“Titanic” James Cameron became the “King of the World”: the inevitability and miracle

PAGES

2019.04.29Ikuya Takamori

``Romeo and Juliet'' on the ship

In 1994, after completing `` True Lies, '' which entered the Guinness Book of World Records as the first film in history to cost over $100 million, Cameron began preparations for ``Titanic.'' He instructed his younger brother, Mike Cameron, who works at his camera equipment development company, Lightstorm Technologies, to develop a camera system that could be installed on the outside of a submersible, control panning and tilting, and withstand the tremendous water pressure at a depth of 4,000 meters. He took his younger brother and staff to the Palau Islands, where he used an existing underwater photography system to conduct test shoots that also served as training.

In May 1995, Cameron and producer Ray Sanchini formally informed executives at 20th Century Fox that they wanted their next film to be Titanic, and offered $2 million to dive and film the Titanic. I asked him to take it out.

At this point, there was no script or outline, and Cameron simply explained, ``I want it to be like ``Romeo and Juliet'' on a ship.'' By having the main characters be a man and a woman who meet on the Titanic, fall in love, and are torn apart, the aim was to make the audience empathize with it and have them experience the historical tragedy that claimed the lives of 1,500 people in a real way.

Combining Shakespeare's most famous play about ``star-crossed lovers'' with the tragedy of the sinking of the Titanic, said to be the greatest maritime disaster in history - a bold idea that is truly typical of Cameron. However, at this point there was no script, no work had been done on the characters, and therefore no specific actors were in mind.

But by strange coincidence or fate, DiCaprio was also filming the role of Romeo in ` `Romeo + Juliet '' (1996), a bold modern-day adaptation of Shakespeare's ``Romeo and Juliet.'' Around the same time, Kate Winslet was also chosen to play the role of Ophelia, the tragic heroine, in `` Hamlet '' (1996), also based on Shakespeare's original work and directed by and starring Kenneth Branagh.

After getting approval from Fox executives to cover the cost of filming Titanic, Cameron completed a 169-page script, filled with novel-like details, as a preliminary step to writing the screenplay. The summer and fall of 1995 were hectic, with 10 underwater shoots, budget negotiations, and the start of construction on a dedicated studio.

Casting for the two main roles, Jack and Rose (*4), took place in the winter of 1995-1996. Cameron was initially reluctant to cast DiCaprio and Winslet, who were recommended by casting director Mari Finn, and was considering unknown actors or newcomers.

*4...The initials J and R in Jack and Rose are the initials of Romeo and Juliet swapped. Cameron chose the first letter J for the male protagonist for two reasons. One is that he modeled his work on the American writer Jack London, who was self-educated from a poor background and wrote novels about his experiences as a wanderer. Another thing is that James Cameron identified himself with the young artist who believed in the possibilities of the future (by the way, all of the drawings of Jack shown in the movie were drawn by Cameron himself. Cameron is left-handed Therefore, the close-up of Rose's hand in the nude scene is an inverted shot of Cameron's hand.)

Auditions for the role of Rose were held first, and popular young actresses such as Gwyneth Paltrow and Claire Danes were accepted, but they were removed from the list. As for Winslet, in addition to her prominent period work, which earned her the nickname "Corset Kate," her British background was also a negative factor. Rose is set as the daughter of an eastern American bourgeoisie, and this needs to be shown by speaking English with an American accent.

When Winslet went to the audition, she confidently delivered her lines in an American accent, impressing Cameron with her acting skills and charm. Furthermore, Cameron decided to choose her because she called directly from England and expressed her desire for the role.

In contrast to Winslet, DiCaprio was less attracted to the role of Jack. He likes works that focus on human beings, including his role as an intellectually disabled boy in the highly acclaimed `` What's Eating Gilbert Grape '' (1993), and in February 1996 he rushed to Los Angeles from England for a reading with Winslet. Even at the audition, he asked not to be videotaped and that he did not want to read the lines he had been given.

Cameron manages to get DiCaprio to agree to read the script, but is surprised to find that DiCaprio transforms into Jack the moment he starts reading the lines. The chemistry between her and Winslet was also amazing. Cameron's mind was made up, but DiCaprio did not respond clearly and requested a rewrite of the script, and several months passed. DiCaprio was persuaded by Cameron to sign a contract to appear in the film in June of the same year.

The sunset that came to shoot the emotional scene

PAGES