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It‘s
a simple tale, really, made up of equal parts love
story, historical epic and disaster film, about a
young artist (Leo) from the wrong side of the tracks,
who falls in love with a young aristocratic Lady (Kate
Winslet) while on their way to America during the
fateful maiden - and final - voyage of the H.M.S.
Titanic. That pretty much sums it up without really
saying very much.
What,
after all, can you say about a film that has
made more money (and faster) than any other film in
the history of motion pictures? What can you say about
a film that earned more Academy Awards (it tied with
"Ben-Hur" in this respect) than any other
film in history? You can say it’s successful,
sure, but that doesn’t come close to doing justice
to this spectacular epic’s impact on Hollywood
and the entire world.
Rumored
to be in trouble practically before principal photography
even began, the film quickly lived up to it’s
premature reputation by going famously over schedule
(by nearly six months) and over budget (to the tune
of over $200 Million). Nearly everyone - Fox and Paramount
included - thought the film, upon release, would sink
at the box office faster than the ship of the title
sank in the North Atlantic Sea so many years ago.
Instead,
as everyone now knows, "Titanic" did just
the opposite and, among the other and numerous happy
results, is the fact that it instantly elevated Leo
from the ranks of Rising New Star to that of International
Superstar.
One
can only wonder why the Academy chose to ignore his
performance, but few (if any) would argue that the
three most important reasons for the film’s success
are Leo, Leo, and Leo!
Directed by
James Cameron
Produced by
James Cameron
Pamela Easley (associate)
Al Giddings (co-producer)
Grant Hill (co-producer)
Jon Landau
Sharon Mann (II) (co-producer)
Rae Sanchini (executive)
Writing credits
James Cameron
Cinematography by
Russell Carpenter
Cast
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