Titanic: 20 Years Later with James Cameron

For the 20th anniversary of "Titanic," James Cameron reopens the file on the disaster. Following numerous dives exploring the actual wreck, Cameron considers what they got right and wrong in the film. Not so much movie trivia as 'archeology' and more interesting than expected.

I picked up this DVD at my local library, as it's originally a National Geographic film which runs about 47 minutes. It has no subtitles but I was able to access them through the closed caption option on my remote.

In this documentary, James Cameron the writer and director of the iconic 1997 movie "Titanic" (which is probably by favorite film of all-time) looks back, now 20 years after the premiere of the movie, to see what he got right or wrong re the technical aspects of the production.

Rather amazing to see the detailed work Cameron put into "Titanic" to make it as realistic as possible. No wonder it came across as such a masterpiece.

In this doc, he examines how exactly the H.M.S. Titanic may have sank, the question of whether additional lifeboats would have made a difference, and how exact were his sets in the movie. In 1985, oceanographer Robert Ballard found the wreckage of the ship and Cameron, using a submersible, examined the wreckage in detail. Rather creepy to hear that human bones dissolve at those depths while articles such as boots and shoes, treated with tannic acid remained intact.

Cameron admits that in trying to get at the exact technicalities of the disaster, he can lose sight of the human loss (nearly 1500 passengers and crew died-with about 700 rescued) and the cost to families over generations. He interviews some surviving relatives of that fateful night in 1912, who share their thoughts and memories of their loved ones.

Overall, an interesting re-examination of the Titanic sinking, interspersed with movie clips and interviews. Worth the watch for sure, in my opinion.

James Cameron is an arrogant piece of work. While there is certainly some interesting stuff here, Cameron acting like he owns the wreck of the Titanic ruined this for me. You will certainly be in no doubt about how many times he has been to the wreck site.

This is vaguely interesting but it's also a supreme waste of time and resources. I understand the appeal of the movie and the historical significance. This is a weird kind of pointless curiosity. I can't help but wonder, what is the point of this exercise? Also the "what if" scenario, it's kind of unclear if it's in relation to the movie or reality.

Very interesting to revisit the film (which I loved) as Cameron reassesses what details/design he got right/wrong after continuing to make dives to the wreckage (over 30!) after the films release. This doc concentrates on set design and the details he had to assume or guess, most of which he did guess right, while also solving some unanswered questions about what really happened. Included are several surviving family members opinions on how they deemed the film. A lot of information and behind-the-scene type interviews packed in this 1 hour doc!! Will future blue rays contain this in extras?