In a new interview with GQ recently, director James Cameron recalled many stories about making “Titanic”, including that he almost didn’t let Leonardo play the film, and that he didn’t want to cast Kate in the first place Winslet, and who once wanted to spend sky-high prices to reproduce 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 followed by a test shot.
The meeting at the beginning was very interesting. Cameron said he was sitting in the conference room and saw that all the women in the office had come. “The female executive producer came, okay, but why did the accountant come to the meeting. 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, which had already been arranged, and he wanted to read the script together And take picture. But after arriving at the location, Cameron, who had already set up the camera, found that DiCaprio did not know he was going to shoot and read the script, and he thought he was meeting and talking to Winslet.
Cameron told DiCaprio: Then, let’s go into the next room, you read some lines, and we’ll 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 things, 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 created a sad and negative atmosphere, but when Cameron shouted “action!” DiCaprio turned into Jack again, Winslet also shone, and both of them fired up to their 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 casting DiCaprio, Cameron said he found himself once, he said he discussed the script with his father and felt some changes should be made, “He felt there should be some pain (for the character), some problems, some something from the past”.
Cameron persuaded him: “You’ve played a lot of great characters, and they all have various problems, like addiction to something. You should learn to grasp the core and not want those things. Chad III. When you can you be like James Stewart , Gregory Peck…they just stand there and they 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 things. ‘talking about the easier things, which can be used as props, to provide support, and we’re talking about the harder things, I guess you’re 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 be in your film, want them to say ‘yes,’ so you make it attractive, but he doesn’t want easy things , he wants hard things.
He’s had that instinct ever since, which led to things like The Revenant later on, right? What could be harder than shooting that? He knows how to plan his career, he just doesn’t know what to do right now. “
Cameron also mentioned some other memories behind the scenes. When choosing the heroine, he felt it would be lazy if he chose Winslet, because Winslet had already filmed some historical themes and period dramas at that time. She has ” Corset Kate” very good reputation He once wanted to choose Gwyneth Paltrow and others, but when asked to meet Winslet, he said (perfunctory) ok, ok, see you, But he felt she was great as soon as we speaks, so the film’s heroine will be decided very early on.
Also, at that time, he wanted to go to the Polish shipyard to restore Titanic. After thinking about it, everyone thought that spending 10 million US dollars to build one, and then photograph it sinking , that’s the only chance to draw 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 he rehearsed for a long time beforehand and staged it very carefully, even to the point where he drew little lip prints on his fingers and use them both Who should start the gesture with one hand, and who should take the risk to move it forward… “It’s like the lip version of a rugby game with a one ball and one ball breakdown.” Both 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 pay attention to see if 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 placement arrangement The next day 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 light red was shining everywhere See a round of sunset sinking slowly
To chants of “We’ve got a sunset!”, everyone on the set began frantically running to prepare for shooting, and Winslet quickly tore off her outfit in the car and donned the outfit for this scene, having ‘to be surrounded by a crowd of Big circles of people helping, “just like the drivers and pit crews in an F1 race”. Put on, Winslet is in his place, “I’ve never seen an actor do what he did, he stood on a high place, took a look at the sunset, and turned her head to me. Shouting: ‘Shoot!’ – actors in general wish they had had more time to prepare.”
