The Great Gatsby Review

Rating: 8/10 (19 May 2013)

The bad reviews this film has received is surprising but everyone to their own I suppose. I thought the first 40 minutes was a bit messy and jumped from one thing to the next and the constant playing of Jay-Z was kind of annoying but once it settled down and got into the story I really enjoyed it. The cinematography is brilliant and the script is fairly close to the book which I also liked.
As for the acting, Leonardo Di Caprio is immense in this film. He really does the part of Jay Gatsby justice. Baz Luhrman couldn't have picked a better person to play Gatsby. One thing I had a problem about before seeing the film was the fact that Tobey Maguire was playing Nick but this was the first film I have watched him in where he didn't make me want to pull my eyes out from cringing. There is some parts where he just stands there with that blank expression on his face but overall I think he did a good job. Other actors worth mentioning are Joel Edgerton and Elizabeth Debicki who both bring the characters of Tom and Jordan to life despite Jordan only having a few lines. I would be surprised if Joel E doesn't get a lot more roles now after this film. Carey Mulligan does her best as the selfish and naive Daisy.
I'm not going to into specifics but I'll just say for anyone who has read the book you'll enjoy the film. As for anyone who hasn't read the book it is a brilliant story and I think this film does it justice.