By Amber Layton
UHCLIDIAN STAFF

The unsinkable ship. The unthinkable disaster.

Titanica, an IMAX Corporation presentation of a Stephen Low film, takes the audience in between the past and present of the unforgettable shipwreck that occurred April 14, 1912. The film is now showing at the Houston Museum of Natural Science in conjunction with the Houston museum's exhibit, Titanic: The Artifact Exhibit.

Stephen Low filmed Titanica during a 1991 expedition of the Abademik Keldysh, the Russian vessel that conducted an underwater investigation of the remains of the Titanic on the ocean floor. A team of deep ocean explorers from various countries worked relentlessly to find treasures from the wreckage.

The story is interwoven between eerie images of the Titanic lying on the ocean floor 2 1-2 miles beneath the surface of the North Atlantic with a personal account from Eva Hart. Hart tragically lost her father on the fated voyage.

"The sound of people drowning is something I cannot describe to you and neither can anyone else. It is the most dreadful sound and then there is dreadful silence that follows it," quotes Hart from the film.

Low begins by showing black and white photos of "the largest moving object built by human hands" being constructed. Everything about the Titanic was quoted as being on a "nightmarish scale."

Back at the dive site, the research team begins the two and one-half hour journey to the bottom of the Atlantic.

Surrounded by complete darkness, the team is jolted when their dive ship reaches the ocean floor. The engines fire up and they are headed toward the bowel of the ship.

An extensive scientific survey of the damage site is conducted. Gasps can be heard around the theatre as the crew embarks upon the remains of the ship.

Debris is everywhere. Coal from the ship's engine room is the first indication of the shipwreck. Dishes, shoes, and personal items litter the area surrounding the Titanic.

Low then attempts to add a personal touch to his film. The audience is transported back in time through the eyes of Eva Hart who, as a 7-year-old girl, survived the tragedy.

Black and white photos of Eva and her family on the ship are displayed. Eva is shown with her oversized teddy bear looking into the camera with big, innocent eyes. She remembers her mother having a premonition of tragedy on the ship.

Benjamin Hart, Eva's father, decided to make a better life for his family and was to set sail on another ship when a coal strike got the family transferred to the Titanic. Hart and her mother survived the sinking of the Titanic on Lifeboat 14.

"I was totally interested in the entire show and learned facts about the ship I never realized," Tina Boleyn from the audience said. "The research team was devoted to discovering and preserving items from the wreckage."

With all the tragedy surrounding the events of the Titanic, it is impossible not to be fascinated by this story. It is exciting to accompany this research team to the bottom of the Atlantic and view the eerie remains of the ship.

"The IMAX experience never ceases to amaze me," said Sarah Simpson from the audience. "I feel like I have been on the ocean floor."

Titanica will run until Jan. 5, 2003. Tickets can be purchased for both Titanica and Titanic: The Artifact Exhibit online at www.hmns.org, or at the ticket booth inside the museum, or by calling (713) 639-4629.

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