…and I’m not just referring to the ship. When this movie came out in 1980 (based on Clive Cussler’s bestselling book), the discovery of the real Titanic was still 5 years away. No way the filmmakers could know that and considering the condition of the real Titanic when it was discovered, this (in classic Hollywood tradition) is how it SHOULD have happened. Like the real ship, the film was plagued by a series of unlucky occurrences and cost overruns and when it finally was released, it sank without a trace (pun intended).
It brought about the end of Sir Lew (later Lord) Grade’s career as a viable film producer (with a final price tag of $40 million in 1980 currency he quipped that “it would have been cheaper to lower the Atlantic”) and it forestalled any chances of Clive Cussler’s Dirk Pitt becoming a movie franchise on the order of Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan. Looking at it again after 40 years, it is what it always was, a decent adventure yarn with a nice mix of espionage and scientific savvy. This new Blu-Ray/DVD release (one of a number of ITC films from the 1970s now coming out) allows the movie to be seen in its proper aspect ratio which looks good on a flatscreen although it’s not anamorphic. The special effects work is more noticeable here than it was on the big screen.
For those of you unfamiliar with Cussler’s book, the setting is then present day 1978. The U.S. and the Soviet Union are still locked in the Cold War. Traces of a powerful radioactive mineral are discovered in Siberia. This mineral could power a Star Wars type of defense system that could thwart any air attack against the country employing it. Naturally both countries want the mineral but the only known stockpile of it was on the Titanic and that’s why the ship must be raised. Cussler he-man Dirk Pitt (Richard Jordan) spearheads the salvage operation aided by Admiral James Sandecker (Jason Robards) and Dr Gene Seagram (David Selby).
The ship is found, raised, and towed to New York where it is greeted by cheering throngs. The original director was to have been Hollywood legend Stanley Kramer who backed out due to creative differences and the performances by the principal actors range from pretty good to OK. However the movie is worth seeing for Alec Guinness’ moving portrayal of a surviving crew member, the opening montage, and for John Barry’s magnificent score. Too bad it couldn’t have ended this way for the real Titanic but then there would have been no “King of the World!” if it had.
The Capsule Critic 