A closer look

Because nothing honors a horrific maritime tragedy quite like blowing an unprecedented budget to recreate it. James Cameron dropped $200 million to make his epic, whereas the original doomed ship only cost about $7.5 million in 1912 (roughly $150 million adjusted for inflation). The studio executives panicked, assuming they were funding the biggest flop in cinema history, only for Cameron to rake in billions. The lesson here is that unhinged financial excess occasionally pays off.