Geekology 101: Yes Jack, my heart WILL?go on!

 Back in 1997 a film came out that changed the face of cinema as we know it. That film was James Cameron’s “Titanic”.

For those of us that see the original Star Wars Trilogy as the be-all, end-all of all things cinema, this was a startling realization. That there was a movie out there that made more money than the beloved Star Wars Episode 4:?A New Hope, this was a hard pill to swallow.

But there it was, for all to see, Titanic became the highest grossing film of all-time. It was a sad moment for us all.

Now it is back in the glorious gimmick that is 3-D.

Actually it has been out for a few days as of today, so that may be old news to most of you out there.

I think the most surprising part of the “Titanic”?juggernaut was that it opened so low, considering todays standards of a “good”?opening. The total back in ‘97 was only $28 million plus. That would be considered a pretty small opening nowadays where $100 million are the norm.

Where “Titanic” really excelled was its legs. It just kept picking up steam, week after week ending with over $1 billion  in total worldwide revenue.

A total that stood until the film “Avatar” came along also a James Cameron production.

So what was it about this film that sparked this worldwide craze and drove “Star Wars”?fans mad in the process.

You see I was also one of those fans. I was frustrated that this “romantic” film was breaking record after record that the beloved “Star Wars”?franchise held so long and when the all-time box office record fell, I wept just a bit.

Because of this I held out. I refused to see this film that everyone had seen time and time again.

Even some of my fellow nerds tried to convince me that the film was worth seeing and that I just needed to give it a chance.

Finally, 5 weeks into the “Titanic”?run, I submitted and bought my ticket.

I would go on to see it another 5  times. No other film besides the original blessed trilogy and “Moulin Rouge” can say they received as much repeat business from me.

I?had to give it it’s due. It was a very moving and very well-done film that was every bit as good as advertised.

Now it is back and in 3-D and I must say, I am disappointed just like I was with Mr. Lucas when he started doing this with the Star Wars films.

These film are better than that. They don’t need a third dimension to make them into a good film.

Okay, maybe “Phantom Menace” did but the rest of the films do not.

Because of this I think I?am just going to skip seeing the “new” third dimension version of this classic film.

Yes it may get a more broader and younger audience to come out and see it but so may have just re-releasing it in its original format.

Anyway, I think I?am just going to harken back to the day when I first met Jack and Rose and forget about all this 3-D mumbo jumbo. It just isn’t worth the extra money to wear weird glasses.

Gary Darling is the geekiest employee at the Maryville Daily Forum  His online blog address is:     

justanewdad.blogspot.com & his email is: gdarling@maryvilledailyforum.com. Drop him a line sometime!