Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #4395 in DVD
• Released on: 2005-11-07
• Rating: Suitable for 12 years and over
• Aspect ratio: 2.35:1
• Formats: Anamorphic, DTS Surround Sound, PAL, Special Edition, THX
• Original language: English
• Subtitled in: Danish, Finnish, Greek, Icelandic, Norwegian, Portuguese, Swedish
• Number of discs: 4
• Running time: 186 minutes

Amazon.co.uk Review
When the theatrical release of James Cameron's Titanic was delayed from July to December of 1997, media pundits speculated that Cameron's $200 million disaster epic would cause the director's downfall, signal the end of the blockbuster era, and sink Paramount Studios as quickly as the ill-fated luxury liner had sunk on that fateful night of April 14, 1912. Some studio executives were confident, others horrified, but the clarity of hindsight turned Cameron into an Oscar-winning genius, a shrewd businessman, and one of the most successful directors in the history of motion pictures. Titanic would surpass the $1 billion mark in global box-office receipts (largely due to multiple viewings, the majority by teenage girls), win 11 Academy Awards including best picture and director, produce the best-selling movie soundtrack of all time, and make a global superstar of Leonardo DiCaprio. A bona fide pop-cultural phenomenon, the film has all the ingredients of a blockbuster (romance, passion, luxury, grand scale, a snidely villain, and an epic, life-threatening crisis), but Cameron's alchemy of these ingredients proved more popular than anyone could have predicted. His stroke of genius was to combine absolute authenticity with a pair of fictional lovers whose tragic fate would draw viewers into the heart-wrenching reality of the Titanic disaster. As starving artist Jack Dawson and soon-to-be-married socialite Rose DeWitt Bukater, DiCaprio and Kate Winslet won the hearts of viewers around the world, and their brief but never-forgotten love affair provides the humanity that Cameron needed to turn Titanic into an emotional experience. Present-day framing scenes (featuring Gloria Stuart as the 101-year-old Rose) add additional resonance to the story, and although some viewers proved vehemently immune to Cameron's manipulations, few can deny the production's impressive achievements. Although some of the computer-generated visual effects look artificial, others--such as the sunset silhouette of Titanic during its first evening at sea, or the climactic splitting of the ship's sinking hull--are state-of-the-art marvels. In terms of sets and costumes alone, the film is never less than astounding. More than anything else, however, the film's overwhelming popularity speaks for itself. Titanic is an event film and a monument to Cameron's risk-taking audacity, blending the tragic irony of the Titanic disaster with just enough narrative invention to give the historical event its fullest and most timeless dramatic impact. Titanic is an epic love story on par with Gone with the Wind, and like that earlier box-office phenomenon, it's a film for the ages. --Jeff Shannon, Amazon.com

Synopsis
Featuring spectacular special effects set amidst the backdrop of one of the most tragic events of the 20th Century, James Cameron's award-winning 'Titanic' stands as one of the greatest Hollywood spectaculars of all time. Beginning with an undersea expedition in the 1990s, in which scuba divers are searching the sunken ship for lost relics, a painting of young Rose DeWitt Bukater (Kate Winslet) is found. This triggers a flashback to the young woman's story as it happened on the doomed Titanic. Rose is a daughter of privilege on her way to be married to an arrogant but wealthy young man (Billy Zane). Despairing, Rose finds herself falling in love with Jack Dawson (Leonardo DiCaprio), a carefree and poor young artist who is also aboard. When the great ship strikes an iceberg and begins to sink, Rose and Jack have only each other as their world falls apart around them. Director James Cameron spared no expense in bringing his simple yet powerful love story to life, building a 90 per cent scale model of the ship, fussing over the tiniest details, and ultimately spending some 200 million U.S. dollars. A worldwide smash, 'Titanic' received fourteen Academy Award nominations and 11 wins, including Best Picture. Despite all the lavish sets and special effects, the film would be nothing without the emotional core provided by stars Winslet and DiCaprio, who give star making performances as the tragic young lovers.

Customer Reviews

frustrating
This is just a basic review on the extras provided with the main film, which is split over 2 discs. The split point is well placed, and disc 2 does not have the usual long DVD intros, but resumes the film immediately.
Regarding the extras, I have to say that the parodies are spectaculary unfunny.
The option to watch the commentaries with 'pods' that pause the film to explain how it was filmed is great.
My gripe is with the commentaries, the historians commentary provides a wealth of information, but is way too uncritical of the directors choice in portraying events that may not have happened, such as Officer Murdoch shooting passengers and commiting suicide. The excuse that this could be shown as no one can prove it 'did not happen' is wholly unacceptable.
Likewise, James Cameron brushes it off in a way that suggests adding more drama to the story overides facts.
My other gripe is with the 29 deleted scenes, So many of them are short scenes based on actual events, but were left out as they 'moved the focus of the story from Jack and Rose'. This seems an incredible shame, but I suppose the love story gave it the appeal that a documentary style could never achieve.
All in all its a great disc set to own, but it actually left me with the feeling that a far better film was lost in the process.

Titanic
Superb quality of picture and outstanding soundtrack!!!
Beautiful scenary and magical actors playing!!!
You must see this film if you have not seen it yet!!!

Must have if you love this film
I think Titanic is the best film ever made, the only film to ever make me cry even when I've seen it several times already. If you dont really enjoy the film I dont need to say that you dont need this edition, but if you love it like me, I think you have to own it.

There are plenty of extras, perhaps some new documentaries would have been good, but of what there is; the deleted scenes add some new dimension to parts of the film. A few I understand were a bit dull and uneccesary, but there are a handful I felt deserved the final cut. The alternate ending is also interesting, and comes with a commentary by James Cameron, the commentaries provide a great insight to the making of the film - and nobody could deny that this must have been one hell of a film to make.

The one thing that annoyed me was the disc change half way through the film. Why?? is it really necessary, I mean its not as if no more would fit on the dvd, as they spread the extras through the discs.

Definately one for your collection if you're a big fan. It is beautifully packaged and miles better than the single disc version out there