We all know the story: Boy meets girl, boy falls in love with girl, boy…dies while floating in the Atlantic with girl? What? James Cameron’s tragic tale of star-crossed lovers aboard the doomed Titanic has been a monumental success, raking in over $2 billion worldwide, including the 2012 reissue of the film. Titanic catapulted its young stars, Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet to the Hollywood A-list and has remained one of the most iconic films of all time. You are forewarned, there are spoilers in this review, so anyone who hasn’t seen Titanic, one of my favorite movies, and obviously is a hermit, should not read this article.

The epic film begins with an underwater expedition to the Titanic, led by treasure hunter Brock Lovett, who is searching for a rare diamond necklace called "Heart of the Ocean" that supposedly went down with the ship. Instead of the necklace, he finds a sketch of a nude woman wearing the necklace, dated April 14, 1912. Elderly Rose Dawson Calvert, played by a fascinating Gloria Stuart, claims she is the woman depicted in the drawing, which Lovett says makes her "his new best friend." Rose and her granddaughter are flown out to the expedition ship to join Lovett, and the real story of Titanic begins.

Kate Winslet plays Rose DeWitt Bukater, an adventurous determined spirit, trapped by society’s expectations. Engaged to a sadistic millionaire, through a twist of fate, she meets third class passenger Jack Dawson, played by Leonardo DiCaprio, and they fall in love. One of my favorite moments in the movie, (however cheesy some of you may think it is) is the iconic pose at the bow of the ship, with the sun setting and the instrumental part of the film’s theme song My Heart Will Go On, playing in the background. The 3D in the scene just made it all the more incredible.

The film intersperses young Rose on the Titanic in 1912, with present day Rose telling her story to Lovett and his team. A shout out must go out to Gloria Stuart as present day Rose, her sassiness, "Wasn’t I a dish?" and last but not least, her red toe nail polish! Also deserving mention are people like Victor Garber, who portrayed the ship’s designer Thomas Andrews, and Bernard Hill who gave a layered performance as Captain Edward Smith. Garber’s tense calm in explaining that the ship will sink, and his final apology to Rose about not building a stronger ship, was heartbreaking! Captain Smith’s shock, disbelief and indecision at the end of the film were brilliantly played, and his final scene, standing at the wheel of his foundering ship, was electrifying.

Titanic is undoubtedly one of the last movies on earth that needed to be remade into 3D format. That being said, James Cameron and the team that worked for more than a year to deliver Titanic in 3D on the eve of the 100^th anniversary of the tragedy did a fabulous job! The now iconic film, already epic in its own right, was digitally remastered and perfected through the 3D process. The digital remastering and 3D effect took 60 weeks and $18 million to produce, and the result was a crisp and alive look that serves to pack a bigger punch onto scenes such as: Rose’s arrival on the dock, the dance party in steerage and the last scenes which show the emotional, tragic end of the Titanic.

The inevitable end of the ship makes it, nonetheless, shocking and sad. The tension in the boiler rooms, the realization that the ship was going to end up at the bottom of the Atlantic, the flickering lights and high stakes for all involved was almost sickening to watch. The 3D enhances the film and makes the sinking real all the more terrifying. My heart sank during Jack’s death scene as I watched the gorgeousness that is Leonardo DiCaprio go down with the ship. One last addition to this review, and then I will be done, I promise. Leonardo DiCaprio in 3D is the icing on the cake of this epically amazing movie! I left the theatre singing My Heart Will Go On and lamenting the deaths of my favorite characters, as well as gushing about the awesome special effects of this epic tale. Go see it in theatres, or watch it again, because Titanic is timeless and a classic!