Titanic (4 Disc Deluxe Collector's Edition) [1997]

Amazon.co.uk Review

When the theatrical release of James Cameron's Titanic was delayed from July to December of 1997, media pundits speculated that Cameron's $200 million disaster epic would cause the director's downfall, signal the end of the blockbuster era, and sink Paramount Studios as quickly as the ill-fated luxury liner had sunk on that fateful night of April 14, 1912. Some studio executives were confident, others horrified, but the clarity of hindsight turned Cameron into an Oscar-winning genius, a shrewd businessman, and one of the most successful directors in the history of motion pictures. Titanic would surpass the $1 billion mark in global box-office receipts (largely due to multiple viewings, the majority by teenage girls), win 11 Academy Awards including best picture and director, produce the best-selling movie soundtrack of all time, and make a global superstar of Leonardo DiCaprio. A bona fide pop-cultural phenomenon, the film has all the ingredients of a blockbuster (romance, passion, luxury, grand scale, a snidely villain, and an epic, life-threatening crisis), but Cameron's alchemy of these ingredients proved more popular than anyone could have predicted. His stroke of genius was to combine absolute authenticity with a pair of fictional lovers whose tragic fate would draw viewers into the heart-wrenching reality of the Titanic disaster. As starving artist Jack Dawson and soon-to-be-married socialite Rose DeWitt Bukater, DiCaprio and Kate Winslet won the hearts of viewers around the world, and their brief but never-forgotten love affair provides the humanity that Cameron needed to turn Titanic into an emotional experience. Present-day framing scenes (featuring Gloria Stuart as the 101-year-old Rose) add additional resonance to the story, and although some viewers proved vehemently immune to Cameron's manipulations, few can deny the production's impressive achievements. Although some of the computer-generated visual effects look artificial, others--such as the sunset silhouette of Titanic during its first evening at sea, or the climactic splitting of the ship's sinking hull--are state-of-the-art marvels. In terms of sets and costumes alone, the film is never less than astounding. More than anything else, however, the film's overwhelming popularity speaks for itself. Titanic is an event film and a monument to Cameron's risk-taking audacity, blending the tragic irony of the Titanic disaster with just enough narrative invention to give the historical event its fullest and most timeless dramatic impact. Titanic is an epic love story on par with Gone with the Wind, and like that earlier box-office phenomenon, it's a film for the ages. --Jeff Shannon, Amazon.com

Customer Reviews:

Titanic.......2007-06-27

Superb quality of picture and outstanding soundtrack!!!
Beautiful scenary and magical actors playing!!!
You must see this film if you have not seen it yet!!!

Must have if you love this film.......2007-02-19

I think Titanic is the best film ever made, the only film to ever make me cry even when I've seen it several times already. If you dont really enjoy the film I dont need to say that you dont need this edition, but if you love it like me, I think you have to own it.

There are plenty of extras, perhaps some new documentaries would have been good, but of what there is; the deleted scenes add some new dimension to parts of the film. A few I understand were a bit dull and uneccesary, but there are a handful I felt deserved the final cut. The alternate ending is also interesting, and comes with a commentary by James Cameron, the commentaries provide a great insight to the making of the film - and nobody could deny that this must have been one hell of a film to make.

The one thing that annoyed me was the disc change half way through the film. Why?? is it really necessary, I mean its not as if no more would fit on the dvd, as they spread the extras through the discs.

Definately one for your collection if you're a big fan. It is beautifully packaged and miles better than the single disc version out there

A truly special film - extra features don't do it justice.......2006-10-20

I'm sure you have already formed your own opinions about Titanic as a film. I personally think it is an excellent and beautiful film, despite its flaws. And if you are looking at this "Definitive Collectors Edition" and considering purchasing it, I assume you would agree with me. Therefore I will go straight onto reviewing the extra features included in this edition of the film.

So, onto the actual product. The first two discs are the theatrical version of the feature. As promised on the box, the film comes with superior sound and picture quality (I'm no expert but I know it plays seamlessly and magnificently on my 42" plasma screen). There are four commentaries on both discs by James Cameron, the cast (not including Leo DiCaprio or Billy Zane), a crew commentary and a historical commentary by a couple of Titanic history buffs. All are worth listening to if you have the time, but James Cameron's commentary is by far the most insightful to the whole filming process of the Titanic, providing many titbits and points of interest. Both discs also include several action "pods". These are short clips that give more detail about how a particular sequence was filmed. You can watch them all together or one by one, or you can choose to watch them integrated with the film itself. The second disc also includes an extended ending, with Brock playing a bigger part. I believe they were right to cut this out of the theatrical edition but it is interesting to see anyway. An obligatory music video of Celine Dion's famous song is there as well.

Disc 3 has quite a few deleted scenes which are extremely interesting to watch for any Titanic fan, as not only is the relationship between Jack and Rose further explored, we also get deeper insights into the other characters. However, I agree with the film-makers about their decisions to cut these scenes as including them would have affected the pace of the film and would have killed the momentum, especially towards the end of the film. The disc also contains three Titanic parodies, none of which are ESPECIALLY funny, but hey, the disc needed a filler.

Disc 4 has many a documentary about the making of Titanic. A few of the TV publicity documentaries are a bit repetitive. I think they all used clips from the same interviews with the cast and James Cameron, which is why you hear the same comments being repeated through the different documentaries. This can be annoying so I wouldn't suggest watching them all at once. Other documentaries include detailed explanations of effects, filming processes etc. Obligatory trailers, TV spots and publicity poster galleries also included. There's also a gallery of images from design through to filming. Overall, I feel this disc is a bit of a let-down in terms of the limited interviews conducted with cast and crew members. I am susprised how little we saw of the actual people involved in the film-making in the documentaries since they are the people most knowledgeable about it. The majority of the documentaries are about the building of the set, the techniques used for filming and camerawork and the construction of visual effects.

So, do I think it's worth you spending your hard-earned cash on? Well, if you're not a die-hard fan of the film, what's the point? You're not going to want to spend hours of your time exploring the extra features anyway. However, for the Titanic enthusiast, this is a great edition. There's plenty of interesting behind-the-scenes info and you can immerse yourself ever deeper into the legacy of the great ship. The commentaries of the film are enlightening and interesting and the deleted scenes also give the film even more depth. The tragedy of the sinking of the Titanic really does hit home. And the thought that you will go away with after having watched and listened to everything on these DVDs is the amount of hard work that went into making this truly unforgettable piece of cinematic history.

Titanic sets sail once again.......2006-10-04

As a long time fan of the ship Titanic, i have seen many versions of the disaster that happened on April 14th 1912. When i saw this one i thought it was just a love story very well told, but when it came to the sinking i was amazed of the detail that the crew used in showing the sinking of the ship. The actors all played their parts perfectly and it is an absoulute amazing fim to watch.

The extras are also fantasic. There are trailers, featurettes, deleted scenes, 30 seconds with Bunnies and much much more.

If your a fan of James Cameron or the Titanic or any disaster film in general then buy this dvd, its worth the money.

REALLY INVOLVING.......2006-04-09

This film was just hilarious, its so funny when that poor man falls over drunk and then as soon as he gets up he wants more beer, lol. also when jack dies i like cried for 3 days, i thought they could both balance on the piano and that rose was a bit greedy by not letting him share it. overall worth a watch, i dont want to tell you any more because it will ruin it, but the boat crashes,lol.

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