In 1997 James Cameron’s ‘Titanic’ captured the hearts of millions of people. It became the first ever film to pass $1 billion worldwide and the highest grossing film of all time until Cameron’s own ‘Avatar’ passed it in 2009. It remained the highest box office grosser for fifteen consecutive weeks, still the most of any film. To say the least, something about the film resonated with us.
Now, James Cameron has restored the film in 3D. With the multitude of bad 3D conversions recently this might initially cause groaning, but, as it turns out, Cameron’s masterpiece film was safe in his hands. A painstaking amount of work must have been put into the conversion because the quality of 3D is reminiscent of Cameron’s film which started the 3D revolution: ‘Avatar’.
Nearly everyone has seen ‘Titanic’. It’s almost ubiquitous in American and even worldwide pop culture. But what our generation hasn’t had is the opportunity to see it in theaters. Seeing a film in theaters, especially one running over three hours, requires a much higher level of focus and immersion than does watching a movie on the couch. The audience is drawn into the film in a way that is truly remarkable. Seeing my favorite film in theaters for the first time was an incredible experience. I haven’t cried in my entire mature movie-watching career—I should say hadn’t. There is a level of emotion in the film that can only be found in the setting of a theater. Take advantage of this opportunity—you won’t get another until the genius that is Cameron invents 4D.