Like every other high school student, I read The Great
Gatsby. The part that I find funny is that everyone else in my class thought
that book was one of the best books they had every read and to this day they
put it down as one of their favorites of all time. I thought the book was fine
and I enjoyed the writing of F. Scott Fitzgerald, however, it never had the
lasting effect on me that it had with everyone else I knew. It was a book that
I enjoyed but it was nothing spectacular.
I think I feel the same about Leonardo DiCaprio. Everyone
else knew him from their childhood as they watched Titanic or Romeo and Juliet
and have since believed that DeCaprio walks on water, like The Great Gatsby. So
I think it’s a little bit ironic that they made a movie adaptation that starred
DiCaprio and everyone was so excited to see it… except for me.
The Great Gatsby came out in 2013 and I never got around to
watching it. It wasn’t until I was saw it free on an on-demand service that I decided
it was time to check out the remake of the classic and give my thoughts on it.
Nick eventually meets a cast of characters that all are connected in one way or another. He connects with his cousin Daisy (played by Carey Mulligan), a bubbly trophy wife to the racist and cheating Tom Buchanan (played by Joel Edgerton). He also meets their friend Jordan Baker (played by Elizabeth Debicki). Tom's mistress Myrtle (played by Isla Fisher) and her unassuming husband, George (played by Jason Clarke). Many of them allude Nick's mysterious neighbor, Jay Gatsby. They all seem to be connected in one way or another, but it's not until Nick meets him that Jay Gatsby's plan begins.
Gatsby (played by Leonardo DiCaprio) is a mysterious man of wealth
with an ambiguous backstory. Some people call him a war hero, others call him
German spy, others call him a criminal. But Nick befriends Gatsby and gets to
know him like no other person has in a while. Eventually Gatsby brings him in
on a plan to woo Nick’s cousin Daisy because they are long lost lovers from a
bygone time.
The reason The Great Gatsby is such a relatable story is because
the themes and the underlying messages within the story are attainable enough
for the laymen audience to understand. The giant eyes on the billboard in the
middle of the lower class areas could represent the eyes of God, especially
when there are sins being committed in the lower class areas. I don’t mean to
belittle anybody who finds meaning in the Great Gatsby’s storytelling, I only
mean to comment on the accessibility of the story.
The movie is directed by Baz Luhrman, who you might recognize from
Moulin Rouge, and if you liked the style of that film, you’ll definitely like
the style of The Great Gatsby. Everything is very animated and very colorful.
On top of that the movie blends the style of the roaring 20s, an era known for
social enlightenment and lavish parties, with the raging party vibe and actual
music of the modern age. There is a lot of music actually used in the movie
that is composed by Beyonce and Jay-Z. It mixes both the radicalness of Jazz in
the 1920s with it’s arguable modern counter-part, hip hop of today.
Now as intriguing as the style of Baz Luhrman can be, you do have
to remember the obnoxiousness of Moulin Rouge and accept that that is also in
this film along with the innovative styles. For me personally, I think it’s a
little bit over the top and takes away from the dramatic elements of the story.
This could be a really great story if it was focused more on the substance
rather than the style, but that’s not to say its bad.
The performances in this film are what even out the obnoxious
Luhrman styles. I really thought that there wasn’t a bad choice as far as
casting goes. As much as I think Tobey Macguire has kind of always been
Spider-man since the early 2000s, this film does give him some opportunity to
play a different role. Now is he still a social odd ball in this film and every
other film he plays? Yes, the guy looks like a guppy. However, I did enjoy him
in this film and the conflict he comes with holding the secrets of others.
You really can’t help but fall in love with Carey Mulligan in this
film. Not only is she gorgeous but she really does play this bubbly personality
that is conflicted and flawed at the same time. I think that Mulligan is an
actress that is not in nearly enough film these days. I kind of wish this would
have introduced her to more American audiences but I guess that’s not the case
as I haven’t really seen her in a lot of films lately.
I also really liked Joel Edgerton in this film. I feel like I
haven’t seen enough of Joel Edgerton but everything I have seen him in whether
its Midnight Special, Jane Got a Gun, or this, I have really enjoyed him in
everything. When I read the book I guess I didn’t pick up how much of a bastard
Tom Buchanan really is in this story and Edgerton does a really good job at being
a bit of an asshole in this story.
And the best part of it all I think is when all these people come together. I think Joel Edgerton or even Tobey Macguire can have good performances but it's when they all come together is when this movie starts to show off the ensemble cast. It's pretty well done. I think everyone plays off one another very well.
The big surprise that I guess I didn't really expect was the tension between Joel Edgerton and Leonardo DiCaprio as Tom Buchanan and Jay Gatsby. To be fair, these are the two actors with the most acting chops and talent so it's not really surprising that they're probably the most entertaining of anybody in the cast, but I was really entertained every time these two go head to head.
On top of that, the relationship between Leonardo DiCaprio and Tobey Macguire as Gatsby and Nick Carraway is pretty genuine as well. I think the movie took a little bit of liberty with the way that they portrayed that relationship because it does come off as though Nick experiences more than plutonic feelings towards Gatsby, however that could all be conjecture.
But the performance everyone was really interested in seeing was
that of Leonardo DiCaprio as Jay Gatsby. And I’ll be honest, it’s okay. This
movie came out in 2013 which was about the same time that people started to
really get up in arms about Leo never receiving an Oscar and I’ll be honest,
this role doesn’t support him deserving one any more than the Wolf of Wall Street
did or any other role he’s been up for in the past for Best Actor. He doesn’t
do a bad job, I'm not going to sit here and try and argue that Leonardo DiCaprio is a bad actor, because it's just not true. Even in a mediocre movie like that of J Edgar, DiCaprio pulls off a great performance and steals the show and that's exactly what he does in The Great Gatsby. I just thought that with all the “Old Sport” and weird accent
that is almost cartoony, the role was almost hindered by the style and the over
the top nature of the movie.
And that’s the overall thought I had for the entire film. The
movie in my opinion is a classic case of style over substance. While the
performances are very good and they make up for some of the cartoonish style
that the movie brings, Baz Luhrman tends to get in his own way when it comes to
creating a good movie with lucrative style. The visuals and the music are very
good but I think they over shadow the dramatic acting and good performances
within the movie.
But what did you think of The Great Gatsby? Did you have nostalgic
connection to this story? Do you have nostalgic connection to Leonardo
DiCaprio? If you do, please let me know, what is the appeal? Comment and
Discuss below! You can also send me your thoughts on Twitter @cmhaugen24 as
well as send me your requests for films I should review in the future. If you
follow me on Twitter, you can get updates on future movie news and reviews
coming out of this blog.
No comments:
Post a Comment