some costumes and backgrounds popping. Though there are not many pop-out effects here, James Cameron likes to keep it all natural with depth.
Depth:
The underwater scenes of the wreck look great, with debris floating in the foreground and the scale of the ship’s features. Much of the footage is very similar to the later documentary Ghosts of the Abyss.
The interior of the ship looks terrific in 3D format, the grand staircase, hallways, and chandeliers, all look much grander, and the characters on the screen appear to move through the extra depth smoothly.
In saying that, there are quite a few scenes with no added depth or 3D, and overall the depth on people’s faces could have been done a bit better. There are certain scenes where people or objects look like cardboard cut-outs, notably as the ship starts to sink. For example, there’s a scene where Jack and Rose are running down a flooding hallway toward the camera, their faces look a bit odd.
Verdict:
Stereo D has done a terrific job, on what would have been a super difficult 2D-3D conversion. However, some of the effects look a little bit dated and post-conversion technology has largely improved since Titanic 3D was done. Nonetheless, the 3D version of Titanic made me cry like a baby all over again. It is a good addition to any 3D collector’s library.
Category | Scores |
---|---|
Story: | ★★★★ |
Picture: | ★★★★ |
Sound: | ★★★★★ |
Pop: | ★★ |
Depth: | ★★★★ |
TOTAL SCORE: | 19/25 |