Nice

Rating: 10/10 (19 December 2014)

The film follows young writer Nick Carraway during the passion and heat- fueled summer of 1922. He's rented a small cottage adjacent to the glorious mansion of the mysterious but popular Jay Gatsby. Gatsby plays host to extravagant parties every weekend, hundreds of people reveling in orgies of music, alcohol and sex. It's the place to be, except the enigmatic Gatsby never seems to attend his own parties. Directly across the bay from Gatsby's mansion is the estate of Daisy and Tom Buchanan with its green dock light, a light that sears into Gatsby's heart every night. Daisy is Nick's cousin and he soon becomes swept up their social whirl, including an ongoing flirtation with languid tennis pro Jordan Baker. It's the 20s and morals are loose, jazz is king and relationships aren't what they were at the turn of the century. There's an underlying pathos throughout the movie that perfectly fits the era too... What can be said of a city that is so corrupt underneath the glitz and glamor that every denizen doesn't already secretly know? This corruption is the source of the breathless urgency both in the story and in the production itself, a Пелл-Mell flume ride to the inevitable climax. I'm an unabashed fan of Leonardo DiCaprio and have enjoyed watching him grow into one of the best actors in Hollywood today, and his performance as the enigmatic Gatsby. The performance that surprised me was that of Tobey Maguire. Best known for the Spider-Man trilogy, his Nick Carraway is nuanced, touching and sympathetic. He wants to be impressed, he wants to fit in, but he knows that there's something fake about everything related to Gatsby, a corruption that reflects the entire glitzy world of the upper class. Carey Mulligan seems lifeless from the onset. It is hard to recognize her in the meaty character that she has been assigned.
Yet, I managed to claw out a few touching moments of the actress, more towards the end as her character dwindles torn between the fantasies of her husband and lover. This film makes you believe in true love! however, the attitude of the main character's shocking. The Great Gatsby is one of the most gorgeous films I've seen in a long time, capturing the hope, the optimism and the glitter of the art deco era. Coupled with the engaging narrative and uniformly excellent performances, it's a love story that transcends the clichés of the genre to stand as one of the best films released last year.