In a new interview with GQ recently, director James Cameron recalled many anecdotes about making “Titanic”, including that he almost didn’t let Leonardo play the movie, and didn’t want to cast Kate in the first place. Winslet, who once wanted to spend sky-high prices to reproduce a Titanic, was able to shoot the classic bow kiss scene thanks to God’s help, etc.
Recalling the casting process for the film, Cameron said he had a conference room meeting with Leonardo DiCaprio and then a test shot.
The meeting at the beginning was very interesting. Cameron said that he sat in the conference room and found that all the women in the office had come. “The female executive producer came, okay, but why did the accountant come to the meeting. They are It was crazy to see Leo.”
At that meeting, DiCaprio’s performance attracted everyone, including Cameron, so he was invited to come back and shoot a test video with Winslet, who had already been scheduled, and wanted to read the script together And take a picture. But after arriving at the scene, Cameron, who had already set up the camera, found that DiCaprio didn’t know that he was going to shoot and read the script. He thought he was meeting and talking with Winslet.
Cameron said to DiCaprio: Then let’s go to the next room, you read some lines, and we will film them.
DiCaprio: Do you mean read the script?
Cameron: Yes.
DiCaprio: I don’t read it.
Cameron shook his hand and said: Then thank you for coming.
DiCaprio: Wait, you mean I can’t get the part if I don’t read it? That’s it?
Cameron: Yeah, come on, it’s a blockbuster and it’s going to take two years of my life to make it. By then you’re already doing a bunch of other stuff, and I’m still busy with post-production and modeling and stuff. So I’m not going to screw up the movie by casting it wrong, so you either read the script or you don’t get the part.
DICAPRIO (reluctantly): Okay- okay-
Cameron’s description: After agreeing to read the script, DiCaprio exuded a sad and negative atmosphere, but when Cameron shouted “action!” DiCaprio turned into Jack again, Winslet was also shining, and the two of them fired at full strength and began to perform the scene, “The dark clouds parted, and a ray of sunshine illuminated Jack.” Cameron felt on the spot: “Okay, it’s him.”
After choosing DiCaprio, Cameron said that he found himself once, said that he discussed the script with his father and felt that some changes should be made, “He felt that there should be some pain (for the character), some problems, some something from the past”.
Cameron persuaded him: “You have played many great characters, and they all have various problems, such as addiction to something. You should learn to grasp the core and don’t want those things. Chad III. When you can be like James Stewart, Gregory Peck…they just stand there and don’t have a limp or a lisp then I think you’re ready Well, now I think you’re not ready, because I’m actually talking about the harder stuff. You’re talking about the easier stuff, which can be used as props, to provide support, and we’re talking about the harder stuff, you Probably not ready yet.”
Cameron said that DiCaprio was enlightened after hearing this. He realized that the challenge of making this film was actually much more difficult than he imagined. Prio made it clear how hard it was,
“Because you want this actor to like you, agree to come in your movie, want them to say ‘yes,’ so you make it attractive, but he, he doesn’t want easy things, he wants hard things.
He’s had that instinct since then, which led to things like The Revenant later on, right? What could be more difficult than shooting that? He knows how to plan his career, he just doesn’t know exactly what to do in the moment. “
Cameron also talked about some other behind-the-scenes memories. When choosing the heroine, he felt that he would be lazy if he chose Winslet, because Winslet had already filmed some historical themes and period dramas at that time. “Corset Kate” has a good reputation. He once wanted to choose Gwyneth Paltrow and others, but when he was asked to meet Winslet, he said (perfunctory) okay okay, see you, But he felt that she was great as soon as we talked, so he decided on the heroine of the film very early on.
Also, at that time, he wanted to go to the Polish shipyard to restore a Titanic. After thinking about it, everyone thought that spending 10 million US dollars to build one, and then photographing it sinking, that is the only chance to photograph one. If I want to add another one, I don’t have to take pictures, so forget it…
As for the classic “My Heart Will Go On” kiss scene in the film, Cameron said that he had rehearsed for a long time in advance and disassembled it very carefully, even to the point where he drew small lip prints on his fingers and used two Who should start the gesture with one hand, and who should take the initiative to advance it… “It’s like the lip version of a rugby game with one ball and one ball analysis.” The two actors also love to analyze, so everyone has already figured out how to shoot, but The main thing is to make God beautiful.
From the first day of the location scene, they are paying attention to whether there is a good sunset scene, and want to shoot this scene, but the sunset every day is not good, until the last day or the penultimate day of the 10-14 day location arrangement The next day, it was a cloudy day. Cameron looked up and said, “We can take a picture of the sunset tonight.” As a result, about 15 minutes before the sun set, the clouds dispersed and the red light shone everywhere. See a round of sunset is slowly sinking.
Accompanied by the chanting of “We have a sunset!”, everyone on the set began to run wildly to prepare for shooting. Winslet quickly tore off his costume in the car and put on the costume for this scene, surrounded by a crowd of Big circles of people help, “just like the drivers and pit crews in an F1 race”. Get dressed, Winslet is in place, “I have never seen an actor do what she did, and she stood on a high place, took a look at the sunset, and turned her head to me. Yelling: ‘Shoot!’—actors generally wish they had had more time to prepare.”
