Saturday 28 April 2012

Titanic

Two weeks ago it was the 100th anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic. At 11.40pm on the 14th of April 1912, the famous 'unsinkable' liner struck an iceberg. By 2.20am on the 15th of April 1912 the magnificent ship was at the bottom of the North Atlantic.

For the passengers and the crew it must have been an absolutely terrifying experience. When the ship sank, it actually broke in two and there were 1,514 people on that ship who did not survive the sinking. Among them was the captain of the Titanic, Edward Smith and Thomas Andrews, the naval architect who designed the Titanic. 

There have been many film and television adaptations of Titanic, the most famous one being the James Cameron epic which was made in 1997. 

The first time I saw Titanic must have been around 2001/2002 (can't remember roughly). It was on Christmas Day and my parents were recording it, but watching it at the same time. They went to see the film at the time of it's release and it's among one of their favourite films.

At first I wasn't hugely enamoured with it, but last week I went to see it in 3D at the cinema and I have to admit I really enjoyed it. I recently watched ITV 1's drama Titanic and although some of the acting was wooden, I did enjoy the whole story and now have become fascinated with the history of the Titanic.

If you haven't seen Titanic, there's no brownie points for guessing what it's about. Especially as the historical event is so well known all over the world. There is a fictional love story intertwined with the historical event and that is the love story between a poor third class passenger Jack Dawson and a rich, sophisticated first class girl Rose Dewitt Buttaker, played brilliantly by Leonard Di Caprio and Kate Winslet respectively. Other characters include the evil Caledon Hockley (played by the fantastic Billy Zane) and Molly Brown (played to perfection by Kathy Bates), who was a real passenger on the ship and history would later call her 'The Unsinkable Molly Brown' as she ordered the lifeboats to return and collect passengers who were stranded in the sea. Only one lifeboat returned to collect remaining survivors. There were only 711 people who survived.

The sinking scene is among my favourite scene in the whole film, although it is actually terrifying. In 3D it was even better. It would have been a right rollercoaster ride, except there would be no getting off and no guarantee of survival.

Titanic is famous for it's memorable quotes such as "I'm flying Jack!" or "I'll never let go, Jack, I'll never let go" (to which she does, but only physically, not emotionally).

The film is fast becoming one of my favourites and it's one of the classics that never gets old. I recommend to those who have seen it already to see it in 3D before it finishes and for those who haven't seen it, what are you waiting for? You'll love it!


A picture of the sinking Titanic in the North Atlantic.
A poster for the film 'Titanic' (1997) starring Leonard DiCaprio and Kate Winslet. 



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