Universal appeal

Rating: 10/10 (8 February 2019)

I think what I most admire about this film is how it is accessible to everyone. If you are interested in romance it has an earnest love triangle that is structured like a classic melodrama, i.e. woman caught between the poor guy who represents liberation and the rich guy who represents safety. If you are interested in history it handles the Titanic story in a straight forward way and all the well known aspects are covered, i.e. the band playing during the sinking. If you are an action fan the actual sinking is quite impressive and engaging. If you are interested in cinematic techniques the film is a showcase of then cutting edge effects. And if you are so inclined to be snarky about any of that the film let's you be with relative ease. None of these threads really dominate the film and Cameron does a great job balancing all of them. I don't think anyone will like this film but I can't imagine how somehow would utterly hate it.
For my money I rather enjoy the old fashioned spirit and how earnest the film is. Both because it is fun to be snarky about Jack and Rose. (JACK! ROSE!). But more often than not I rather get swept up in the melodrama. I utter aware of the writing issues and yet I still feel melancholy at the end of the film.
On my last re-watch I was struck by how well the special effects have stood up over time. There are shots/effects here and there that no longer work fully but on the whole the film presents the sinking and the like in a very believable way. Cameron does a great job of mixing up the illusions to make it all work.
Yes this is a middle brow film. But just go with it.