Titanic....Makes Me Cry...A lot...

The film that I am featuring this week is Titanic, a 1997 film directed by James Cameron. This blog would not be complete if I did not write about Titanic, a masterpiece. By the middle of this film, I start bawling, and by the time the film ends, I am sitting in a puddle of my own tears. It's a beautiful story (although many might think it is too "typical" of a love story) that presents a different perspective on the tragedy that happened 100 years ago.

Titanic is the story of a poor and homeless young man, Jack Dawson (Leonardo DiCaprio back in his cute days) who boards the Titanic where he meets Rose DeWitt Butaker (Kate Winslet), a wealthy young woman who feels trapped despite her extravagant lifestyle. The two fall in love, but there's a catch: Rose is already engaged. It sounds like a cliche storyline, poor boy and rich girl fall in love, but I promise, it's a great film. Anyways, they fall in love days before Titanic hits an iceberg. I'm not going to give away the ending, so you'll have to watch to find out!

I find the special effects, the cinemetography and the cast in this film to be amazing, especially after doing a little research. Here's a list of interesting facts about the film that I have compiled.

• The model ship of the RMS Titanic costed millions. Some of the shots in the film, the filmers had to perfect in the first take because it was the only chance they had.
• Most of the oceans that the actors jumped and stood in during the sinking scenes were only three feet deep
• During the ship's sinking, the tilt angle of the ship was steepened by tilting the camera and the horizon
• Kate Winslet refused to wear a wetsuit under her costumes during the scenes in which she was in the water; as a result, she got pnemonia
• The full sized ship used in scenes showing the Titanic's exterior was built on the coast of Rosarito, Baja California, Mexico
• A 162-foot crane was used for most high exterior shots rather than a helicopter
• The budget for this film was $200,000,000
• 90,000 gallons of water were used to sink the grand staircase in the film
• 120 tons of water were used to flood the ballroom
• A total of 5,000,000 gallons were used to sink the entire set
• Some of the shots that required dangerous falls off the sides of the ship were computerized (so, it wasn't actually people performing the stunts)
• Over 1,000 extras were needed in this film
• All Titanic artifacts were created from scratch
• The film was nominated for 14 Academy Awards and won 11

Overall, this film is just so well done. The acting, cinemetography, and special effects are top notch. When watching the film, you sometimes find yourself asking, "How did they make that look so real?" The sinking in the film seems so real, it is able to truly depict the horror of the incident. Although the story is very tragic, it still provides a different perspective on the sinking of the Titanic. If you're looking for a film to watch this long four day weekend, Titanic would be a fantastic choice. (Just make sure you have a box of tissues nearby).