Blitz nell'oceano

I have never understood the degree of ire, dislike, contempt and scorn heaped upon this movie. A multi million dollar turkey at the box office which virtually sank Lord Lew Grade and one that has provided film critics with cheap laughs ever since. I sit here this morning, having sat through ZOOLANDER last night, watching a complacent, pre-programmed brain-dead audience guffaw itself senseless, contributing another truck load of dollars to Ben Stiller's superannuation fund and you know, I wonder about RAISE THE TITANIC. What has happened to sentiment, simplicity, the ultimately simple values in life?

Sure, RAISE THE TITANIC captures none of the power of Cussler's novel, but I don't really care! Yeah, they got the funnel configuration shot to hell, the underwater model as it surfaces looks much like the little rubber boat I used to play with in the bath as a child, and David Selby has the animal magnetism of Osama bin Laden, but I'd like to tell you something. Perhaps because I maintained a fascination with the TITANIC ever since I was a child and dreamed of just how it must have been that night, when watching that absolutely awesome scene in RAISE THE TITANIC as the great ship broke the surface I have never in my life been so emotionally moved. Tears just ran down my face and I cried like a child. When I got home that night my wife asked me what was wrong. I couldn't talk about it and was never able to explain, and you people reading this want to believe it, I am the absolute last guy you would consider to be a wuss! How anyone could have witnessed that scene in the theater and NOT been moved I could never understand.

So many memorable things in the film. Titanic survivor, Sir Alec Guinness' touching cameo in the pub when he gives Dirk Pitt (the late Richard Jordan) the white star flag that he removed from the stern the night the great ship foundered, and which he wanted replaced if they were ever to raise it from the bottom of the Atlantic. The inarguably realistic scene when Jordan and his crew members finally discover the wreck on the bottom, played out against John Barry's ultimately moving musical score, the best he wrote for ANY film. The external shots of the ship once it has been raised (Way better I thought than Cameron's digitised TITANIC) and the internal shots of the gymnasium still dripping with water. Finally, the wonderful scenes as it is towed into New York harbor to complete its (then) 68-year journey. True, the last twenty minutes or so were all downhill, but nothing can detract from what went before.

Worst thing they ever did was to FIND the wreck! A dream died that day!

A folly worthy of its namesake, Lord Grade, its liner sized producer famously remarked that it would have "been cheaper to lower the Atlantic", a feat he could have accomplished simply by jumping into it.

Raise the Titanic(!)is an adaptation of the novel by Clive Cussler. In its transition to the big screen however, most of the intricate cold war plotting didn't make it to the lifeboats. In its stead you have the basic story and of course the bank breaking poster promise of the doomed liner rising from her watery grave. It might have worked too had the source material been handled a little better. The screenplay is pretty talky and never really succeeds in building the necessary tension but what really sinks (sorry) the whole enterprise is direction from Jerry Jameson so moribund and lifeless, you'd think he was helming a movie for cable television. Its a mark of this that although it doesn't take very long to find the ship itself on screen you could be forgiven for thinking that you began watching the movie in 1912. Also RTT! has, for the most part a cut price look that undermines the epic scale of the story and its subject matter. When the ship does eventually see the light of day its via some model work and camera over-cranking that fails in producing that all important wow factor. To be fair though there are some very good shots of the ship entering New York harbour that do pack a punch, aided enormously by one of John Barry's best ever scores - a wonderful bombastic orchestral suite that is as good as hes ever produced. Were this a better film, and had anyone gone to see it Barry may have been in line for an Oscar (which he got when he plagiarised parts of the score for Out of Africa). In fact, its fair to say that Barry is the only person behind the camera who does the story any justice.

Richard Jordan gives a good performance as Cussler's hero Dirk Pitt and there's a nice Cornish Cameo for Alec Guinness but everyone else is really just waiting to die here. The twist is a good one but is handled poorly and you're left wondering what a director like John McTernian who did such good work with Clancy's Hunt for Red October may have made of the same material. Sadly the discovery of the real ship in two pieces has scuppered any remake possibilities so this is it. Raise the Bismarck anyone?

To obtain a supply of a rare mineral, a ship raising operation is conducted for the only known source, the Titanic . A group of Americans (Jason Robards Jr , David Selby) led by Dirk Pitt (Richard Jordan , Steve McQueen was offered the lead role in the film ; however, he felt the script was flat and turned down the offer) are interested in raising the ill-fated Ocean liner Titanic. As the marine research foundation carries out the preparatives to pick up a precious radioactive metal whose only known world supply reportedly went down as contraband aboard the Titanic , as they have to raise and recover it . One of the team members finds out the Russians also have plans to raise the ship from its watery grave .

