Rating: 
Summary: Good Film Although Historically Inaccurate
Review:
This is a good movie version of the Titanic story, although not much accuracy. The story is heart wreching to whatch and the sinking scenes are excellent, my opionion better than James
Camerons film.
Rating:
Summary: SET SAIL IN STYLE: A LUXURIOUS TRIP INTO THE PAST
Review: "Titanic" is (stop me if you've heard this one before), the one about the boat that hits an iceberg and sinks. Whoops! Gave it away. This version stars Barbara Stanwyck and Clifton Webb as a married couple on the cusp of divorce. She can't stand his guts - he finds redemption before it all gets too cold and wet. Pure fiction but hey, it's Titanic and its masterfully told.
TRANSFER: Fox is at its usual middle of the road with this transfer quality. Some scenes are nicely balanced with good gray scale. Others seem to suffer from low contrast and black levels. There's ample pixelization, aliasing and shimmering of fine details throughout. The audio's been remixed to feeble stereo. At this point does anybody care?
EXTRAS: Ah, here's the real treat of this DVD. You get "Beyond Titanic" a masterfully told 1 1/2 hr. documentary that really gets to the bottom of things (no pun intended)and covers the full history of both the ship and its many film incarnations.
BOTTOM LINE: This is a worth while DVD for two reasons - the documentary and its price tag - cheaper than most low budget no-name studio releases. If nothing else, you're buying the documentary and for that reason alone, it's definitely worth it!
Rating:
Summary: SET SAIL IN STYLE: A LUXURIOUS TRIP INTO THE PAST
Review: "Titanic" is (stop me if you've heard this one before), the one about the boat that hits an iceberg and sinks. Whoops! Gave it away. This version stars Barbara Stanwyck and Clifton Webb as a married couple on the cusp of divorce. She can't stand his guts - he finds redemption before it all gets too cold and wet. Pure fiction but hey, it's Titanic and its masterfully told.
TRANSFER: Fox is at its usual middle of the road with this transfer quality. Some scenes are nicely balanced with good gray scale. Others seem to suffer from low contrast and black levels. There's ample pixelization, aliasing and shimmering of fine details throughout. The audio's been remixed to feeble stereo. At this point does anybody care?
EXTRAS: Ah, here's the real treat of this DVD. You get "Beyond Titanic" a masterfully told 1 1/2 hr. documentary that really gets to the bottom of things (no pun intended)and covers the full history of both the ship and its many film incarnations.
BOTTOM LINE: This is a worth while DVD for two reasons - the documentary and its price tag - cheaper than most low budget no-name studio releases. If nothing else, you're buying the documentary and for that reason alone, it's definitely worth it!
Rating:
Summary: SET SAIL IN STYLE: A LUXURIOUS TRIP INTO THE PAST
Review: "Titanic" is (stop me if you've heard this one before), the one about the boat that hits an iceberg and sinks. Whoops! Gave it away. This version stars Barbara Stanwyck and Clifton Webb as a married couple on the cusp of divorce. She can't stand his guts - he finds redemption before it all gets too cold and wet. Pure fiction but hey, it's Titanic and its masterfully told.
TRANSFER: Fox is at its usual middle of the road with this transfer quality. Some scenes are nicely balanced with good gray scale. Others seem to suffer from low contrast and black levels. There's ample pixelization, aliasing and shimmering of fine details throughout. The audio's been remixed to feeble stereo. At this point does anybody care?
EXTRAS: Ah, here's the real treat of this DVD. You get "Beyond Titanic" a masterfully told 1 1/2 hr. documentary that really gets to the bottom of things (no pun intended)and covers the full history of both the ship and its many film incarnations.
BOTTOM LINE: This is a worth while DVD for two reasons - the documentary and its price tag - cheaper than most low budget no-name studio releases. If nothing else, you're buying the documentary and for that reason alone, it's definitely worth it!
Rating: 
Summary: I accidentally erased the SPOILER WARNING for my review
Review: (the one that begins "One thing that bothers me...") so regard this as the SW for that review. While I'm here I might as well add that I thought that at the end of the film, the way the ship disappeared into the ocean in one quick gulp was kind of affecting in a strange way. Not realistic, but it suited the mood of the scene.
Rating:
Summary: One thing that bothers me...
Review: ...is that at the end of this film Clifton Webb's son heroically gives up his seat in the lifeboat to a woman who's old enough to be his grandmother! I can see him doing this for a young girl his own age, but WHY should he do it for someone who A) has already lived out most of her life, and B) is apparently selfish enough to accept his offer without concerning herself about what's going to happen to HIM. That really left a bad taste in my mouth. I'm sure some people will say that the kid simply wanted to die with his father and didn't care who got his seat. I find it hard to believe that was intended, but if it was that stinks as well. And it also bugs me that it's the "out-of-wedlock" kid who dies in this picture, in one stroke punishing Barbara Stanwyck's character for her affair and neatly removing the result of it from the family tree. That may sound cynical but I've seen too many films from this era not to wonder about it. Apart from that, I liked the story okay. It is touching. Clifton Webb and Barbara Stanwyck are great as usual, and the younger folks do okay as well. James Cameron seems to have borrowed a little here and there from the young couple...the fact that the boy teaches the girl to dance like a commoner, for instance.
