This month, filmmaker James Cameron re-released his 1997 epic “Titanic” in 3D.
As a huge fan of the 1997 movie and the history of the actual Titanic, I’ve studied the true stories and collected ship related memorabilia.
I have seen the 1997 version of the movie multiple times.
So when the 3D version hit theaters, I was anxious to see whether or not it would be as good or better than the original movie.
The luxury liner hit an iceberg and sunk 100 years ago on April 15, 1912. The “unsinkable” ship had only enough life boats for about half of the passengers aboard the luxury liner. More than 1,500 people lost their lives on that maiden voyage.
Marking this anniversary with a movie can be considered poor taste, yet I feel it does the actual shipwreck some good.
This re-release helps Cameron continue his exploration of the deep ocean, and finding other lost ships, as well as never letting those lives lost aboard the Titanic to be forgotten.
After watching the 3D version, I can say the film still works.
However, there are some scenes it could have done without 3D.
In the scene where Rose looks at Jack’s artwork for the first time, the rigging for the funnels stands out way too much. It takes away from the movie.
A scene that adds to the movie is when filmmakers added a few new extras during the boarding scene to give the dock more life and depth.
But, overall, Cameron could have gone without a 3D version of “Titanic.”
Instead of 3D, he should have added the 45 minutes of deleted scenes from the original 1997 movie then re-released the movie to theaters. These scenes include subplots of the movie that would add more to the movie.
The effects are not the greatest, and at times the new features even detract from the movie.
I have also noticed that the movie at times was too blurry, even with the 3D glasses on.
To my disappointment a few scenes were not taken into 3D.
The scene where the dome is imploding does not pop out at you.
Another scene that would have been good in 3D would have been the scene after Rose and Jack get away from Cal and they are running towards the camera with gushing water behind them.
Unlike the recent similar movies, “Titanic 3D” does not have the option to re-shoot any scenes with the main characters because they are 16 years older and do not look the part anymore. Some of have even passed away.
Titanic 3D is a movie for true fans, but I think the average moviegoer would not enjoy the movie for the 3D aspect.