Titanic: Historical :: Socio-Cultural

II. Historical and Institutional Factors

Titanic, directed by James Cameron, under 20th Century Fox, Paramount Pictures, and Lightstorm Entertainment was at first in question about the economic endeavor because Cameron had asked for $150 million for the production of the film from Fox. This soon, during production,  rose to $200 million due to the engineering of a replicate RMS Titanic and production technology for the visual effects. This made it the most expensive movie produced in its time. There was question about whether or not the film would gain profit, and at a time, it was sure to have a loss of $50 million. Titanic ended up being the most grossing film at that time and to this day, sits at #2 at the highest grossing behind Cameron's recent Avatar. This was due to multiple screenings of the film by individuals and spreading it through good word of mouth. It also was released during the 90's scene in which home theatre was becoming more common.

The film is a documentation of the tragic event of the sinking of the passenger liner, RMS Titanic across the Atlantic. It showed the emotions of the event and Cameron tried to accurately depict it, even referring to historians to validate its accuracy. It starts with a majestic tone with the sight of the grand Titanic on the fate of April 10, 1912 to the hopeless tone of its sinking on the morning of the 15th.

III. Socio-Cultural Context

Titanic informs the audience of the emotional struggles that surrounds the liner. It communicates the time period through the setting and characters being English traveling to America. It also provides a visual depiction of class struggle. Undermining the conflict of the crisis, is the need of wealth and reputation. The film, Titanic provides a significant comparison between societies from the early 1900's in Europe compared to the society that we are used to today. Although not being the main focus, Titanic depicts the struggle for reputation within the wealthy, upper classes. This can be represented by the ship's different classes: the wealthy, middle, and lower classes. This contrast in society is shown through the love story of Jack Dawson and Rose DeWitt Bukater. Despite their economic differences, the two find a way to overcome their status, possibly signifying a step forward. The film, Titanic, was made to document the tragic incident of the sinking of the passenger liner. Past documentaries, Cameron felt, were not accurate in depicting the tragic incident as a graceful downfall; instead, it was catastrophic, so he decided to portray the event as closely as possible, running it through with multiple historians.