First Look: 'Titanic' Duo Go Down Familiar Road in New Film
After a decade, DiCaprio, Winslet reunite on screen in "Revolutionary Road."
Sept. 19, 2008 — -- Their careers have taken off, their faces have aged slightly, and she has gone blond, but Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet still have the hots for each other on-screen.
More than a decade after they helped make "Titanic" the biggest film in box-office history, DiCaprio and Winslet reunite for "Revolutionary Road." Its poster gets a first look here, and the trailer makes its debut Friday with "The Duchess."
Based on the Richard Yates novel, "Road" tells the story of a young, successful couple living what appears to be a thriving life with their two children in 1950s Connecticut. But the mendacity of their suburban living sends them to France — and their relationship into a tailspin.
If it all sounds a bit like a certain hot TV show, there's good reason. Yates' novel has been cited as a primary influence on AMC's "Mad Men," which also features a couple living a life ruled by status.
"The country was at this point of prosperity and optimism, but there were fracture points," says Stacey Snider, co-chairman and CEO of DreamWorks, which co-produced "Road." Yates' book "takes this unflinching look at the dreams not realized and the cost of those expectations."
"Road" also is one of a spate of romantic dramas, which are seeing a resurgence after losing popularity since "Titanic's" days. "Nights in Rodanthe," which reunites "Unfaithful" co-stars Richard Gere and Diane Lane, is out Sept. 26, and Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman star in the epic "Australia," due Nov. 26.
"They're seen as a bit of a gamble because they're not as popular or as bankable as, say, romantic comedies," says Chad Hartigan, analyst for industry tracking firm Exhibitor Relations.
But DiCaprio and Winslet, Hartigan says, have a history that could help.
"'Titanic' was the perfect storm of a movie," he says. "You had special effects guys liked, good reviews adults like and a chemistry between (DiCaprio and Winslet) that's really hard to capture. That has people talking — and interested to see if they still have it."