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Titanic (1997) (1 Viewer)

LeoA

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Since it's harmless fun (And I don't think risks derailing anything), my favorite part of what this movie created is getting James Cameron fascinated by Titanic herself.

The documentaries that were created about his expeditions in the 2000's that he led to the Titanic wrecksite (And regularly dived to himself in submersibles) were fascinating to watch. Ghosts of the Abyss and Last Mysteries of the Titanic are both highly recommended by me if anyone wants to learn more about her (And the state the wreck was in circa 15-20 years ago).

He also led an expedition to Bismarck back then and produced an equally great documentary about the dives to her final resting place, called Expedition: Bismarck. Also well worth a watch, albeit not Titanic related.

Sad to see the shipwreck addiction apparently then loosened its grip on James Cameron, since I'd loved to have seen much more like a thorough expedition to the carrier wrecks off Midway (Of which only the Yorktown had been located and explored back then, with the discovery of the four Japanese wreck locations not happening until just before COVID when the late Paul Allen's team located them).
 
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TravisR

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Since it's harmless fun (And I don't think risks derailing anything), my favorite part of what this movie created is getting James Cameron fascinated by Titanic herself.

The documentaries that were created about his expeditions in the 2000's that he led to the Titanic wrecksite (And regularly dived to himself in submersibles) were fascinating to watch. Ghosts of the Abyss and Last Mysteries of the Titanic are both highly recommended by me if anyone wants to learn more about her (And the state the wreck was in circa 15-20 years ago).

He also led an expedition to Bismarck back then and produced an equally great documentary about the dives to her final resting place, called Expedition: Bismarck. Also well worth a watch, albeit not Titanic related.

Sad to see the shipwreck addiction apparently then loosened its grip on James Cameron, since I'd loved to have seen much more like a thorough expedition to the carrier wrecks off Midway (Of which only the Yorktown had been located and explored back then, with the discovery of the four Japanese wreck locations not happening about just before COVID when the late Paul Allen's team located them).
How about the crazy bastard going on the deepest dive in history?
 

Jack P

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Sorry but what part of my harmless post above do you disagree with @Jack P?

And for the record, I disagreed with your opinion that it’s a one dimensional script on all levels.

And for someone who claims to never want to discuss Titanic here you are yet again. :rolleyes:

I was not aware that a simple one sentence post written to merely state a personal POV regarding something and nothing more constituted a "discussion." Frankly I'm not interested in one. I just registered my POV for myself regarding a topic and left it at that simply because the 3-D announcement made me think of how an extra-dimension would be needed more for the script than the picture because that's the reason why that film was the biggest disappointment of my life as a Titanic enthusiast. If someone else wants to get upset about that, that's their prerogative. I won't be debating it any further as I remain happily content with far better productions done about the Titanic for me (ANTR, the long cut of SOS Titanic and the wonderful 1997 musical which is the only Titanic production that has ever moved me to tears as its haunting, poignant ending does all the time).

For the record, I've seen reactions to some of my posts more than four to six years after some of them were made so its hardly a novelty at this place. Sometimes a search for something leads you to something else and it happens.
 
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Tino

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A Night To Remember is what made me a Titanic enthusiast.

It’s a beautiful film, powerful and tragic. And historical inaccuracies aside, a tremendous depiction of that night.
 

Colin Jacobson

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I’ve enjoyed HFR and look forward to seeing it in that format.

HFR is interesting for films shot that way - though it does tend to look "weird" to eyes accustomed to 24 FPS.

But HFR for a movie shot 24 FPS? That seems like a strange idea...
 

Joe Wong

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I watched Titanic 4 times in the cinemas back when it was released.

Whatever criticisms one might have of the script, the romance, the historical accuracy, etc. - I found it a thoroughly captivating and entertaining 3 hours that transported to me to a different time and place. Not many 3 hour movies can do that.

For what it's worth, my wife - a history major, Titanic (the ship) enthusiast, a stickler for accuracy (she's criticising the current Becoming Elizabeth series on Starz for character changes), and an admitted non-fan of Cameron films in general - thought it was pretty good as well.
 

jayembee

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Since it's harmless fun (And I don't think risks derailing anything), my favorite part of what this movie created is getting James Cameron fascinated by Titanic herself.

