Titanic turns 28! James Cameron’s timeless film at the cinema for the first time in Italy on 16 January 1998 moved entire generations to tears and fell in love, becoming a success in world cinema. On the occasion of the last anniversary, the masterpiece returned in 3D and 4K to cinemas.
Directed by James Cameron, the film is based on the story of the sinking of the RMS Titanic, the British passenger ship that sank in the North Atlantic Ocean in April 1912 after hitting an iceberg on its maiden voyage from Southampton to New York City.
The plot of the film
Titanic follows the love story of the fictional characters Jack and Rose, played by Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet, members of different social classes who fall in love aboard the ship during its tragic maiden voyage.
The story begins when treasure hunter Brock Lovett must recover a necklace with a rare diamond from the wreck of the Titanic, lost during the shipwreck of the ocean liner. Lovett manages to recover the safe of the diamond’s owner: Caledon Hockley, but inside he only finds the portrait of a naked girl wearing the necklace, the date shown on the necklace is April 14, 1912, the date on which the Titanic hit the Iceberg.
An elderly woman, Rose Dawson Calvert, watches television and learns of the discovery of the portrait and contacts Lovett claiming to be the woman in the portrait, Rose DeWitt Bukater, a first class passenger on the Titanic believed to have died in the shipwreck. Having confirmed her identity, Rose agrees to tell her story and what happened during her journey on the Titanic.
Rose DeWitt Bukater is reluctantly sailing into her future: she has been forced by her penniless mother to become engaged to marry a rich, arrogant snob named Cal Hockley, and she hates this prospect so bitterly that she tries to kill herself by jumping from the ship, but is saved by Jack Dawson.
Rose’s mother and her future husband therefore prevent her from seeing Jack, but the two meet in her cabin, who asks him to portray her naked, wearing only a diamond necklace, given to her by Cal.
Afterwards, they escape from Cal’s bodyguard into the ship’s hold, where they make love, and then onto the ship’s foredeck. There they observe the ship’s collision with an iceberg and overhear the officers and the ship’s designer, Thomas Andrews, arguing about what to do.
Cal discovers the drawing and a note in his safe along with the necklace, which he slips into Jack’s coat pocket, thus framing him for the theft.
Jack is arrested, but Rose, who has meanwhile boarded a lifeboat, escapes to free him with an axe. A reunited Jack and Rose struggle back to the deck where Cal and Jack encourage her to board another lifeboat. Chases and obstacles ensue, but by the time the two return to the upper deck, the lifeboats have all left and the ship is slowly sinking.
The ship breaks into two parts: the two take refuge in the stern while the ship sinks on the bow side, they remain afloat for a few more minutes, but when the stern also sinks, the two find themselves in the sea among all the remaining passengers. Jack finds a wooden panel, which can only support the weight of one person, helps Rose hold on and assures her that she won’t die. But Jack will die of hypothermia shortly after.
Rose, shortly thereafter torn apart by pain, is rescued together with five other people.
It’s been 26 years since the release of the iconic film and such is proof of its success and longevity that it was the highest-grossing film of all time until 2010, in fact it was nominated for 14 Oscars and won 11. Titanic it is a film that changed cinema, competed for the highest number of Oscars and launched the career of one of the most successful actors in the history of cinema.
The true story behind the film
Although Jack and Rose are fictional characters, many elements of the film are historically accurate. The Titanic actually sank on the night between 14 and 15 April 1912 after hitting an iceberg, causing the death of over 1500 people. James Cameron faithfully reconstructed the interiors of the ship, from the sumptuous first class lounges to the cramped third class cabins, based on original photographs and floor plans.
Characters such as designer Thomas Andrews, Captain Edward Smith and “Molly” Brown really existed and behaved just as shown in the film: Andrews warned that the ship would sink in a few hours, while Molly Brown actively helped the passengers save themselves. Even details such as the orchestra that continued to play until the end and the shortage of lifeboats are dramatically true.
The one great poetic license? The famous scene of Jack and Rose on the bow of the ship has no historical evidence, but it has become one of the most iconic images in cinema history.
Where to see Titanic
You can see Titanic on the Diseny+ platform, for those who don’t have a subscription it is possible to rent James Cameron’s film on Google Play, Apple TV+ and Amazon Prime Video.
Or you can get the DVD
Titanic
