Titanic (1953)
Studio: 20th Century Fox
Theatrical Release: April 11, 1953
Blu Ray Release: January 15, 2013
Director: Jean Negulesco
Not Rated
Review by James Klein
I have never seen the James Cameron version of Titanic. Yes, I am one of the few people who never had a desire to see it. I am not the biggest fan of romantic films nor I am a fan of the modern special effect where everything is done by computers. Throw in the most annoying song ever, and the 1997 Titanic was bound to be a recipe for a film I was certain to hate and one I just never wanted to see. And three hours? Ha, no sire! So with my review of the 1953 Titanic now on blu ray, I cannot compare it to the Cameron film nor would I think it would be fair to.
Titanic is a very interesting film in that its central characters of husband and wife Richard and Julia (Clifton Webb and Barbara Stanwyck) seem to be going through a potential separation as Richard has to bribe his way onto the ship as he chases his soon to be ex wife onto the Titanic as she tries to take her two children away from him. Richard is a cold man and his belief in the higher class is just getting too much to handle for Julia. She wants to raise her children properly and her eldest daughter Annette is already starting to act stuck up and coldly like her father. While Richard promises that she can never take his children away from him, she breaks the news that their youngest child, Norman is not his son.
Meanwhile on the ship there are a few side stories, one regarding a priest who has lost his faith as well as a young college boy (a very young Robert Wagner) who has his eye on Annette. While the small romance between the two young people is briefly touched upon, the story of this priest who lost his faith is never fully fleshed out and his quick demise almost makes the viewer wonder what the point of his storyline really held. While I am sure there would be many interesting stories Titanic could consider showing, I would have preferred the film to stick with the estranged couple and their family which thankfully, most of the film did center on.
When the ship does smash into the iceberg and starts to sink, there are plenty of moving moments with various characters, all done without any music thus making these scenes all the more realistic and heart breaking. Richard and Julia's reconciliation, while not solving anything, is very moving. I love Richard telling his wife that he wishes it was June again, 20 years ago when he first saw her. And with Richard dying with his "son" as they sink, telling him how much he loves him is beautiful.
The new blu ray by 20th Century Fox is very nice. The 1:33 ratio actually works better for this film as the movie focuses more on the claustrophobic relationship of this estranged marriage of two people. If shot in Cinemascope, I feel the movie would lose some of its dramatic punch. The image looks great and the mono soundtrack works just fine. The special features are pretty neat with two audio commentary tracks. One with a film historian but the other with original cinematographer Michael Lonzo as well as actors Audrey Dalton and Robert Wagner. I enjoyed the two Fox Movietone News serials about the film, showing the Academy Awards with Titanic winning Best Screenplay. Rounding out the special features is a rather long trailer for the film.
Forget Leo and Kate, I'll take Clifton Webb and Barbara Stanwyck over them any day.
[Rating:4]
Theatrical Release: April 11, 1953
Blu Ray Release: January 15, 2013
Director: Jean Negulesco
Not Rated
Review by James Klein
I have never seen the James Cameron version of Titanic. Yes, I am one of the few people who never had a desire to see it. I am not the biggest fan of romantic films nor I am a fan of the modern special effect where everything is done by computers. Throw in the most annoying song ever, and the 1997 Titanic was bound to be a recipe for a film I was certain to hate and one I just never wanted to see. And three hours? Ha, no sire! So with my review of the 1953 Titanic now on blu ray, I cannot compare it to the Cameron film nor would I think it would be fair to.
Titanic is a very interesting film in that its central characters of husband and wife Richard and Julia (Clifton Webb and Barbara Stanwyck) seem to be going through a potential separation as Richard has to bribe his way onto the ship as he chases his soon to be ex wife onto the Titanic as she tries to take her two children away from him. Richard is a cold man and his belief in the higher class is just getting too much to handle for Julia. She wants to raise her children properly and her eldest daughter Annette is already starting to act stuck up and coldly like her father. While Richard promises that she can never take his children away from him, she breaks the news that their youngest child, Norman is not his son.
Meanwhile on the ship there are a few side stories, one regarding a priest who has lost his faith as well as a young college boy (a very young Robert Wagner) who has his eye on Annette. While the small romance between the two young people is briefly touched upon, the story of this priest who lost his faith is never fully fleshed out and his quick demise almost makes the viewer wonder what the point of his storyline really held. While I am sure there would be many interesting stories Titanic could consider showing, I would have preferred the film to stick with the estranged couple and their family which thankfully, most of the film did center on.
When the ship does smash into the iceberg and starts to sink, there are plenty of moving moments with various characters, all done without any music thus making these scenes all the more realistic and heart breaking. Richard and Julia's reconciliation, while not solving anything, is very moving. I love Richard telling his wife that he wishes it was June again, 20 years ago when he first saw her. And with Richard dying with his "son" as they sink, telling him how much he loves him is beautiful.
The new blu ray by 20th Century Fox is very nice. The 1:33 ratio actually works better for this film as the movie focuses more on the claustrophobic relationship of this estranged marriage of two people. If shot in Cinemascope, I feel the movie would lose some of its dramatic punch. The image looks great and the mono soundtrack works just fine. The special features are pretty neat with two audio commentary tracks. One with a film historian but the other with original cinematographer Michael Lonzo as well as actors Audrey Dalton and Robert Wagner. I enjoyed the two Fox Movietone News serials about the film, showing the Academy Awards with Titanic winning Best Screenplay. Rounding out the special features is a rather long trailer for the film.
Forget Leo and Kate, I'll take Clifton Webb and Barbara Stanwyck over them any day.
[Rating:4]
Post a Comment