This a spectacularly big-budgeted but slow-moving film that failed really at box office . The bulk of this tiring film surrounds schemes to locate and recover a valuable metal called Byzanium . The picture develops a thrilling suspense about a strange mineral along with an international intrigue blending the Titanic , Russians and submarines . Based on best-seller by Clive Cussler who appears as a reporter during a press conference ; however he hated this movie so much that he refused to allow the sale of any film rights for his other Dirk Pitt novels , he finally relented 20 years later, and agreed to sell the rights to 3 novels and the first to be filmed was Sahara, which Cussler also hated . Spectacual FX , as a model of the Titanic was built for $350,000 , when it was finished, it was too big for its tank , a bigger tank had to be built, for $6 million. The Titanic model used for filming was on display at Anchor Bay, Malta, in a building close to the set used for the town of Sweethaven in the film Popeye ; later, it was moved next to the deep water tank at the Rinella studios in Malta. A storm hit the island in 2003, damaging the model beyond repair. Acceptable main actors as Jason Robards as Admiral James Sandecker , early deceased Richard Jordan as Dirk Pitt , David Selby as Dr. Gene Seagram and Anne Archer as Dana Archibald . Supporting cast is frankly excellent as Alec Guinness as John Bigalow , M. Emmet Walsh as Master Chief Vinnie Walker , J.D. Cannon as captain Burke and Michael Pataki as Munk and Michael C. Gwynne as Bohannon .

The flick lavishly produced by Sir Lew Grade , caused the collapse his enterprise , regarding the film's cost, producer Lew Grade famously said that it would've been cheaper to lower the Atlantic . The motion picture was middling directed by James Goldstone , though Stanley Kramer was hired to direct, but quit after two weeks due to "creative differences". Jerry Jameson was an usual filmmaker for television who filmed other catastrophe movies such as Hurricane , Fire and rain , The elevator , Deadly tower , Fire in the sky and his greatest hit was ¨Airport 77¨ with an all-star-cast and one of the best of disaster genre .

It was when I read the excellent novel, my mind changed. I used to think this was a wonderful film, when I read the book however, it was clear that so much excellent plotline and dialogue had been missed out that the film story was ruined. Plot lines about the Russians, spies, espionage, tracing the history of the miners and their efforts, what happened after the Titanic was raised but before it reached New York, all this would have made for a more in depth and excellent adaptation, instead the producers went for the big bucks spectacle and just concentrated on the Titanic itself which really is only a small part of the original novel.

It would have been better being properly done as a three part mini series or similar instead of this badly edited rushed nonsense.

There are good points about the film, some of the model work for the wrecked Titanic is excellent, especially when you consider when it was made but then again considering how much they spent on it, it should have been, however the seemingly cardboard cut out super imposed on the New York skyline at the end is terrible beyond description and oddly seems to be worse in the DVD version over the VHS version.

Thankfully saving this film from sinking completely was probably one of John Barry's finest non-Bond soundtracks, without that, this really would have become unbearable.

Sadly fact (the discovery of the Titanic for real) precludes any possibility of a decent remake which with good CGI could have been spectacular.

There are films that are bad, and there ones that look bad, but hold value to them not everyone sees. Raise the Titanic, was loosely based off a novel by Clive Cussler. It is a race between the Americans and Russians trying to obtain a rare mineral that could decide who becomes the top world power. To do this, they must salvage the mineral from the Titanic. The only way to do this is by raising the Titanic; ergo the main titles. This may turn off people because the whole plot line is given away, but that shouldn't be something to squander over. It should be more of what is looked forward to. This film has a lot of good stuff in it.

Starring as the main character of Cussler's stories, is Dirk Pitt, played by Richard Jordan. I can't say Jordan is the best choice but he's definitely not bad either. Jordan at least gives the character of Pitt some attitude that comes with the territory. For the most part, the entire film stays faithful to the paperback material. All the characters are in there, along with the most important scenes. One might say that this movie was thought to perform well because Alec Guinness, best known as Obi-Wan Kenobi, from Star Wars, plays a character as well in the story.

On a side note, a particular element that could have been left out of story was the relationship between Gene and Dana Seagram. The same goes for the book but the way the situation was handled here was half-baked. From beginning to the midway point, there were various scenes that show strains on these two characters' marital status and then out of nowhere,...it stops. They get into an argument and Gene temporarily leaves Dana but the issue is never resolved. So why have it? It doesn't make sense to start something and not finish it. Adam Kennedy and Eric Hughes wrote the screenplay; so my question is, who skimmed over this part? Also some people may think the story drags but it all builds up to good ending.

Besides this, there are multiple things to find enjoyable in this movie. First, the special effects. Of course it's "1980" special effects but none the less they are a sight to look at. From the submarines, to the Titanic itself, the props look really authentic. It's when the Titanic is brought to the surface that the view is beautiful. Although audiences may be annoyed to find out that the Titanic is in one piece. But what do you expect? The novel and this film where produced years before the Titanic was even discovered. It's fiction anyway, so why be so critical on accuracy when practically this whole film is inaccurate in real life?

One of the most wondrous moments that takes place in this film is when Dirk Pitt enters the Titanic when it is above the water. It is truly a sight to behold and all this should do is make each of us just a little hungrier to see the Titanic for ourselves. It's plain epic. Another great aspect to Raise the Titanic is the soundtrack composed and conducted by music veteran John Barry. Barry puts in a lot of good tunes and has a gift for making the Titanic look awesome just for being on screen. His music is that moving and it's almost to the point of being angelic. For those who are skeptical, it's still at least worth a try to view.

Except for a few issues dealing with the script, the film adaptation of Raise the Titanic is respectively a suitable tribute to the White Star Line cruise ship. The effects are dated but they are worthy to be seen as is Barry's score heard.