Raise the Titanic [Blu-ray]

When the book was published in the late 70's, I was thrilled, wasn't much of a book reader but any book involving The Titanic, to me, was worth the read at that time, I had already read A NIGHT TO REMEMBER more times than I can remember, so I was anxious to see what this book was about.I wasn't disappointed, Clive Cussler's novel was a fantastic read so you can imagine when I heard a movie was being made about it I was thrilled beyond words, I had to travel a few miles to see it but I didn't care, it was just a terrific picture, it was everything I was hoping for, although, I felt the book was a bit more detailed in some areas.Imagine my disappointment when they never officially released it on DVD as a stand alone movie, they included it as a double feature with a movie I didn't at all like or care to see so I never made the purchase.Imagine my utter glee when Scream Factory released this on blu-ray, I immediately ordered a copy and put it in my machine same day and was not disappointed, the picture was clean and sharp, the sound quality was excellent and for a movie that's 35 years old, it looked great, sounded great.PLOT: The government (ours) has a new weapon that can shield the country against any nuclear attack but it needs a power source called Byzanium that's buried in the Arctic Region near Russia so they send someone in there to mine it out but is shot in the process but is saved by protagonist, Dirk Pitt, who after getting him to a Hospital in the states, learns the Byzanium was successfully removed from the mine and sent overland while being chased by Russians back in 1912, according to information the agent found in the mine, they successfully got the ore to England where the leader of the expedition puts the ore into the hold of a ship to be sent home to the United States, unfortunately for everyone concerned, the ship he sent the ore home on is The Titanic.So, the race is on figure out how to get The Titanic to the surface without too much interference from the Russians, who are eager to get their hands on the ore for their own personal use, I was disappointed that there wasn't much of a confrontation with the Reds in the movie like their was in the book but I suppose budgets prevail.One of the greatest scenes in this movie is when they raise the Titanic, it is quite a sight and John Barry's music is haunting and compliments this movie perfectly.The best lines in the movie are during the time when the Russians start making their move to start trouble:PITT: Where's the Carpenter going?SANDECKER: There's a distress call.PITT: We're in distress for Christ sake, we need that ship.SANDECKER: Can't ignore a distress call.PITT: You wanna talk about distress?, we've got the Navy forecasting a force 12 storm, the Russians are breathing down our necks, we're on a ship that never learned how to do anything but sink, that's distress!If you want to be entertained for two hours, this film will do it for you, of course, I was disappointed five years later when I discovered the Titanic broke in two but just put that out of your mind, as this movie and the book were out before that information was confirmed.

...and I'm not just referring to the ship. When this movie came out in 1980 (based on Clive Cussler's bestselling book), the discovery of the real Titanic was still 5 years away. No way the filmmakers could know that and considering the condition of the real Titanic when it was discovered, this (in classic Hollywood tradition) is how it SHOULD have happened. Like the real ship, the film was plagued by a series of unlucky occurrences and cost overruns and when it finally was released, it sank without a trace. It brought about the end of Sir Lew (later Lord) Grade's career as a viable film producer (with a final price tag of $40 million in 1980 currency he quipped that "it would have been cheaper to lower the Atlantic") and it forestalled any chances of Clive Cussler's Dirk Pitt becoming a movie franchise on the order of Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan. Looking at it again after 30 years, it is what it always was, a decent adventure yarn with a nice mix of espionage and scientific savvy. This new Blu-Ray/DVD release (one of a number of ITC films from the 1970s now coming out) allows the movie to be seen in its proper aspect ratio which looks good on a flatscreen although it's not anamorphic. The special effects work is more noticeable here than it was on the big screen.For those of you unfamiliar with Cussler's book, the setting is then present day 1978. The U.S. and the Soviet Union are still locked in the Cold War. Traces of a powerful radioactive mineral are discovered in Siberia. This mineral could power a Star Wars type of defense system that could thwart any air attack against the country employing it. Naturally both countries want the mineral but the only known stockpile of it was on the Titanic and that's why the ship must be raised. Cussler he-man Dirk Pitt (Richard Jordan) spearheads the salvage operation aided by Admiral James Sandecker (Jason Robards) and Dr Gene Seagram (David Selby). The ship is found, raised, and towed to New York where it is greeted by cheering throngs. The original director was to have been Hollywood legend Stanley Kramer who backed out due to creative differences and the performances by the principal actors range from pretty good to OK. However the movie is worth seeing for Alec Guinness' moving portrayal of a surviving crew member, the opening montage, and for John Barry's magnificent score. Too bad it couldn't have ended this way for the real Titanic but then there would have been no "King of the World!" if it had.

