Ariana Grande and James Corden Turned Titanic Into a Late Late Show Musical

Don't be surprised if The Late Late Show is taking the rest of the month off because it blew its budget building the elaborate set for its one-take Titanic musical, which stars host James Corden, pop star Ariana Grande and a medley of oldies and current hits made to fit the plot of the classic 1997 movie. (It has nothing to do with Titanic, the musical that swept the Tonys in the boat-crazed year of 1997.)

I don't know why they're doing this now -- Titanic's 20th anniversary was in December -- but I'm glad they did, because it's really impressive. The costumes, set and performances are much better than they need to be. It's more clever than funny, but it works.

The funniest parts are when Corden sings Ed Sheeran's "Shape of You" during the "draw me like one of your French girls" scene and when the band breaks into "Ice Ice Baby" when the iceberg is spotted.

The Late Late Show really is going all out this month, with a primetime Carpool Karaoke special with Paul McCartney airing Monday, Aug. 20. And the show actually will be taking most of the rest of the month off; the last new non-special episode until September airs this Thursday.

The Late Late Show airs weeknights at 12:37 a.m. on CBS.

(Full disclosure: TV Guide is owned by CBS.)