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

The sunset that came to shoot the emotional scene

Titanic is a treasure trove of memorable scenes, and the scene where Jack and Rose kiss on the bow of the ship is definitely one of them. Cameron was particular about filming this scene against a real sunset on the Titanic set built on the coast of Mexico's Baja Peninsula. Eight days were set aside for filming on the ship's deck, including other scenes using daylight sunlight. However, the sunset didn't turn out as expected until the seventh day, and they were only able to rehearse the scene on the bow.

On the eighth day, the last Being There, cloudy skies continued from the afternoon until an hour before sunset. However, Cameron has a premonition of something and gathers his staff at the bow of the ship and makes preparations. Just then, a rosy sun appeared from the purplish gray clouds. DiCaprio and Winslet rush into position, and Cameron yells, "Action!" while operating a camera mounted on a crane with a remote control. The two's acting was perfect, and the natural wind was blowing in the right direction. Excited by his once-in-a-lifetime luck, Cameron desperately finishes this take, making sure not to mess up the framing. Immediately after, the sun disappeared behind the clouds again, but the sky was still dyed red, so I took one more take, but the result wasn't quite as good. Take 1, which was developed the next day, turned out to be a little poorly focused, but Cameron liked the footage and decided to use it.

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The sequence from when Rose walks up to Jack standing on the bow of the ship until the camera moves away from the two kissing is a close-up shot using an indoor set and artificial lighting, and a shot that composites the sunset sky onto a green screen. It is composed of: However, if you look carefully and keep in mind the cut, you will be able to recognize a shot of natural light that captures the two from a slightly lower position on the front right of the ship's bow, gradually rising and approaching them (it was taken only once, but (Divided into multiple shots with shots from different angles inserted.)

Cameron says this in the DVD commentary. ``There are wonderful moments like this when you're making a movie. It's the moment when the shooting is successful just as you envisioned.'' ``This was a stroke of luck that suddenly came to me, and it was the moment when I felt that God was on our side.''

What makes this beautiful scene even more moving is the symbolism entrusted to the bow of the Titanic. Cameron created contrasting symbols through the events that occur at the bow and stern of this luxury liner. The stern, where Rose attempts to throw herself, represents the past, bondage, despair, and the fear of death. On the other hand, the bow of the ship, where Jack spreads his arms like The Birds and shouts, "I am the king of the world!" symbolizes the future, freedom, hope, and the joy of life. It is precisely because such positive symbolism overlaps with the beautiful sunset kiss scene - and because we all know about the tragic accident that will soon occur - that this famous scene resonates all the more poignantly.

Theme song that wasn't in Cameron's plan