I've always felt that one of the things that sets Cameron's film above the various other films about Titanic (as wonderful as some of them are) are all the scenes with Bill Paxton and his crew (and Old Rose). All of the other films just deal with the ship and the iceberg and all people who died, which is fine, but Cameron makes the fascinating story about the Titanic, including the search for it, and the attempt to recover artifacts from it part of the story. What makes the story about the ship so captivating is a relevant part of the story.
 

cinemiracle

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I enjoyed Titanic theatrically but haven't felt the need to see it since. Without the Rose & Jack stuff, A Night to Remember is a far better film, aided by the excellent b & w cinematography.
Totally agree with you. Watched it many times since it was first released and never tire of see it. Great book as well. Far superior to Cameron's soap opera which made a lot of money.if nothing else. I understand that Titanic was the third biggest sea tragety as far as the number of lives lost
 

LeoA

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Sadly, there's been more than that with worse loss of life than the Titanic, several of them in recent years. They just didn't capture the public's imagination like Titanic did and have been quickly forgotten by most. The Spice Islander disaster is a recent example that didn't leave a lasting impression with the public, despite the massive loss of life at sea in the 21st century.

Titanic is somewhere around 45th place in terms of loss of life, if I recall correctly her ranking when checking out Wikipedia's list of shipwrecks sorted by loss of life a few years ago (Most of them being wartime losses). The Wilhelm Gustloff is the unfortunate record holder with ~9,500 or so lives after being torpedoed by a Russian submarine in the Baltic during the final months of WWII in Europe.

WWII in particular racked up several dozen losses that surpassed Titanic's death toll. Most were ocean liners being used to rescue refugees, as troop ships, and as POW transports. But several warships also were sunk with comparable loss of life to Titanic. Over 1,400 men went down with the Hood during her short engagement with the Bismarck for instance with only three survivors, and then most of Bismarck's crew died with the ship or in the frigid North Atlantic afterwards when the Royal Navy caught up with her again (Worries about a U-Boat in the area sadly forced the curtailment of rescue operations soon after beginning, leaving most survivors of her sinking to die in the water).
 
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Chuck Mayer

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1A74996D-00E4-46E7-BD8F-55359E873037.jpeg

Well friends, it’s December 19th, 2022. I may be on vacation, but I had to log in today to remind you what day it is. One of my most favorite theatrical experiences.
 
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ManW_TheUncool

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Im Shocked that it’s been 25 years since I saw this on opening day at the Loews Astir Plaza in 70MM 6 Track Dolby Stereo.

Seems like yesterday. Wow.

You know, I can't remember where exactly I saw it during its first couple weeks or so... but may have been the Loews Astor Plaza as well... although I wonder if it wasn't at the then-Sony/Loews Lincoln Square whether on their huge IMAX screen or not.

Guess I should probably finally revisit this in my own HT before deciding whether to go see it in its IMAX theatrical (re-)re-release in Feb. Not too sure now, but probably haven't seen it again since soon after the 3D BD release ~10 years ago -- and I've never actually seen it in 3D even though I have that disc (and almost forgot I have it in 3D :lol:). I'd probably see it more often if it's not so dang long, LOL.

_Man_
 

Tino

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although I wonder if it wasn't at the then-Sony/Loews Lincoln Square whether on their huge IMAX screen or not.
I seriously doubt it played there at that time. They were still only playing short films and documentaries.
 

TravisR

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Seems like yesterday. Wow.
Yeah, it does. I saw it at the first show at my local theater and I was so blown away that I stayed for the next show. The very lightly attended first show made me think that the movie was tanking so I wanted to show support for it and that second show (which was after schools had gotten out) was packed with people. There sure weren't many empty shows that I attended after that first one.
 

Joe Wong

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Aside from watching it 4 times (I was in Australia at the time) during its initial release, I would eagerly await each weekend’s box office numbers when I went in to work on Monday mornings (ie., Sunday afternoon US time). It was amazing to see each weekend’s hold - small percentage drops, and then over Valentine’s Day weekend, it actually went up!
 

