A Favorite Guilty Pleasure
As y’all know, Valentine’s Day was this week. I was planning on posting a list of my favorite romantic movies in celebration. However, on Monday Josh informed me of something I was somehow unaware of, and it completely changed my plans. Wanna know what he told me? Titanic was re-released to theaters for a limited time for its 25th anniversary!!!!!
Yes. I am a die-hard Titanic fanatic. Laugh all you want, but I fully embrace that title. Even before the movie came out, I was a die-hard Titanic (the ship, not the movie 😉) history buff. Like so many others, the haunting story has always fascinated me.
The movie came out when I was in the sixth grade, and it made an indelible impression on me. I distinctly remember where I was when I was planning to go see it for the first time. The history, the romance, the costuming, the drama, the sheer epic-ness…it all sucked me in. And that’s not even taking into consideration LEONARDO DICAPRIO!!!! Ah, Leo… I could write several posts about my (mostly former) obsession with him alone!
When I say I was obsessed, I’m not exaggerating. Any of my former 6th-grade classmates can attest to this, as can most people who know me well to this day. I watched everything I could that Leo had starred in. I bought and/or read book after book about the movie, the actors, and the original ship. The very first concert I went to was Gaelic Storm (the “steerage” band that played in the movie). I saw Titanic in the movie theater TWELVE TIMES, y’all. That was just before it was released to video. When it was released to video, my parents let me stay up till midnight, my dad drove me to Wal-Mart, and I was the first person in line to purchase it. (And, no, I wasn’t the only one there at midnight to get it. 😂) When it was released in 3D to theaters in 2012, Josh took me on a date to see it again.
I come from a family that loves movies. In fact, before I was born, my parents briefly owned a movie theater! Josh also has many fond family memories of watching movies. His family owned a video rental store when he was growing up! I’m tellin’ ya—We were a match made in heaven… and in front of screens.
We met because his roommate, whom I had a college class with, had a movie viewing at their apartment. About four months later, Josh and I shared our first kiss after staying up late to watch Sabrina (the one starring Audrey Hepburn, OBVIOUSLY) together. We chose “our song” (“Come What May”) from one of our favorite romantic movies (Moulin Rouge). I really like romantic movies, okay? Good ones, at least. 😉
So…Josh was excited to tell me about Titanic‘s re-release because he knew how happy it’d make me. We’d already had dates on both the Saturday AND the Monday before Valentine’s day, so Josh volunteered to stay home with our boys so I could go see Titanic in the movie theater with my friend on Wednesday. My heart melted for him all over again.
Watching it again on the big screen with my gal pal Lauren was JUST what my heart needed that day. It had been a rotten day—complete with me literally running over Link’s walker by accident (a story for another day). 🤦 As usual, though, Titanic did the trick in turning my day around. I know that—like many things that become uber popular—plenty of people make fun of it. For me, though? Watching it is always a bit like coming home.
So…I have now seen Titanic in the movie theater a grand total of 14 times. Yes. Obsessed. I think this was the last time, but you never know. Fourteen seems to be a good number to end on, though. The Titanic sank on April 14th, for those who don’t know that already. (Anybody else like it when numbers line up to create a sense of meaning or completeness?)
Do you have a favorite romantic movie you consider a guilty pleasure? I’d love to hear what it is! And if you’re ever wracking your brain trying to think of an easy, sweet date idea, pull out one of the movies that is special to you and/or your significant other, cuddle up under a blanket together, and let the show begin. Or send them with their friend to watch it. They might appreciate that just as much.
Oh, and for those of you wondering… Yes. The Titanic still sank when I watched the movie this time. 😉 (That was the running joke back when I was in the sixth grade. I’d come home from watching the movie again, and my older brother would teasingly ask me, “Did it still sink?”) Yes, Mark. It did. And it was glorious.