| S.O.S. Titanic | 
 enlarge | Director: William Hale (ii)
Actors: David Janssen, Cloris Leachman, Susan Saint James, David Warner, Ian Holm
Studio: Questar Video
Category: Video
List Price: $19.95
Buy New: $4.94
You Save: $15.01 (75%)
New (5) from $4.94
Avg. Customer Rating:  28 reviews
Sales Rank: 26730
Format: Color, Ntsc
Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Media: VHS Tape
Running Time: 109 minutes
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.4
Dimensions (in): 7.3 x 4.2 x 1.1
UPC: 015476022319
EAN: 0033937022319
ASIN: B00000DM1K
Theatrical Release Date: September 23, 1979
Release Date: August 1, 1990
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Condition: New! Mint in box. Factory sealed.
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| Editorial Reviews:
Amazon.com
If, somehow, the three and a quarter hours of on-ship intrigue and spectacular suffering of James Cameron's Oscar-winning Titanic wasn't enough for you, here's a TV movie that treads much the same water, though without the bombast of Cameron's epic. S.O.S. Titanic boasts a good-by-TV-standards cast--David Janssen, Susan St. James, Cloris Leachman, David Warner (who booked passage a second time, in Cameron's version), and early appearances by such esteemed performers as Ian Holm and Helen Mirren. It follows the voyage of the ship in a day-by-day diary through the eyes of a number of the passengers and crew members until the fateful night, then provides a brief denouement as the survivors come to terms with what has happened to them. A number of budding romances are explored in this film, suggesting the Titanic was the original Love Boat. Janssen, in a subplot quaint by today's standards, plays a wealthy man who has become something of a pariah because he has divorced and remarried a younger woman. Warner and St. James play prim academics who awkwardly stumble into a friendship; it's intriguing until their final scene together, in which they serve as an ersatz Greek chorus ludicrously commenting on the outcome. There are relationships burgeoning down in steerage, as well, where the hearty poor Irish kick up a party atmosphere just as they did, again, in Cameron's version. Leachman chews scenery as the Unsinkable Molly Brown; Holm (with a more youthful voice that sounds as if the soundtrack is being played too fast) is the callous owner of the ship, and Mirren is an Irish maid observing key moments in the saga. The melodrama here isn't as purple as in Cameron's film, and the sundry relationships are built and connected intelligently. More impressively, a lot of the mayhem behind the sinking is nearly as effective as the celebrated megaflick on a fraction of the budget. The best news is, it's a full 90 minutes shorter than Cameron's film. --David Kronke
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| Customer Reviews: Read 23 more reviews...
Decent But Outdated! April 9, 2008
S.O.S. Titanic was actually the first Titanic movie I saw as a child in the 80's on TBS. It wet my appetite and made me a Titanic buff for life. It was made in 1979, so the special effects and production have come a long way since then. The movie is far too quiet and calm to accurately portray what happened that April night in 1912. For a collector like me, this is a nice addition to have. But, for someone wanting a thrilling, modern-day version, get the famous James Cameron version or the 1997 George C. Scott version.
 Once passable TV movie so Edited it is almost unwatchable on DVD March 25, 2008
Many of us surely recall watching this (relatively) interesting adaptation of the Titanic story on TV when it first aired in 1979 on ABC. I watched in my college dorm.
THIS IS NOT THAT MOVIE.
The DVD adaptation is the European theatrical edit of the movie, which runs a good 45 minutes shorter and has edited out some of the most interesting scenes. Based on a book by one of the survivors, what made the TV adaptation so compelling was the time it spent in anecdotes about the real-life people on the ship (like the trip down the stairs, and the antics of the younger folks on board). All of that is cut in this edited version.
There are also weird edits that lack continuity -- entire scenes are rearranged so that, for example, you get Helen Mirren climbing into a lifeboat and safely seated -- and then 5 minutes later talking to Andrews on board the ship...similarly, the lifeboat sequences are out of order, especially the overturned lifeboat sequence which comes AFTER the sinking sequence, not before both in real life and in the original ABC cutting.
This is strictly for people who want to complete their Titanic collection, and not for anyone who wants to see a film with intelligence, nor even the original Dallas-esque adaptation of the full unedited TV movie.
If and when this comes out in its original ABC version, it would rate a 4 star. As is, it's 2 stars at best.
 A great t.v. movie cut up and wasted in this transfer March 12, 2007
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I watched this movie the first time a.b.c. ran it in 1979 at the age of 12 and really liked it. I was glad to find it on DVD and bought it. I didn't notice the running time had been cut, because this was a 3 hour movie(2 hours and 35 min. without ads) and this one is cut and missing many important scenes. SKIP IT AND WAIT FOR THE UNCUT VERSION!!!!!!
 Titanic with a sense of humour February 26, 2007
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
This version of the Titanic movie saga that has taken the world by storm is one that doesn't take itself too seriously. Instead of focussing on the negatives such a snobbiness and class differences (which they save for a later time when the real tragedy occurs) it focusses on the funny things like Molly Brown's reluctance to be called Maggie, her 'unwillingness' to dance with a perfect stranger, and many other little things running throughout the movie which make you chuckle.
And for those who are worried that the humour might wear out its' welcome, never fear. When it's appropriate to get serious, it does. The film creates both light and darkness in the events and never outstays either for too long.
There is also a realistic love theme running through the film, such as unrequited love between two passengers, one of them being Laurence Beasley. You don't get that in many storylines; the lovestruck always wins their prize, but not so in this case. An older passenger dating a much younger woman isn't seen to be walking freely throughout the ship without a care in the world; no, he's worried about whether she wants him for his money or his love.
As for whether the film is accurate, well, there are plenty of mistakes right through, one of them being that the Titanic doesn't break in half as it did in real life, before sinking, it just goes straight down in this film.
Still worth having a watch though if you like the Titanic. If you're expecting an up to date visual masterpiece, then steer clear and go for the 1997 version with all its' Hollywood touchups. But this Titanic movie is far more meaningful and sentimental than simply a love story; this is a movie ranging from different perspectives than made up characters, a lot of these characters actually did exist.
A must-see for Titanic buffs of all ages. Interesting enough to keep you watching and a good addition to your collection.
SOS Titanic - Missing Pieces July 9, 2006
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
I saw this movie many years ago on TV and rather liked it. Luckily, I taped it because when I bought the VHS version of it, many scenes had been cut. I read that the DVD is the same way. If and when the complete movie is ever put onto DVD, I will happily buy it. I thought the movie was pretty well done. No Titanic movie will ever be perfect but this one wasn't bad. Cloris Leachman's portrayal of Molly Brown is a bit over the top - more of a caricature. I particularly liked that some more attention was paid to the second class and steerage characters rather than just first class. I agreed with one of the previous reviewers regarding the waltz that the two Irish characters (Martin Gallagher and the "Irish Beauty") danced to - I'd love to know the name of it, too - it's quite haunting!! All in all - not a bad movie. But please release the WHOLE movie someday!!!
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