Rating:
Summary: Got it right the FIRST TIME
Review: Although theoretically the 1997 version is not a remake of this
wonderful film, I still dont see any reason for it to have been remade. The cast is excellent, and the special effects, while less spectacular than the new are still quite good. And that cast! Barbara Stanwyck and Clifton Webb are wonderful, and how about that very very young Robert Wagner! Its the minor roles that stand out though. Thelma Ritter as the Molly Brown character and Richard Basehart as the defrocked priest come to mind,as do Brian Ahern as the Captain and Edmund Purdom as Lightoller. If it ain't broke,dont fix it OR REMAKE IT!
Rating: 
Summary: Stays "Afloat" Long After The Film is Over!
Review: Any film with Clifton Webb, Barbara Stanwyck, and the indomitable Thelma Ritter is worth a "look see." Sure, James Cameron had 200 million bucks and state-of-the-art special effects (along with the camera-friendly Leo and Kate). But, this 1953 film has class in its performances from the principals. Much shorter than the 1997 epic and filmed in black and white, the film holds its own as a good movie. In fact, the B & W adds stark realism to the tragedy. Watch carefully for the stunning announcement Stanwyck makes to husband Webb in their cabin prior to the fateful collision. This was somewhat shocking for the time! I know when I saw this scene upon first viewing, my mouth dropped open!
Rating:
Summary: WINNER, Best Ficticious Characters on Board the "Titanic"
Review: Anyone would have to agree that the best FILM ever made about the Titanic is "A Night to Remember" because it tells the blow by blow true story, from sailing to sinking, based on Walter Lord's excellent book of the same name. But if you're looking for a MOVIE, that is, something which is like an historical novel version of the tragedy, then I'd steer you to this one starring Clifton Webb and Barbara Stanwyck.
Stanwyck has boarded the ship with her son and daughter while running away from her husband Webb. She has lost most of her respect for her sartorially resplendent husband and believes that he is making a snob out of the teenaged daughter. Webb has outwitted her, however, and bought an immigrant's ticket in order to make the passage. He and Stanwyck do an excellent job of portraying a bad marriage gone even worse when, trying to inflict more pain on her husband, Stanwyck makes a startling disclosure that hits Webb just about as hard as the iceberg will the ship.
Lots of other interesting passengers aboard too: The daughter is being courted by college man Robert Wagner, while Richard Basehart is a defrocked priest who finally gets his act together when the presence of a clergyman is needed most. And as real-life passengers, Thelma Ritter as Molly Brown and Brian Aherne as Captain Smith both do a great job.
Best scenes? The aforementioned bombshell Stanwyck delivers to Webb; Captain Smith realizing that the ship is listing to one side as he listens to some college kids singing their alma mater; and finally, Webb's tear-filled eyes as he bids farewell to Stanwyck just before she gets into a lifeboat. This is a "Titanic" with characters who care about each other, and whom we can consequently care about ourselves.
If you're looking for something sudsier than the factual "A Night to Remember", then your ship has come in with this great tearjerker.
Rating:
Summary: WINNER, Best Ficticious Characters on Board the "Titanic"
Review: Anyone would have to agree that the best FILM ever made about the Titanic is "A Night to Remember" because it tells the blow by blow true story, from sailing to sinking, based on Walter Lord's excellent book of the same name. But if you're looking for a MOVIE, that is, something which is like an historical novel version of the tragedy, then I'd steer you to this one starring Clifton Webb and Barbara Stanwyck.
Stanwyck has boarded the ship with her son and daughter while running away from her husband Webb. She has lost most of her respect for her sartorially resplendent husband and believes that he is making a snob out of the teenaged daughter. Webb has outwitted her, however, and bought an immigrant's ticket in order to make the passage. He and Stanwyck do an excellent job of portraying a bad marriage gone even worse when, trying to inflict more pain on her husband, Stanwyck makes a startling disclosure that hits Webb just about as hard as the iceberg will the ship.
Lots of other interesting passengers aboard too: The daughter is being courted by college man Robert Wagner, while Richard Basehart is a defrocked priest who finally gets his act together when the presence of a clergyman is needed most. And as real-life passengers, Thelma Ritter as Molly Brown and Brian Aherne as Captain Smith both do a great job.
Best scenes? The aforementioned bombshell Stanwyck delivers to Webb; Captain Smith realizing that the ship is listing to one side as he listens to some college kids singing their alma mater; and finally, Webb's tear-filled eyes as he bids farewell to Stanwyck just before she gets into a lifeboat. This is a "Titanic" with characters who care about each other, and whom we can consequently care about ourselves.
If you're looking for something sudsier than the factual "A Night to Remember", then your ship has come in with this great tearjerker.
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