Yes, I think this is a GREAT film

Rating: 10/10 (21 December 2003)

"Titanic"....this movie on the surface would normally strike fear into the hearts of film fans like myself, who usually despise most typical mainstream drivel. While I am a huge film fan, I rarely go to the movies in theaters anymore because everything just looks so BAD. The last film I have seen in theaters was actually "Spider-Man," a great film marred by the horrible cartoonish special effects.
My tastes in film vary greatly...I love the classics (Cagney, Bogie, etc), romance, B-flicks, Godzilla films, car chases, superhero stuff and much more. However, almost all the films I like were made before the 90's, when film started to get REALLY bad. I also love to observe a good phenomenon - whoch "Titanic" became almost instantly.
I read all about "Titanic" before it was released, how the budget went up to a staggering $200 million making the film a tremendous gamble. When it was released in late '97, it did very good but not great numbers - but the word of mouth on this film was unlike anything seen since Star Wars probably - the box office take remained steady for a LONG time. As weeks went by, it actually earned more and more, and the phenomenon had started.
Then in late 1998, when the film was still playing some theaters almost a year later, and for a whole year we've heard how unbelievable "Titanic" was and how Leo was adored by girls all over the world and how hot Kate was - I finally kicked in 2 bucks at a discount theater to see what all the fuss was finally about. Alone (in a packed theater) as not to be distracted by a friend, I got my snick snacks, found my seat, and watched with a completely open mind.
Three hours later, I, who again hates virtually everything mainstream these days, said to myself, that was one of the greatest films I had ever seen.
Many say "Titanic" is "fomulatic," "typical Hollywood drivel," and the famous, "...but we know the ending, the ship sinks." I say, "Titanic" was an extremely rare present-day excursion in old-school grandiose film-making. Huge sets were built as opposed to having everything drawn with computer effects. It was a great romantic story, which the audience was compelled to feel for, especially having the knowledge ahead of time that it would be doomed ("the ship sinks"). It had great drama, great music (even the one song I can stand hearing Celine Dion sing), and a lot of heart from James Cameron who, love him or hate him, showed amazing dedication to getting his epic on screen.
And say whatever you want about Leonardo DiCaprio - he was excellent in Titanic and is one of the very best actors out there right now.
Anyone who has read some of my other reviews would know that I hate computer effects. But the CGI in "Titanic" is the one instance where they actually do work a little, because they do not overtake the picture and aren't the focus. It definitely is not the same as watching a cartoon Spider-Man battle a cartoon Green Goblin in a film that is not supposed to be a cartoon.
"Titanic," dare I say, is the "Gone With The Wind" of our time. it's a huge movie, a blood, sweat and tears movie, a movie with some real elbow grease behind it. And never boring for a second.
"Titanic" is arguably the best film of the 90's (only "Goodfellas" gives it a run for that title in my opinion), and is probably one of the greatest 40 films ever made. Now that may be a surprising thing for me to say given I am such a huge fan of the classics, but however rare it may be, there are extremely rare instances when something new is in the same league as something classic.
One last note - it is surprising that this film has such a bare-bones DVD out. While there are rumors that a "special edition" DVD is in the works, the present DVD is a disappointment with no extras at all. Considering this movie at three hours long had two hours CUT from it alone would make some good extras in deleted scenes. Add on the commentaries, a few "makings of" and add on a bunch of other crap and you have got a killer, proper DVD release for "Titanic."