I have mixed feelings regarding James Cameron’s Titanic. Part of me enjoys the sense of scale, period precision and especially the WOW factor. Sadly, Cameron includes some of his most mundane lines, such as “I’m flying, Jack!”

Allowing Rose (Kate Winslet) to dismiss the Ship of Dreams as “hardly bigger than the Mauretania” seems oddly naïve… the whimsy of youth, perhaps? For global viewers, there was more interest in the on-screen courtship between Winslet and her co-star Leonardo DiCaprio. Both are sublime, never more so than during their erotically charged life drawing session. Notably, the transition via effects and lighting from Winslet’s eyes to that of elderly Gloria Stuart is perfect. The latter had more or less retired from acting, although she made some impressive pictures during the 1930s, including The Old Dark House and The Invisible Man. Above all, Cameron’s decision to use Stuart represents an unprecedented stroke of genius. I only wish this actress had won the Oscar.

Meanwhile, the eventual sinking of the ship and struggle to survive leads to numerous indelible sequences: the violin players fiddling right up to the end; the Titanic snapping in half (amazingly blunt); and love’s sweetest gesture (one of two possibilities there -- I’ll leave you to decide).

Titanic feels extremely moving, perhaps a little overwhelming considering the enthusiasm of composer James Horner. Ultimately, it’s a love story. For hopeless romantics who dream big, sailing on this great ship might be a one-off.

Hardly a favourite film, yet given the right occasion Titanic can be rather transcendent.

(Released by Paramount Pictures and rated "PG-13" for disaster related peril and violence, nudity, sensuality and brief language.)