I’ve noticed recently how various critics and the general population treat Titanic horribly with the test of time. I find it shocking how a movie that was regarded as one of the best movies of all time has fallen ill to tons of criticisms. People seem to find it hip now days to bash Titanic and I fail to understand why. I personally find it to be the greatest movie I’ve seen, the Academy Awards seemed to think it was a pretty damn good movie, the critics when it first came out weren’t too harsh and movie-goer’s truly expressed how the general population felt about Titanic with the gigantic ticket sales.

Now, however, Titanic makes the “overblown movie” lists from several critics, endures extreme mockery and the ridicule of anyone who actually admits to liking it. This may have been due to people wanting to be different from the norm in 1997 and maybe this attitude never went away and too many people fell victim to it. Or maybe it was the cheesy scene’s people like to imitate over and over which obviously must mean the entire movie is cheesy. However, I recently watched Titanic the other day and I’m going to say why I find it to my favorite movie of all time.

The ship Titanic itself expressed a mentally during this time period in which humans felt they could overcome Mother Nature. With the sinking of this ship it made people truly eat the words “Titanic is an unsinkable ship.”

With the character Rose, a first class passenger you are exposed to the arrogance high society had. Rose also opened your eyes to the luxuries high society had and how woman were truly trapped and were seen as second-class citizens. Rose almost committing suicide helps hit home how truly horrible it must have been for woman during this time period. The dynamics between Rose and her mother also show the dynamics between how woman had to behave and in a sense how they survived in this society.

With the character Jack, a third class passenger you are exposed to how large the gab between the rich and poor was. How first class dogs went down to be walked on the lower decks, how it was the poor who actually built Titanic and how it was the poor who were treated truly unfair on Titanic just because of social status, which helped express the mentality of the time.

Having these two characters meet and expose the viewer and each other to these different lifestyles helped truly put into perspective the mentality of what this time period was like. Sure, it was in a way a cliché’ love story, two people from different world’s falling in love. But regardless of it being typical it still exposed the different classes in a way that truly made you realize how it was for people back then. Also, many things are cliché’ for a reason, they most of the time work and have been shown to work time and time again.

Without this love story you would have just come away with the basics of this story, the Titanic sinking. But this love story created sympathy in which you felt for Jack and Rose. It made you truly feel how the people on the Titanic were feeling at that exact moment. Families, loved ones and friends were being torn apart. Without the emotion created from the love story you wouldn’t have felt nearly as sad or seriously towards what had actually happened to these people.

Titanic was very authentic and very historically accurate. It did include a lot more then just the love story. It had information about the lifeboats, the binoculars, how exactly it sank, the famous people aboard the ship, and numerous other things. Even things such as the first-class band and their situation, what exactly was sung on the last time day light hit the Titanic at the morning church gathering, increasing more speed regardless of ice warnings and many more examples were all little details included in this movie which made it far more then just a “love story” if you actually paid attention.

The ending of this movie came as a shock to most people. Well, it had several things that were resolved.

-When Jack died. In most love stories they would have both survived and lived happily ever after, but this truly hit home the pain people felt after this shipwreck.
-When Rose actually had the necklace. This shocked me, although many realized it before the ending. I thought releasing it back to the water was cheesy but also very symbolic.
-When they showed the pictures of Rose doing everything her and Jack talked about and dying warm in her bed as he said she would was a wonderful way to end it in my opinion. I don’t know why but it just seemed like the perfect way to end it.
-Also how Jack was waiting in the same spot he did earlier in the movie was just too cute. :)

Titanic did have things in it that were cheesy, like the kissing scene at the front of the boat, the drawing scene and the “I’m king of the world” scene. But these scenes’s helped keep the audience drawn in regardless of their cheese factor. Also running around the ship and opening the locked gate at the last minute before they would have drowned was also cheesy. But it is a movie and you have to have suspense, and even though these things wee unlikely they were still probable and made the movie entertaining.

The set, costumes, and the special affects were amazing in this movie. They basically built an entire ship for this movie, hardly any sets. Just watching this movie visually is amazing.

Not to mention you get to see actual footage of the Titanic under-water, which is amazing. Plus, the music was really good!

Comments? Agree? Disagree?

PS: To attack the acting/scrip is very cheap in my opinion and is one that most anyone cannot defend because it is so ambigious when you attack something like that.

In a lot of ways, it was pretty generic love story stuff, but just placed in an interesting venue. But ultimately I enjoyed it, so that makes it a good movie in my book.

:( No one cares or wants to talk about it.
Boo.

Good post, Overdose.

I loved this movie--how could I not?
I've been a Titanic buff for years!
I thought they did a superb job--especially in recreating the beautiful killer ship. In all honesty, that was why I find it enthralling. The sets--superb. I found no historical errors, except my son thinks he may have spotted one--smoke coming out of the fourth smokestack, which was a dummy. The producers did an excellent job in recreating genuine historical characters as well--Benjamin Guggenheim ("Ive dressed in my best and am prepared to go down like a gentleman")--such incredible class---Molly Brown, a brave lady, the Captain's total ineffectiveness that night, Thomas Andrews, knowing his beautiful creation was doomed, Murdoch shooting himself, the sheer animal panic during the last moments, the band playing until the end (none of their bodies were ever found), the locking up of the steerage passengers (I always cry when the Irish mom tucks her kids into bed ), Mr and Mrs Strauss hugging each other, the calm Atlantic, more calm that night than anyone could ever remember, the separate acts of bravery and sacrifice and cowardice--makes a person wonder how THEY would have acted.

