The Film:
After spending a long long time being built at the Harland and Wolff shipyard in Belfast, the Titanic was the second ship of a trio built to dominate the transatlantic travel scene. At the time of it's maiden voyage from Southampton, it was the biggest ship of its kind to have ever been built and was deemed as the 'unsinkable' liner. Ironic then, that on Titanic's maiden voyage, the liner managed to hit an iceberg. It took just 160 minutes for the ship to sink. Not only was the ship the biggest ever made at the time, but it was also the most luxurious bringing together many members of high society who had to get on a lifeboat or drown to death. Due to the nature of the story, the infamous ship has been the target of many films, including the self titled versions from 1943, 1953 and ,ore famously 1997. Raise The Titanic is a little different to the trend as it takes place many years after.
Raise The Titanic is in essence, about military warfare and the race to weapons. Hearing that the Russians are thinking about lifting the Titanic from it's grave, the Americans soon find out that it may be due to the fact that a rare mineral called Byzanium is thought to be on board. In order to reach this rare mineral they believe they must bring the Titanic up to the surface in what could be a near impossible task, but Admiral James Sandecker (Jason Robards - Crimson Tide, Enemy Of The State) and Dr Gene Seagram (David Selby - Intersection, White Squall) believe they have found just the man for the job when they enlist adventurer Dirk Pitt (Richard Jordan - Dune, Posse).
Based on the novel by Clive Cussler and directed by Jerry Jameson who is now living in TV movie hell, Raise The Titanic was a massive box office flop upon initial release, losing millions and becomng a laughing stock between critics. Whilst the film can certainly drag it's feet in places and does feel overly long on the whole, it is still an interesting drama which has moving scenes like when Dirk Pitt is given a flag from the Titanic by survivor John Bigelow (an excellent little cameo by Sir Alec Guiness). The direction is pretty good and the underwater scenes are well shot and the acting is adequate. Had the story been a bit more believable and faster paced, I don't think this film would have suffered from negative criticism as much as it did. Worth at least a rental.
Picture:
When DVD first hit stores ten years ago in 1997, a non-anamorphic transfer was quite a regular occurence. Fast track to 2007 and even the budget companies whose discs you can buy in Poundland and the like are getting anamorphic transfers. So why do Network seem so keen on releasing so many of their releases without this preferential treatment? Who knows, but it's happened here with Raise The Titanic being given a non-anamorphic transfer in the original aspect ratio of 2.35:1. It's a shame really as the print is quite a clean one with little grain and strong colours.
Audio:
Network have provided the film with an English Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo track and it's perfectly serviceable. Seperation is kept to a minimum but dialogue is clear at all times. There is some minor background hiss but no big problems. As usual, no subtitles are to be found.
Extras:
We start with an extensive array of image galleries:
- Image Gallery (6:03)
- The Jonathan Smith Collection of Rare Images (4:36)
- Time Lapse Titanic: How the Model Has Fared Over the Decades (2:54)
- Press Material Gallery (2:14)
Other than that, we just get a DVD-Rom Press Pack and a Theatrical Trailer.
