On her maiden voyage in April 1912, the supposedly unsinkable RMS Titanic strikes an iceberg in the Atlantic Ocean.On her maiden voyage in April 1912, the supposedly unsinkable RMS Titanic strikes an iceberg in the Atlantic Ocean.On her maiden voyage in April 1912, the supposedly unsinkable RMS Titanic strikes an iceberg in the Atlantic Ocean.
- Nominated for 1 BAFTA Award
- 2 wins & 3 nominations total
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- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThe creaking noises during the sinking were created by the set as it was winched up to create the tilting deck effect. The microphones picked up the noises. Roy Ward Baker thought they added a huge amount of realism, as they sounded like the groaning noises a sinking ship would make, so he kept them in.
- GoofsAs with most pictures about the Titanic, filmed before the discovery of the wreck in 1985, this film portrays the Titanic sinking in one piece. The discovery of the wreck revealed that the ship had broken in two, and most films about the ship, Titanic (1996) and Titanic (1997), have reflected this point. Although scholars debate to this day whether the break up happened while the ship was above the water line or while it was under the water, and out of the view of survivors, plunging towards the ocean floor. Eyewitness testimony to the sinking diverges in opinion about this fact, meaning that the movie's portrayal of the ship sinking intact, while above the water line, may not be incorrect.
- Quotes
Mrs. Margaret 'Molly' Brown: Leadville Johnny, they call him. And he was the best golderned gold miner in Colorado! Fifteen I was when I married him.
First Class Passenger: Really?
[in deep upper-class British accent]
Mrs. Margaret 'Molly' Brown: Uh-hmm. And he didn't have a cent. Well, three months later later he struck it rich and we was millionaires. Do you know what he did?
First Class Passenger: No?
Mrs. Margaret 'Molly' Brown: He built me a house and he had silver dollars cemented all over the floors of every room!
First Class Passenger: I say, how very tiresome for you!
- Crazy creditsJust before "THE END", the following is scrolled over a background of the water with flotsam and a life ring buoy with the words "TITANIC" and "LIVERPOOL" on it:
BUT THIS IS NOT THE END OF THE STORY ~ FOR THEIR SACRIFICE WAS NOT IN VAIN. TODAY THERE ARE LIFEBOATS FOR ALL. UNCEASING RADIO VIGIL AND, IN THE NORTH ATLANTIC, THE INTERNATIONAL ICE PATROL GUARDS THE SEA LANES MAKING THEM SAFE FOR THE PEOPLES OF THE WORLD.
- Alternate versionsThe 2012 ITV Studios DVD and Blu-ray features epilogue text at the end as well as the moment with the child.
- ConnectionsEdited from Titanic (1943)
- SoundtracksOff to Philadelphia
(uncredited)
Traditional
Played on violin and sung by Titanic passengers
Unlike the smartingly awful James Cameron schlock boiler, ANTR doesn't pack a spectacular special effects punch - but nor does it pack a spectacularly corny and improbable love story concocted with teenagers in mind. The producers of ANTR understood that you didn't need a fictitious love story to heighten the tragedy of that night - the bitter irony of the real events sufficed.
And it is this irony and tragedy that the filmmakers brought out absorbingly well. The comprehensive book by Walter Lord was consulted down to the letter; so the story is told as authentically as possible. With a great script involving mainly real historical characters, perfect casting, and performances that show the actors were engrossed in their roles, the film really does shine. The snappy, economical directing is both proof of the lack of pretensiousness of the producers, as well as being extremely effective in bringing out the meaning in each scene. This makes for intelligent and gripping viewing.
Watch out for the poignant scenes in which the crew attempt to contact the nearby Californian to no avail, and Captain Smith walks to the railing and implores God to help them; the scene where the Captain calls "every man for himself", then walks into the wheelhouse just before it dips underwater; and the gripping scene in which Thomas Andrews (the Titanic's designer), a broken man, waits in the smoking room for the end, determined to go down with his creation. All these scenes are powerful, authentic and sincere; scenes in which all the various emotions aroused by such a disaster are brought out very clearly and movingly.
The special effects, although not so brilliant for today, were fantastic for the times; half the ship was actually constructed for life-size shooting, and a large model was also built, complete with miniature little row boats featuring motorised oars, for the long shots. So the maximum effort was made to make as realistic a depiction of the disaster as possible. And, in fact, the interior scenes of the ship are perfectly authentic, and the audience feels that they are actually aboard the Titanic. Only in the long shots, where a model was used, does the film look noticeably dated.
So by sticking as close as possible to the survivor's accounts featured in the Walter Lord novel, and by avoiding modern cinematic clichés, A Night to Remember remains the only Titanic film to provide a genuine account of the sinking of the great ship that is not marred by superficial Hollywood garbage. It tells the story, as it happened, of an event that changed mankind's attitudes toward his own creations; and as such, it brings to the screen the full impact of what this disaster really meant to the world in, as mentioned, a very compelling, poignant and honest way. It is a true testament to British film making.
As a footnote, many actual survivors of the Titanic were on set as the film was being made; and the musical pig in the lifeboat scenes was the actual one from the real disaster. In addition, the Titanic's fourth officer Boxhall was a technical adviser to the production. And the film's producer was there, as a small child, when the actual Titanic was launched in Belfast. This kind of authenticity makes this movie almost a living documentary.
Intelligent, honest and compelling, A Night to Remember is at least one of the best historical films ever made, and is well worth anybody's time. Everyone is bound to get something out of this movie; and indeed it is a powerhouse for anyone with an interest in the Titanic or just history in general. A totally underrated gem.
- gus81
- Jan 12, 2005
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Languages
- Also known as
- Titanic
- Filming locations
- Great Fosters Hotel, Egham, Surrey, England, UK(Sir Richard and Lady Richard set off from their mansion to board the Titanic at Southampton)
- Production company
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $1,680,000 (estimated)
- Runtime2 hours 3 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 1.66 : 1
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