The Great Gatsby
Dir: Baz Luhrmann
2013
**
I like F. Scott Fitzgerald's classic novel 'The Great Gatsby' but like many 'Must see' and 'One of the greatest books of all time', I didn't love it. What I did love though was the mystery and the beautifully written descriptions of the wild and reckless parties of the over privileged. Please read the book before watching the film, it really is worth it and I think you will enjoy both film and book a little bit more in that order. When I heard Baz Luhrmann was set to direct I thought, yes, for once they've got it spot on, he is the perfect choice of director. Well, read the stars people, I found it all a bit disappointing. Firstly, the casting of Leonardo DiCaprio as Gatsby and Tobey Maguire as Nick Carraway was wrong. I can think of dozens for better suited actors for each role. However, Joel Edgerton was perfect as Tom Buchanan and Elizabeth Debicki played Jordan Baker just as I had imagined her in the book. Carey Mulligan was actually quite good too but I still don't see her as an object of desire worth fighting over. The problem with this film adaptation is that it is over the top, Luhrmann style, when it shouldn't be and not over the top enough when it should be. The famous scene on the way back home after the argument at the end of the story was completely muddled and nowhere near as good as it was in the book and it wasn't as if it was impossible to film. Some of the beautifully written parts of the book aren't even filmed, instead the words flash up in the sky which is ineffective and a bit lazy to be honest. It really is a case of trying too hard and not trying hard enough. I'm not sure Luhrmann really made the film he wanted to make and the results reflect this. It was always going to be impossible to please everyone, he should have just done what he does best and gone for it. There were scenes towards the middle of the film that were so dull it was hard to believe it was a Luhrmann production! Don't get me started on the soundtrack, what the hell was that? Made sense once I saw Jay Z was executive producer!