I knew the plot, the song ... so could James Cameron’s blockbuster surprise me? No, but a young
Leonardo DiCaprio goes rogue and lifts this sinking ship See the other classic missed films in this seriesThe best arts and entertainment during self-isolationI’ve never seen Titanic and always figured, what’s the point? I’ve seen bits of it, chunks of it. I know the plot, the song, the famous lines. “Draw me like one of your French girls, Jack.” Why sacrifice three precious hours of lockdown to confirm what I already know when I could be – I don’t know – drinking vast amounts of alcohol or trying and failing to read a book? I’ve never seen Titanic but it feels as though I already have.
Except what if I’m wrong? What if James Cameron’s film is stranger, wilder or just plain different from my complacent mental image? One great thing about life is its habit of confounding expectations. For instance, I always thought I knew what Madrid was like until the moment I went there and found it considerably better than anything I’d imagined. More beautiful and fine-grained, more vivid and exciting. What if Titanic is like Madrid?