Would you see 'Titanic' again in 3D?

By Sarah Sluis

I was a teenager when Titanic came out in theatres, part of the movie's core Leonardio DiCaprio-obsessed demographic. I saw it in theatres, twice, in a packed house full of people crying into their popcorn and gasping in delight. The movie was the talk of the school. One girl I knew had seen it in theatres seven times. Now, director/writer/producer James Cameron has announced that the movie will return in a 3D version in theatres April 6, 2012, roughly coinciding with the hundred-year anniversary of the ship's sailing. But I don't know if I want to see it.

I caught a few minutes of Titanic on television a month ago, and I was surprised that the dialogue I found so suspenseful and heart-wrenching came out as plain cheesy. Even back in the day, the movie's pull lessened once it was on VHS. Though I rushed out to buy the two-volume set upon release, the movie languished on its shelf. The film was too emotionally draining to pique interest when I was in a movie-watching mood, and the three-hour, fifteen-minute running time required too much of a commitment. I feel the same way about seeing it again in theatres. Though I could see a team of my friends getting together for a middle school rehash, and of course I have a professional interest in seeing the 3D conversion, I'm not sure if I want to "go back to Titanic." But younger viewers might.

In the press release, Cameron remarked that "there's a whole generation that's never seen Titanic as it was meant to be seen, on the big screen." I think younger viewers, particularly teenaged Twilight fiends, will respond well to Titanic. In comparison, I look to the remastered version of Star Wars. The 1997 re-release hit theatres when my younger brother was in elementary school, and the series became one of his favorites, an experience that was shared by his friends. Plastic figurines from the movie migrated into our house, and the boxed set trilogy became his go-to choice during sick days. Like Star Wars, Titanic has the ability to speak to a new generation. Just as in my family, younger viewers may be shepherded into the theatre by their parents. They remember the impact these movies had on them, and want to share it in a darkened theatre over popcorn and, this time, wearing 3D glasses.