Titanic: The Final Word with James Cameron

Titanic: Final Word with James Cameron (2012)

**** (out of 4)

Excellent documentary has director James Cameron sitting down with eight experts as they try to discover what really happened that tragic night when over 1,500 died. The nine men are basically locked in a room where they look at updated data, new animation, actual photos and various other bits of information. The group basically want to know why the ship sank so quickly, why it broke in two and at various speeds that all of this happened. People can say what they want about the attitude or cockiness of Cameron but there's no denying that he knows how to make a movie. This documentary was meant to be his final word on the subject and it's clear that he wanted it to be the final word on what really happened that night. I'm sure others will come along to debunk the evidence shown here and I'm sure there are a few members of this panel that doesn't agree with everything that is said. It does seem clear that Cameron had the final word on everything but there's no denying that this is an incredibly interesting documentary because it brings to life so many new theories on what happened and we get some wonderful computer animation showing what might have happened and when. We also get some beautiful diagrams of the ocean floor and we get to see where everything was located. Not only do we see it but we also get diagrams of how the stuff got where it landed. The documentary ends with some very interesting segments including one where they debate what could have been done to save everyone on board. Cameron also talks about some of the mistakes in his movie but thankfully he says he's not going to fix them and is going to let the movie stand. History buffs and those just curious with the romance of Titanic should really enjoy this documentary. Who knows if it will really be Cameron's final word on the subject but it's certainly a terrific document of the events.

I won't get into the politics the previous reviewer brought up about Cameron, since one man's opinions and ideas and thoughts are their own - though you can't deny that Cameron does have a point towards the last conclusion. Instead I'll just quickly talk about my impressions of the documentary. It is very well put together. You have, first and foremost a panel of various professionals and researchers and throughout it there are interviews with them which provide a more emotional side to the documentary aside from the analytical talk with the scenes of the "roundtable" of researchers. Cameron provides various animations from beginning to the end based on factual data they've all come up with throughout the years and it's really fascinating to watch all of it. I especially loved the bits when Cameron's pre-vis artist demonstrated an animation of real-time sinking of the ship post break-up. Quite a sight. You have various other animations based on data that was eye-opening as well. You also have bits and pieces where Cameron and the team discuss the new information and relate it to his film - what he got right and what he got wrong. The overall production quality is solid, even down to the set they're in, very good music plays throughout it as well, sort of above standard type of pieces you'd normally see in these made for TV documentaries. Filled with more emotion that fits the interviews or the scenes. If you're an avid Titanic fan like me, who's been fascinated with the ship and its fate since 10 years old - you are no doubt going to enjoy it. That isn't to say people who don't know much or don't care wouldn't - it would actually be more informative for them. However all in all, it's a solid piece regardless. Well put together.

I am a pretty big James Cameron fan, and I think he's a smart guy with a lot of knowledge on Titanic.

But he is not a scientist. He's not a physicist. He has no training in hydrodynamics, metallurgy or engineering. He is a film maker, and that's all.

So it was fairly galling to have to watch him throughout the entirety of this film saying "I think this", "I think that", while other actual scientists with actual training in the above fields are disagreeing with him, but he bluntly refuses to acknowledge their input.

Some of those scientists actually say in the film: "You can disagree with James, so long as you have all your evidence ready, lined up in a row and doing a chorus line." James, however, seems to require no evidence at all for any his theories, and blindly bulldozes over the actual science with his own narrative.

So if you are looking for a truly science based, forensic detailing of the Titanic sinking, this movie is not it.

What this movie DOES have though is some absolutely fantastic, modern footage of the wreck. That at least was worth seeing.

So stick to the film making James, and in future leave the science to the scientists.

Fine documentary over the famous Titanic on dark night when it sunk in north atlantic with several experts over the vessel, but James Cameron has your own opinion about the disaster, he asking for everybody answers for each single episode in discussion, whatever the answers he has the final word as describe the title, a bit too long, however very impressive details over that night, highly recommended for those who want to go beyond about the famous disaster!!

Resume:

First watch: 2018 / How many: 1 / Source: Blu-ray / Rating: 7.25

When I sat down to watch the 2012 documentary "Titanic: The Final Word with James Cameron", I must admit that I was a little bit skeptical, given the fact that Cameron might be biased in this documentary.

But it turned out that he actually took a very neutral and analytical approach to the questions asked, and weren't afraid to admit that given the light shed on things during the making of the documentary from some of the simulations run for it, that his portrayal of the events in his feature movie were not 100% accurate.

For me it was nice to see the level of enthusiasm and commitment that the people involved with the documentary were showing in order to portray things as closely to being accurate as possible. And it was exciting and entertaining to watch the documentary unfold and see the results of the various theories and simulations.

And of course, the documentary was spruced up not only with footage from Cameron's film, but also some new animation and rendering, which was definitely good.

I think that "Titanic: The Final Word with James Cameron" definitely shed some much needed light on the actual events of the sinking of the ocean liner and putting some of the romanticized notions of the actual sinking to rest - pardon the pun.

This 2012 documentary was quite enjoyable, but keep in mind that it deals mostly with the events of the sinking, not going into details about the construction, the ship itself, the crew, and what not. No, this was focused primarily on the sinking itself.

My rating of "Titanic: The Final Word with James Cameron" lands on a well-deserved seven out of ten stars.