Titanic: 20 Years Ago, Today (October 1st 1998-2018)
By Nabil Bakri
(all pictures belong to Nabil Bakri)
You might also want to read:
Available in Indonesian: Titanic, Film Terbaik yangPernah Diciptakan
This article is an update for: Take A Closer Look toTitanic Home Videos
In 2017, Fox released a special anniversary edition of Titanic in theatres bearing the capability of showing movies in DolbyCinema. If ‘everything 3D’ was the hype surrounding the 15th anniversary re-release of Titanic in 2012, the world has changed rapidly in only 5 years, opening the way to 4K and beyond with brilliant dynamic range picture quality, to entertain moviegoers worldwide. In the world where virtual is considered the new reality (you might want to watch Ready Player One or re-run that dusty Matrix Trilogy box-set DVD in the shelf), the need for ‘getting off-the-line’ has never been more critical than today (2018, that is, if you read this in the future which I guess will face the same thing but worse). So, when less and less people going to theatres, the industry should find newer ways to attract viewers out of their cosy homes and latest viral videos in their latest android models. From square-screen theatres to wide-screen, from Dolby Stereo to Dolby Atmos or DTS-X, from the world of next-gen 3D to Ultra-HD movies equipped with High Dynamic Range, the world of cinema is always dynamic. But there’s an interesting story in the history of cinema.
The new Star Wars movie was a big sensation, but it was in theatres for few months only, very normal, nothing peculiar. The next instalment of Marvel’s Cinematic Universe, the Avengers Infinity War, was even a bigger sensation, but just as any other movies, it was in theatres for few months only, then the digital download, DVD, Blu-ray, etc. came along, and that’s it and nothing strange. So, if the normal circumstance is a movie, no matter how big it is, should stay in theatres for few months only, and if the movie is available for download or purchase (DVD), it means that it’s no longer in theatres, how would you explain this:
“The film (Titanic) stayed in theaters in North America for almost 10 months before finally closing on Thursday, October 1, 1998 with a final domestic gross of $600,788,188. Outside North America, the film made double its North American gross, generating $1,242,413,080 and accumulating a grand total of $1,843,201,268 worldwide from its initial theatrical run.” (Wikipedia (Valid information, Checked), based on Box Office Mojo and The Daily Telegraph)
Yes! (December 1997-October 1998) Titanic was in theatres for nearly a year! Yikes! So, even though people said that as 2017 ended, the 20th anniversary of Titanic had also ended, I myself consider the end of its 20th anniversary is as of October 1st 2018. Titanic was in theatres even though countless Home Video Distributors released it worldwide in four different ‘major’ formats; VHS, Laserdisc, Video CD, and the exciting ‘new’ DVD. Now that is something beyond ordinary. Now, in order to celebrate such an achievement, to celebrate Titanic’s final 20th Anniversary, I would like to update my Titanic movie catalogue for the last time (before the next one if there’s any, haha)
VIDEO CD
I still do not have any Titanic on VHS, partly because I do not have a VCR and also because I could not find one that’s available in my region. The same situation is also true for Laserdisc, but also because I do not like Laserdisc because they do not have spines that’ll look good and shiny in shelf. Since I’m in Indonesia, the obvious format that I own is Video CD. The one that I own is, as of 2018, 18 years old and still play just fine. This version was released by Musica VideoVan included in their catalogue of ‘Original Video CD Premiere’, a very popular selection in the early 2000’s in Indonesia. The movie is split in to 3 discs in two jewel cases wrapped in a slipcover. This is not the sole version of Titanic on Video CD, but in terms of audio and video quality, this version is the worst. In 2005, MagixEyes re-released Titanic on Video CD but with regular DVD box and much better picture quality. See, even the same format could deliver different picture quality. Sadly, I do not have this version included in their catalogue as ‘New Version’, a series of previously released Fox Movies enhanced in terms of picture quality with Digital Encoding Process, offering the best possible picture quality on Video CD, arguably nearly as good as pristine VHS but won’t degrade through time.
DVD
Now this is the most famous home video format ever, so I guess maybe many of you own one of these Titanic DVDs that I own. I have three versions of Titanic on DVD. The first one is the Deluxe Collector’s Edition released in 2008. The movie is split in to 2 discs in order to preserve the SD quality at its best. It is indeed possible to encode the full movie to one disc, but that will decrease the bitrate, the resolution, and the overall audio-video quality of the format. This version has a third bonus disc. There are Behind the Scene modes and audio commentaries in disc 1 and 2, and Celine’s My Heart will Go On music video in disc 2. Each disc has its own opening screen before the menu appears. The third disc is very special and informative because it has an interesting documentary Breaking New Ground and many other backstage programs.