Tino

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Blast from the Past.

THIS WEEKEND In one of the most eagerly-awaited battles of the year, James Cameron'sTitanic edged out the James Bond picture Tomorrow Never Dies for the number one spot with each attracting enormous crowds. Final studio figures have Paramount's Titanic at $28.6M for the weekend (a full million dollars above the initial estimate) while the MGM/UA Bond movie stands at $25.1M (about a million dollars less than the Sunday estimate). Last weekend's top film Scream 2 was slaughtered by the new competition as it was hacked by 58%, tumbling to $13.9M. Overall, the top ten movies posted the largest non-summer, non-holiday weekend gross of 1997.

Titanic's opening is now the second-biggest December opener ever and Tomorrow Never Dies is the third-largest. December's biggest opening weekend remains to be last weekend's $33M debut of Scream 2, which Miramax revised from $39.2M. The tremendous openings of these three films have put an end to the notion that December releases can't open huge since most of the biggest debuts have been in the high teens. The top five December openings before this year have been : Beavis and Butthead Do America ($20.1M), Star Trek VI ($18.2M), Michael ($17.4M), Jerry Maguire ($17.1M), and The Pelican Brief($16.6M). The record books will need some adjusting once this month is over.
Titanic's performance was spectacular considering its length at 194 minutes. Paramount secured the film in 2,674 ports and sailed away with a per-theater average of $10,710 - the best in the top ten. Its opening average was also better than those of other three-hour-plus movies (which went on to win the Best Picture Oscar) like 1995's Braveheart ($6,300) and 1990's Dances With Wolves ($9,100). It was by far the largest opening of any movie near the three-hour mark and beat the debut performance of Cameron's last film True Lies, starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, which grossed $25.9M in 2,368 theaters in July 1994. Paramount successfully beat the odds and scored a fantastic opening for a film that should have smooth sailing ahead.
Many elements contributed to Titanic's huge launch. There was no doubt that adding to the opening rush to see Titanic was its 8 Golden Globe nominations, best of any film this year, which were announced on the day before its release. Audiences were curious to see what James Cameron did to make the most expensive movie ever made. Hot young stars Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet were big draws for teens and young adults and the romance story made it an event film for the date crowd. Titanic gave Paramount its biggest opening weekend of the year and could enable the studio to surge ahead of Warner Brothers for the third spot in the year's box office market share. Paramount's reported $65M investment for domestic distribution rights looks almost certain to pay off as the upcoming holiday weekend activity, strong word-of-mouth, and award consideration should all contribute to a prolonged domestic run that could see Titanic reach $150M. Fox, which foot the bill for the rest of the $200M production, will handle international distribution where the film is also likely to be a huge blockbuster. For a review of Titanicvisit Chief's Movie Review Page.

Landing in a close second place, the 18th James Bond installment Tomorrow Never Diesgrossed a powerful $25.1M in ultrawide release as MGM/UA opened it in 2,807 sites for a per-theater average of $8,957. Tomorrow, starring Pierce Brosnan, almost matched its predecessor Goldeneye's opening weekend of $26.2M from November 1995. Goldeneyeeventually reached $106.4M domestically and $351M worldwide. What is remarkable about the figure for Tomorrow is that it achieved roughly the same amount of sales in a much more competitive weekend. Bond is still as popular as ever and the $100M marketing campaign which included several corporate sponsors made sure to push moviegoers into those theaters.
Tomorrow is also a desperately-needed blockbuster for its studio as MGM/UA has had only one major hit in the two years since Goldeneye - 1996's The Birdcage which grossed $124M. Next weekend's performance will show what kind of staying power the movie has, but after its first weekend Tomorrow Never Dies seems to have a good chance of hitting the $100M mark with overseas returns being much greater. Its first week in the United Kingdom has brought it a boffo $8.9M and it opened across much of Europe over this weekend as well. Look carefully and you'll see the franchise's signature in the studio's official opening gross for Tomorrow Never Dies ($25,143,007) as well as for 1995'sGoldeneye ($26,205,007).
Larry Gleason, president of distribution for MGM/UA, stated that "Tomorrow Never Dieshad a surprising and amazing opening and the marketplace clearly expanded due to the new pictures." He also estimated that the film skewed younger than Goldeneye with about 60% of the turnout being under 25. Gleason expects the promotional tie-ins to continue with the Bond franchise especially with companies that target a worldwide consumer base. According to Gleason, Tomorrow Never Dies has already collected $35.8M overseas as of Sunday night after a full week in the UK and new openings all across Europe. The new Bond picture is running 40-60% ahead of Goldeneye overseas after this weekend's debuts and broke all-time opening weekend records in Norway and Russia. Gleason believes that at this rate, Tomorrow Never Dies will surpass the $351M worldwide gross of 1995's Goldeneye. He also confirmed that the next James Bond film is slated for a November 1999 release with Pierce Brosnan returning as Agent 007.
How common is it to see two new movies open simultaneouly to the tune of $25M+ weekends? Well, it has never occurred before. The last time any two movies had weekend grosses of more than $25M was during Memorial Day weekend 1996 when Mission : Impossible debuted to $56.8M as Twister collected $38M in its third frame (both are four-day weekend totals). But never have two new releases entered the market and collected over $25M each on the same weekend. The huge openings of Titanic and Tomorrow Never Dies are further evidence that the box office will expand to new levels to accommodate more than one strong title.