I knew this movie would be the most popular of all time. There is something about this story--there have been other, worse disasters..yet it continues to enthrall. Maybe it's because of how the people were all dressed up--to die. For no reason, except sheer stupidity--and the fact the many thought the ship was a killer and did not "like people".......this story has enthralled generations and will contine to do so.

"This ship is alive. She's a beautiful girl, and a jealous girl. Once she gets ahold of you, she does not let go. There is no divorcing Titanic---ever."
Robert Ballard

In a lot of ways, it was pretty generic love story stuff, but just placed in an interesting venue.
Interesting enough to take a generic love story and get it such high (really high) box office earnings, and 11 Oscars?

I don't know. I debate with myself about how generic the love story is.

Rose and Jack are both from different worlds and fall in love, but I think there is a lot more to this love story then just that.

Jack does not have to work his way up in getting to know Rose. In many more typical stories Jack would try and find a way to meet Rose on purpose. However, he finds Rose on accident while she is trying to commit suicide. That, in my opinion isn't generic. This also allows for both characters to learn a lot about each other in a quick fashion because suicide is something that evokes an emotional response.

Jack also dies at the end of the story and in more generic stories he would have lived and they both would have lived happily ever after.

It isn't the most unique love story but I don't find it as generic or cliche' as some say.

Regardless of it being someone generic it allows for you to see what exactly it was like for the first and third classes and gave you an emotional connection to the people that actually died on the Titanic.

PS--I've hear a lot of people make fun of the movie--esp the final scenes--not the disaster itself, but how Rose was "too fat" to let Jack up on the door. but if you'll look closely, there really isn't room for them both--it was gentlemanly of Jack to let Rose on there...to me, a heart wrenching scene is seeing the words "Titanic--Liverpool" on the stern just before she slips under--the last anyone saw of the ship until 1986 and then she was just a wreck.

PS. I've also heard people say--- "So what?
Other people have died."

Yes, but rarely in such dramatic fashion. I say, if you're gonna go, go out in style.

Humans have been making love stories in all cultures for century after century, some or many elements of any are bound to be seen elsewhere. The Titanic was just a James Cameron big-money romance, not a groundbreaking art-house film, sheesh.
Comments?
A lot of the hatred towards the movie can most likely be attributed to it's success. There are always people out there that can't dislodge that stick from their @$$ long enough to simply enjoy a piece of cinema, many of these people are critics. When the movie came out, it was hailed, now it is not brought up much unless for prodding humor. Give it more time before a proper judgment can be made of the movie. If you disagree still down the line, ignore them. :)
Disagree?
Partly. The movie itself, in my opinion, was far from being one of the greats. It was not, to put it in plain terms, that good at all. But the child in me finds the sappy goodness of the simple entertainment to my liking. :D

But I have a question for you, what brought this up so many years after it's passing?

But I have a question for you, what brought this up so many years after it's passing?
I have friends who mock this movie and it really pissed me off. They wouldn't even listen to what I had to say about the movie and were just mocking the silly parts in which movies need to have to keep the viewer interested. I also feel like this movie is the best movie I've seen in every aspect. So I wanted to see what people on allforums thought.

You might like "A Night to Remember", Overdose. I'ts an older movie, filmed in black and white, and somewhat stilted--lacks a lot of the dramatic impact "Titanic" had--but it still tells a good tale, even tho some of the ship-sinking scenes look like they were filmed in a bathtub--all the Officers are very noble in it too (not historically true).

You might like "A Night to Remember", Overdose. I'ts an older movie, filmed in black and white, and somewhat stilted--lacks a lot of the dramatic impact "Titanic" had--but it still tells a good tale, even tho some of the ship-sinking scenes look like they were filmed in a bathtub--all the Officers are very noble in it too (not historically true).
Yeah, I'll look at some other films on the Titanic. Thanks for being willing to actually talk about this movie!

You can never have too much Titanic.:)


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Besides, Evak's just jealous of Jack.:eek:

Besides, Evak's just jealous of Jack.:eek:
Jealous that he died? Hah!

Leonardo Dicaprio was so cute in that movie. haha.
And Kate Winslet was actually very pretty...

It was a good movie, I enjoyed it.

but lets face it - it was also a crappy mindless movie too.

Aren't they all?

Name one movie that isn't basically dumb--besides "Gladiator.'

Leonardo Dicaprio was so cute in that movie. haha.
And Kate Winslet was actually very pretty...
Indeed! And now Leo is single, bwhahahah. ha.
Aren't they all?
Nonsense. Movies can be very relevant to the society and culture of America. Some make new strides in art and technology, while others enrapture the viewer in an original yarn (err...plot). Others make political statements and inform the public.

Most movies are "dumb" entertainment, but the great movies are those that rise above that level.

Yes, but even "great" movies have silly scenes, IMO.
for example--"Gone with the Wind" abounds with one laughable scene after the other...it's all we can do to keep from cracking up at some of the stilted acting and just general phoniness of it...and I LOVE that movie---or "Road to Perdition"--another great one--the scene where Mike Sullivan single-handedly wipes out Paul Newman's gang in the rain is a bit fake, IMO--even "Gladiator" has its share of dumbness, may god smite me for saying that and criticizing the great and godlike Maximus, who slew thousands without a scratch.......

Since when does an unrealistic or over-dramatized scene equal "silly"?

C'mon, Evak, you know what I mean---by silly, I mean something that is fake and/or makes you laugh--something fake that jars a viewer out of the story and makes you think "Hmmmm", or laugh.
Most movies have such moments and the ones that don't are basically static or a test pattern.

If you're being a good viewer (IOW, be oblivious to the obvious flaws or general nonsense), it'd make for a better movie. Sadly, I can't do that!

but lets face it - it was also a crappy mindless movie too.
How? I fail to see how it was mindless in any way. I thought it proved a great point...