The second one is the 15th Anniversary Edition. There’s nothing special about this version other than better picture quality and several edits of the imperfect special/practical effects in the original (e.g. the iron-thingy that’s made of rubber in the original is now fixed). I do not have fancy audio equipment so I cannot give you any information about the major differences in each format, but the grid explaining the specification of the Deluxe Edition DVD says that the Deluxe version is encoded with 6.1 Dolby Audio while the newer 15th Anniversary Edition is 5.1. The only thing I hate from the newer version is that it has no bonus disc and the special feature is merely the deleted scenes. If you own this version only, you’re clearly missing a lot. But this is partly-mostly because the studio wanted to give it all to the blu-ray version because most of the special features are already added in the Deluxe edition.
This third one is the actual update to this article, one that I purchased on January of 2018. This one is the Ultimate Edition released in Japan in 2005. Although it looks more exclusive thatn the Indonesian Deluxe Edition, the two versions are basically similar. Only, the Ultimate Edition has much-much better package design. You could find a catalogue inviting you to a DVD special sale that sadly expired in 2006. I’m so glad that I could purchase this one sealed from the store. What I hate from this version is that the special features only have Japanese subtitles. But what this version has that the Deluxe doesn’t is Japanese voice-over, I kinda enjoy Titanic in Japanese.
I know that there are multiple versions of Titanic on Blu-ray, but I only have the Special 15th Anniversary Edition box set. Now this is mostly because other versions were heavily criticised for being the Windows Vista before Windows 7, a-k-a, it’s better to just purchase the ultimate box set rather than the regular versions because you’ll get all the features of the regular version plus much-much more physical features. I also despise the plain-blue artwork for the regular version and prefer the box set version. Well, my Titanic on Blu-ray comes with 4 disc: Titanic in 3D part one and two in disc one and two, Titanic in HD in (finally) single disc 3, and lastly the special features in disc 4. The thing that makes this version special is that it has two new documentaries that won’t be found in any previous DVD releases. BUT, don’t throw away the DVD just yet because the Blu-ray does not include the vintage documentary from Fox, Breaking New Ground, and it has no behind the scene mode and no opening scenes before menu. Plus, you cannot experience the unaltered version on Blu-ray. Other than that, this one is overall a great package.
AUDIO CD
I own two versions of Titanic OST CD and one Celine Dion album, Let’s Talk about Love, which is the actual album in which My Heart will Go On actually belongs to. The first CD is the original release, the same as the actual CDs released back in 1997, although I purchased the newly produced one in February 2018. The second one is the CD released in 2012 accompanying Titanic’s 15th Anniversary Edition. I bought this version back in 2014, so I own this one before the original. There are many differences between these two versions. The most obvious one is the artwork. Plus, the 15th Anniversary Edition is packed with a slipcover with a very nice and informative booklet and physical bonuses including several collectible stickers.
Unlike the original, this version came out with two discs, remarking the first time the full music of the Titanic band played by I Salonisti released officially worldwide. However, this is still NOT the full score of Titanic. The album with FULL and UNALTERED score was released in celebrating Titanic’s 20th Anniversary and consists of four discs. Sadly, I do not own this version.
Now, about Celine’s album, I got to admit that this is one of my favourite albums and not just because it includes My Heart will Go On (plus bear in mind that My Heart will Go On included in this Album is DIFFERENT from one included in Titanic OST album). I like many of its songs, I like the songs Us, Be the Man, Tell Him, Miles to Go, and Immortality. But then again, this album became so phenomenal because of the Titanic soundtrack, so this album can be considered a Titanic collector’s item.
OTHERS
I do love learning and finding new facts and myths about Titanic. Thanks to the internet, many of Titanic documentaries are available online, even on YouTube. So, I do not own many Titanic documentaries, just two: Inside the Titanic released in 2012 commemorating the 100th year of Titanic, and The Iceberg that Sank the Titanic released in 2006 exploring the emergence of the iceberg that sank the Titanic, underlying how real fate is. Apart from these and many other documentaries available online, I think the documentaries added to Titanic the Deluxe Edition and 15th Anniversary Edition are very well-produced and very informative, becoming the essential information about not only the making of Titanic the movie, but the actual ship herself. I also made a copy of A Night to Remember because it is now in public domain and you can watch and download the movie on YouTube.
BOOKS
Again, with so much information available online, I do not really feel the need to own many books concerning the history of Titanic. These books that I own were purchased a decade ago and I’ve never purchased any book concerning Titanic ever since. But since I happened to own these books, why not sharing it here as an update?
WRAP UP
So, the updates are: Titanic Ultimate Edition (Japan), Titanic Original Motion Picture Soundtrack CD, Let’s Talk about Love Album by Celine Dion, and a copy of A Night to Remember. Thank you for joining me remembering a cinema masterpiece that became a world phenomenon. Thank you for James Cameron for making such amazing film that enthrals me and many other people throughout the years for 20 years, and I hope Titanic will continue to captivate million others decades to come…
(All pictures belong to Nabil Bakri, captured on a Samsung Camera device and Sony CyberShot)
Titanic on various media available in stores
Layout updated in 2022 to celebrate Titanic 25th Anniversary