Come for the CGI and the love story, Stay for the sinking

Rating: 9/10 (15 December 2013)

Brock Lovett (Bill Paxton) is searching for a legendary gem called The Heart of the Ocean presumed lost on the Titanic. When he finds a drawing instead, Rose (Gloria Stuart/Kate Winslet) comes on board and tells her story of Titanic and her love Jack Dawson (Leonardo DiCaprio). She's a wealthy girl destined for a loveless marriage to the hateful Cal Hockley (Billy Zane). He's a wandering artist who won his Titanic ticket in a poker game. He would save her in every way that a person can be saved.
I have often railed against the insertion of a love story unnecessarily into a historical event like 'Pearl Harbor'. But I think James Cameron made the right decision here. The story is compelling by itself. Leo has that boyish charm. Kate and Leo has become a legendary Hollywood big screen pairing. This time it works because it's well written, and well acted.
There is the great CGI. It's relatively seamless, and ahead of its times. The engine room is magnificent, even better than the boat itself. The iceberg hit was very convincing.
Then there is the sinking. For something that is absolutely expected, it still shocks. The suspense of it all holds my attention every time. The last hour of the movie is perhaps one of the most tension filled sequence of all times. It is the incredible CGI as well as the amazing stunts. It marries the real world with the computer world, and have rarely been exceeded even to this day. It is more harrowing than all those 3D superheroes smashing into skyscrapers. For it's iconic status, I have to give this 9/10.