Dramatised documentary which follows the lives of the men who designed and built Titanic and her sister ship Olympic at the Harland & Wolff shipyard in Belfast, showing the violence, politic... Read allDramatised documentary which follows the lives of the men who designed and built Titanic and her sister ship Olympic at the Harland & Wolff shipyard in Belfast, showing the violence, political drama and financial pressures that affected those who worked on her. Eight men, the Gua... Read allDramatised documentary which follows the lives of the men who designed and built Titanic and her sister ship Olympic at the Harland & Wolff shipyard in Belfast, showing the violence, political drama and financial pressures that affected those who worked on her. Eight men, the Guarantee Group, were privileged to be chosen to travel on her maiden voyage. All of them wer... Read all
- Awards
- 1 win
- Narrator
- (voice)
- Lord Pirrie
- (as Gordon Langford-Rowe)
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThe story of Alfred "Alfie" Cunningham being named a survivor initially due to mistaken identity was accurate. The first list of survivors had an "A. Cunningham" listed and this was assumed to be Alfie. It was actually a steward, Albert Cunningham, who survived.
- GoofsAs the actor playing Lord Pirrie is reviewing the Titanic's blueprints in the conference room (in the scene tiled "January, 1910) for Bruce Ismay and Alexander Carlisle, when discussing accommodations for the First Class Passengers he mentions "39 private suites" , each having its own bathroom.
In reality, according to deck plans, forty-three deluxe "Parlor Suites" on the RMS Titanic had their own private built in bathrooms; the remainder of the Titanic's First Class cabins did not have their own built-in bathrooms and so the majority of First Class Passengers shared communal public bathrooms for bathing, use of toilet facilities, etc.
- Quotes
Alfie Cunningham: [Notices Liam's smile] What's that face about?
Liam Flaherty: The Olympic.
Alfie Cunningham: What about the Olympic?
Liam Flaherty: You know they're laying down her keel tomorrow?
Alfie Cunningham: Aye.
Liam Flaherty: I'm going to be inside to put the shoring under.
Alfie Cunningham: So what?
Liam Flaherty: Oh, come on, Alfie! She's going to be famous, all over the world.
Alfie Cunningham: So is Titanic. And Mr. Frost says our crew's going to be fitting Titanic's engines.
Liam Flaherty: Well, Olympic's going to be built first.
Alfie Cunningham: So what?
Liam Flaherty: She's the ship that matters.
Alfie Cunningham: My arse!
Liam Flaherty: She is, too. Olympic's going to be the ship everyone talks about.
Alfie Cunningham: Aye, right?
Liam Flaherty: First to start building, first to be launched, first to cross the Atlantic...
Alfie Cunningham: Titanic's going to be a mighty ship.
Liam Flaherty: That no one remembers!
- Alternate versionsAn edited 43 minute version of the documentary aired on the US Discovery Channel in 2005.
- ConnectionsEdited into Titanic al detalle (2013)
If it were nothing more, it would be a superior study of class differences in the Ulster city of Belfast. The workers made barely enough to live on but were hungry for jobs. Those arriving even a few minutes late at the builders were locked out. Seven minutes a day were allotted to taking a leak, and the minutes were counted. They had forty-five minutes for lunch and worked six-day weeks.
The workers were subject to social stratification as well. There was labor, and then there was management. Among the laborers, the top dogs were the riveters. Protestants and the one out of eight workers who were Catholics mostly got along amiably. Family ties were strong and diffused throughout both the wealthy at the top and the poor at the bottom.
The working conditions were dangerous and demanding, and the pay was low. Seventeen workers would die. No particular dramatic points are made of this. It's not a propaganda film, although it often contrasts the worries of the poor (Paying for a doctor when you're ill) with the preoccupations of the rich (getting into political office). The movie, like the story it tells, is filled with irony.
But if Abraham Maslow were alive he might get a kick out of the different sets of needs of the two classes. At the bottom, the workers are chiefly concerned with food, survival, and the like. At the top, the owners of the White Star Line are up to Maslow's second level -- achievement, self esteem, respect from others. They're determined to build not only a ship that is bigger and more luxurious than anything in the Cunard Line -- but THREE such ships. And if the best Cunard liners, like the Lusitania, had only three funnels, they'd add a strictly ornamental fourth. That'll show them.
You should understand that this is a tale of the technological, social, and political context in which the Titanic was built. You scarcely see her on the Atlantic and nobody drowns dramaturgically. There is no self sacrifice, no romance, no screaming whistles.
The performances are adequate, the writing insightful, and the CGIs are truly amazing for a simple television movie.
- rmax304823
- Aug 30, 2014
Details
- Release date
- Countries of origin
- Language
- Also known as
- Titanic: Egy legenda születése
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
- Runtime1 hour 15 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 1.78 : 1