Titanic Revealed

In 1985, Dr. Robert Ballard located the wreck of the Titanic some 12,000 feet beneath the surface of the North Atlantic. Ironically, this was not his original goal--Ballard was a naval intelligence officer who was on top secret missions to locate lost Cold War-era submarines--but his discovery of the celebrated shipwreck reignited a popular fascination with the infamous maritime disaster. Nearly two decades, Dr. Ballard returned to the site only to find that it had been looted by salvagers and scavengers more interested in carrying away souvenirs than preserving the remains of the doomed vessel. Tracey Barry and Peter Schnall's compelling and fascinating documentary Titanic Revealed, originally broadcast on the National Geographic Channel, traces Dr. Ballard's noble, if somewhat quixotic, attempt to turn the Titanic into an underwater museum. Most memorable is the brilliantly eerie contemporary underwater videography of the Titanic--a ghostly viewing experience, as the harsh lights reveal the broken, barnacle-encrusted vessel resting in deathly silence on the ocean's floor. DVD extras include 11 minutes of bonus underwater footage and a photo gallery. Highly recommended. Aud: H, C, P. (P. Hall)