Epic Scale Threatens to Sink ‘Titanic’

For those unfamiliar with the details surrounding the sinking of the Titanic, CBS’ four-hour miniseries of the same name is an adequate and sporadically chilling history lesson.

In 1912, the grand ocean liner plunged into the Atlantic Ocean after striking an iceberg during its maiden voyage. More than two-thirds of the ship’s 2,228 passengers and crew members perished. Among them were a substantial number of aristocrats who had been treated to the Titanic’s many luxurious amenities. But though it was stocked with the finest china and crystal, the vessel was only equipped with enough lifeboats for half of its passengers.

“Titanic,” which begins Sunday night, makes no bones about the disaster being the product of human arrogance. The ship’s vain manager, J. Bruce Ismay (Roger Rees), is hell-bent on making the transatlantic voyage in record time. As a result, he overrides the authority of the seasoned captain (George C. Scott) and drives the “unsinkable” Titanic toward mind-boggling disaster.

The makers of “Titanic” also might have benefited from more modest aspirations. Rather than turn their production into an epic presenting a number of different sub-dramas, they would have been better served had they concentrated on delving into the hearts and souls of Ismay and Scott’s Capt. Edward J. Smith. Ismay is symbolic of the era’s growing drive for economic and industrial accomplishment; Smith is the wise old seaman who has survived in part because he understands that it’s better to work with nature than against it.

Instead, “Titanic” spreads itself too thin by encompassing about a half dozen mini-dramas that are far more soap opera than social history.

Peter Gallagher gets top billing as a wealthy young businessman, Wynn Park. He books a spot on the luxury ship in order to reconnect with Isabella Paradine (Catherine Zeta Jones), an old flame who is now married to another well-heeled gentleman. Wynn’s presence rekindles old passions in Isabella and forces her to make a painful decision regarding her marriage.

There’s plenty of romance aboard this love boat. Among the ship’s working-class patrons who occupy the boat’s dingy lower reaches is Jamie Perse (Mike Doyle), who finds himself falling for a fetching young Danish woman (Sonsee Ahray). Making this a difficult alliance is his history as a petty criminal and her desire to live a holy life through God. The denouement of this relationship is pure Hollywood and is a reminder that a number of these stories are strictly fictional.

“Titanic” is most striking during its final stages, when the boat’s fate is beyond hope and we see how various passengers deal with such horrific adversity. Set to Lennie Niehaus’ haunting musical score, a segment featuring slow-motion images of destruction, panic and cascading water is powerful.

* “Titanic” airs 9-11 p.m. Sunday and Tuesday on CBS (Channel 2).