James Cameron has acquired a well-deserved reputation as something of a Midas within the realm of films. It doesn’t seem to matter what topic he chooses to tackle, when they land on the silver screen, copious bank will manifest. He already had proved his metal through the 80s and early 90s, so the money men should have been resting comfortably…

Of course, they didn’t, and Cameron faced an uphill battle to bring his fictionalised love story on board the most infamous maritime disaster in history to fruition. Long story short, they should have sat back and waited for the truckloads of cash. Titanic went on to be the highest grossing film in history at the time, raking in over 2.2 BILLION dollars.

The film, with a higher worth than some countries GDP, has a broad range of reactions, ranging from stellar to middling. What is undeniable is its far-reaching and universal success, and whether it’s your jam or no, Titanic is a classic for the ages.

It tells the tale of Rose Dawson (Kate Winslet) a young beauty being married off to a douchebag (Billy Zane) and Jack Dawson (Leonardo Di Caprio), a transient who ‘lucks’ winning a steerage ticket in a card game. Rose is not doing well, to put it mildly. Her fine things and coddled future life of luxury is nothing but gilded-cage slavery. She feels trapped to the point where she contemplates diving off the stern of Titanic. But Jack pulls her from the brink and steadily, uneasily they begin an un-sanctionable shipboard romance as the ‘unsinkable ship’ powers towards its demise.

There is nothing revelatory in the characterisations of any James Cameron script and this is true of Titanic. This is a by the numbers, wrong side of the tracks, love story that plays out like most have since the days of Romeo and Juliet. But, as with most Cameron flicks, he makes something well-trodden more than interesting. The characters are likeable, the historical backdrop and the audience’s foreknowledge of their environment elevates the tragedy. This is a long movie, but unlike the Avatar movies (for me) it doesn’t feel self-indulgent. The effects, as with most Cameron flicks, were ground-breaking. The attention to detail and vastness of the production makes the mind boggle.

The actors, the extras, every bolt, costume, effect and that score: masterful work.

This was, is and always shall be a ground-breaking event movie, one that permeated the zeitgeist for all time. It is as legendary as its subject matter. It allowed James Cameron to silence his detractors, to be financially and independently allowed to write his own ticket, and for better or worse indulge any whim. Its infamy and status, like it or no, is well-earned.

I remain forever in the loved it camp.

4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray + Bonus

Home Video Distributor: Paramount Pictures
Available on Blu-ray - December 5, 2023
Screen Formats: 2.35:1
Subtitles: English SDH; French, Spanish
Audio: English: Dolby Atmos; English: Dolby TrueHD 7.1; English: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0; French: Dolby Digital 5.1; Spanish: Dolby Digital 5.1; Audio descriptive
Discs: 4K Ultra HD;  Blu-ray Disc; Two-disc set
Region Encoding: 4K region-free playback

Cannot emphasise enough how excited I was to hear that a UHD of this film was coming. It’s a seemingly generous package that Kino Lorber has licenced to release, but as we dig a little deeper I’ll explain how much reuse there is within.

VIDEO

Most are hailing this ‘native scan’ as nigh on perfection. There is absolutely no denying that this 2160p native transfer is very, very sharp. But there is an artificial sheen to it. A little scouring of the interwebs has solved why. The base of this transfer is the gorgeous 2K scan from 2012. AI employed DNR clean-up has also been applied. Now, this is nowhere near as scrubbed a print as the Terminator 2 4K—which is almost universally despised. Natural grain is present and consistent for the most part, there is absolutely no sign of artifacts or dirt. The HDR Dolby VISION/HDR 10 really kicks dimension and contrast off the chart. From the pashing scene on the bow at magic hour to the crisp blues and blacks during the sinking, we receive upticks in detail aplenty. This is a pristine presentation, but they’re playing a little loose and fast with the specs for my taste. The detail is undeniably at a level never seen. The colour timing is pretty faithful. There is just a sterile overtone to the entire transfer. Pristine is the adjective I would use. Perfect… no.

AUDIO

Now this section of the review, I’ll use perfect. Dolby ATMOS delivers off the chart sonic immersion with its 7.1 mix. You will want for nothing: clear, crisp dialogue, scene specific—if they’re up on deck it sounds that way, if they’re in the boiler room, you get echoes. Base is continuous and effective, selling the power of Titanic and the terrifying hours during its sinking. Directionality puts you in the disaster, with sounds pinging and whipping past you in every direction. Overheads are given more work out than most 7.1 mixes to date. This is magnificent stuff.

Supplements:

You get one new 30-odd minute retrospective with Jon Landau and a bunch of legacy features from previous releases on the included blu-ray. Generous but repeated for the most part.

Commentary:

• James Cameron (2005)
• Historians Don Lynch and Ken Marschall (2005)
• Cast and Crew

Special Features:

• NEW! TITANIC: Stories from the Heart
• Reflections on TITANIC
• TITANIC: The Final Word with James Cameron
• Deleted Scenes
• Behind-the-Scenes Presentation Hosted by Jon Landau
• Additional Behind the Scenes Deep Dive
  • Upside-Down Wreck Miniature
  • Escondido Underwater Set
  • Two Roses
  • Sinking Simulation
  • 1912 Morph Transition VFX
  • Melting Pot
• Deep-Dive Presentation Narrated by James Cameron
• $200,000,001: A Ship's Odyssey
• Videomatics 
• Visual Effects

	Movie
	Video
	Audio
	Extras
Composite Blu-ray Grade

MPAA Rating: PG-13.
Runtime: 194 mins
Director: James Cameron
Writer: James Cameron
Cast: Leonardo DiCaprio; Kate Winslet; Billy Zane
Genre: Drama | Romance
Tagline:
Memorable Movie Quote: "I don't know about you, but I intend to write a strongly worded letter to the White Star Line about all of this."
Theatrical Distributor: 20th Century Fox
Official Site:
Release Date: December 19, 1997
DVD/Blu-ray Release Date: December 5, 2023.
Synopsis: A seventeen-year-old aristocrat falls in love with a kind but poor artist aboard the luxurious, ill-fated Titanic.