'Titanic' sets sail for nostalgic return to China
- By Zhang Rui
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E-mail China.org.cn, March 28, 2012
Director James Cameron and actress Kate Winslet walked the red carpet for the world premiere of the 3D version of the hit movie "Titanic" at London's Royal Albert Hall on March 27 as Chinese people ready themselves for an emotional reunion.
The original version of "Titanic" won 11 Oscars and was the highest grossing film of all time, until it was beaten by Cameron's own 2010 blockbuster, "Avatar." It also propelled Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet to international superstardom.
Speaking to reporters at the latest London premier, Cameron said: "The 3D enriches all of Titanic's most thrilling moments and its most emotional moments. It kicks the whole experience up to another level."
The director came to London fresh from his journey to the deepest place on Earth at the bottom of the Pacific Ocean. Cameron will reportedly come to China to promote the film at this year's Beijing International Film Festival, scheduled to run from April 23 to 28.
The film will be available in Chinese cinemas in 3D on April 10, coinciding with the 100th anniversary of the Titanic's doomed maiden voyage.
Shortly before midnight on April 14, 1912, the passenger liner struck an iceberg on its way from Southampton to New York. It sank less than three hours later, killing 1,517 people.
The re-release of "Titanic" in China will bring back memories for an entire generation. On the Chinese micro-blogging site weibo.com, everybody from audience members to distributors all asked the same nostalgia-tinged question: "Who was with you when you first saw Titanic more than a decade ago?"
The original "Titanic" hit Chinese cinema screens on April 9, 1998, nearly four months after the film's U.S. release date.
From left, director James Cameron and actors Kate Winslet and Billy Zane arrive at the 'Titanic 3D' UK film premiere at the Royal Albert Hall in Kensington, West London, Tuesday, March 27, 2012. The re-launch of the Titanic 3D version comes 15 years after the film was a huge box office hit. [Mtime.com] |
Before its U.S. release, various film critics predicted that the film would be a significant disappointment at the box office, especially as, at the time, it was the most expensive film ever made.
But the miracle happened: the steady box office income and audiences' high repeat viewing rates week after week helped it rake in US$1.8 billion worldwide. It also held the number one spot for fifteen consecutive weeks in North America, which remains a record for any film.
"Titanic" became the longest-running film in Chinese cinema history, and its popularity lasted until the summer of 1998. The film's box office gross of 360 million yuan (US$57 million) made it the biggest grossing film ever in China. The record lasted until 2009, when it was broken by "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen" in 2009.
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