The cover/poster art screams "pulp low-budget indie 'Poseidon Adventure' wannabe" (though that could've been fun, too). Instead, I was shocked to find RAISE THE TITANIC was a top-tier major studio epic with AAA-production values - in fact this must have been one of the most expensive movies ever at that time! Every dollar is on screen and the imagery is compelling.Apparently this movie was a huge flop when it was first released and I can see why. Confession: I didn't actually watch the entire movie and skipped around, and I'll admit I don't feel like I really missed much. I suspect most of the movie is all about handling the logistics of this mammoth undertaking and if so it makes sense that audiences found it a huge chore to watch in theaters.I'd say you should be fine if you run most of the movie while folding laundry or doing puzzles or something until it gets to the last third, or you can do like me and just sample the beginning and parts of the middle at your leisure. Because let's face it, everyone is here to see them do one thing: RAISE THE TITANIC!

I first saw Raise the Titanic as a child and like many others who enjoyed this marmite movie I was delighted to see it released on Blu Ray. For me it really is a case of loving this movie because it is so shockingly bad! The acting is not on par but this is largely due to the abysmal script that just does not flow. There is so much acting talent here - Richard Jordan (great actor), Jason Robards (legendary), Alec Guinness (phenomenon)... but they can’t save this from being a cringe fest. That said, given its release prior to the discovery of the wreck and being adapted from a first class adventure novel, the premise is strong and really pretty interesting. It’s definitely worth watching even if it won’t make your favourites shelf.I don’t need to talk about the score by John Barry because it is world famous and world class. The music suite as an added feature is a nice bonus for a movie that has really dried up any extras through its releases, but you can not truly enjoy it unless you buy the vinyl score, also available through amazon.Watching the deleted scenes will make you wonder why they weren’t in the movie, because they would have added a great deal in my view - the fact that the opening sequence originally planned of the sinking should have been there.I really like this movie even though it isn’t very well made, but it could have done with a much better blu Ray release instead of relying on a suite of the excellent music. There’s just really nothing new.If this ever comes out in 4K I suggest not going there

I’m a sucker for a good old fashioned adventure movie.This film has a bad reputation because it cost a fortune to make and lost it all at the box office when it was released.If you are a fan like me, then you already know about how good this film is, it’s a great adaptation of Clive Cusslers novel.The Blu-ray is a huge upgrade over my dated and badly formatted DVD, it comes in a slim Blu-ray case with a few paragraphs about the building of the huge Titanic model on the inside cover and a booklet about the making of the movie.A movie from a Cold War era with a great story, great performances, some terrific location work and (in my opinion) one of John Barry’s best orchestral scores.

Cold War thriller. It is 'unique and different' to other films on the subject. It has some clever scenes of the doomed vessel rising up from the sea and sailing into New York Harbour. It is a scene that should have been so in 1912. The film has an 'unforgettable' Main Theme by composer John Barry. It is a must for all Titanic fans. The plot follows the story of the quest to retrieve a vital mineral that was loaded onto the Titanic in 1912.

Although this film did not get good ratings from the film critics I enjoyed it. The underwater scenes are very well done and the actual scene where it showed the Titanic raised from the sea was awesome. The twist at the end was brilliant.

This had terror reviews years ago, 'It would have been cheaper to lower the Atlantic' I recall one comment. But watching it now, it has a charm and innocence about it, even though in light of later discoveries some of the aspects are factually incorrect. But that's okay as the films story and cast, out weigh those negatives. A nice twist at the end too!