Third place went to Scream 2 which was hammered by all the attention surrounding the two big new releases. The horror sequel grossed $13.9M in 2,663 theaters for a $5,228 average. In an unorthodox move, Miramax revised Scream 2's three-day opening gross for Dec 12-14 from $39.2M to $33M. A miscount put its theater total at 3,112 when it actually was 2,663. It seemed that all the hype and buildup led to most of its core audience turning out during its opening frame leaving little left for its sophomore session. After ten days, the Wes Craven-directed chiller has amassed a still-terrific $55.1M.
Opening in fourth place was the new family film from DreamWorks, Mouse Hunt, which stars Nathan Lane. With a $6.1M take, Mouse Hunt scurried into 2,152 houses for a so-so per-theater average of $2,928. The rodent film may be able to collect some modest returns during the holiday season, but does not look to be a major player any time soon. Rounding out the top five, Flubber fell just 37% and took in $4.3M to push its total to $64.3M to date.

In their sophomore frames, For Richer or Poorer dropped a healthy 44% while Home Alone 3 dipped by only 32%. Apparently, with a handful of films aimed at kids and families, box office dollars are being spread thin between all of them. Last weekend's other freshman, Steven Spielberg's Amistad, expanded from 322 to 480 theaters but was off 28% with a $3.3M weekend gross. Its per-theater average of $6,834, while third-best in the top ten, fell by a heavy 52% from last weekend questioning the slave ship picture's long-term prospects.
Exiting the top ten were Alien : Resurrection after 3 weeks with $44M, The Jackal after 5 weeks with $52M, and Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil after four weeks with $22M. Returning to theaters for another holiday engagement was Disney's The Little Mermaid which earned a puny $183,000 in 945 theaters for a microscopic average of just $194 per site. Meanwhile, L.A. Confidential used its award recognition and an extra 176 theater engagements to gross $507,000, up 48% from last weekend to bring its total gross to $36.5M.
Deconstructing Harry and Good Will Hunting continued to show solid results in limited release. Harry averaged $27,268 in 10 theaters and Hunting averaged $18,037 in 11. In its 13th week of release, Fox Searchlight's The Ice Storm averaged $1,397 in 106 locations and looks to be a victim of bad distribution which never allowed it to reach its potential.
For the weekend, my projections were too conservative as Titanic and Tomorrow Never Dies went well beyond my forecasts of $14M and $16M respectively. Interest in both films was greater than I had expected and holiday shopping did not seem to disturb moviegoing as much as predicted. Mouse Hunt opened close to my $7M projection while Scream 2dropped harder than my 35-40% prediction.

Overall, the top ten films grossed $91.2M which was up 28% from last year and up 20% from 1995's four-day weekend. Be sure to check in again on Wednesday for a complete summary, including projections, for the long Christmas holiday weekend when new movies such as Jackie Brown, The Postman, and As Good As It Gets will open.
 

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