The Greatness Of Gatsby?

Rating: 7/10 (23 March 2016)

For people unfamiliar with F. Scott Fitzgerald's novel and other film adaptations of it, this movie may have been a disappointment in terms of how it ended, perhaps because they were expecting an epic love story. In fact, in the book, the "romance" between Gatsby and Daisy is deliberately underplayed, it's more of an expose of the decadence and carelessness of the 1920s decade, and how the past simply cannot be recaptured, despite the actions that are taken in hopes of doing so. Baz Luhrmann's film does place a large amount of emphasis on the "love story" aspect, which may have led audiences to expect more than was ultimately delivered.
Not to say that this movie is not entertaining or good. It is, in many ways. Like other reviewers, I found the usage of hip-hop songs out of place, but luckily, the film does incorporate music that does seem to suit the era. Despite not being a period song, Lana Del Rey's "Young And Beautiful" works perfectly. The CGI does get a bit much at times, to the point where it looks unreal and a bit too much like animation, but it's still glorious to look at. I suppose that in a way, it was fitting as Fitzgerald was constantly describing light, natural and artificial, throughout "The Great Gatsby".
I can't think of another actor of the past few years who could have played Jay Gatsby other than Leonardo DiCaprio. While not a huge fan of the actor since my teenage years, there's no denying that he is a compelling presence on film. You believe that this self-made millionaire or whatever he was, achieved all that he did through blind ambition to win back his first love, Daisy (Carey Mulligan). I have to give Mulligan credit because Daisy is not an easy role to play, largely because the character was deliberately underwritten in the novel. There is a reason for this, because Daisy is idealized in Gatsby's eyes, as well as in the eyes of her cousin Nick Carraway (played here by Tobey Maguire, adequate but nothing more), although to a lesser extent. Basically, Daisy is someone that others project their fantasies on to. Hence why I've never really believed that it was intended to be a love story, because it was not about real love, but trying to recapture the past, to achieve a dream and attempting to obtain the unobtainable. Gatsby does not truly love Daisy, but the image he had of her in his mind. Daisy, no matter what her feelings were for him could not simply walk away from her life; she was married to Tom Buchanan (Joel Edgerton) and had a child with him. The differences between old money and new money aside, there was no way that her husband would ever have let her go, and at some point, Daisy does realize this. Gatsby never does.
Elizabeth Debicki, Isla Fisher, Jason Clarke and Amitabh Bachchan all do reasonably well in their under-developed roles. Luhrmann clearly was busy focusing on Gatsby and Daisy's relationship, but it's curious that despite the love scenes, which are well-acted and beautifully photographed, they exhibit little on-screen chemistry. The actors tried, but it never quite comes off. Ironically, there are far more sparks between Mulligan and Edgerton, in spite of the fact that Daisy is unhappy in her marriage and Tom is a brutish philanderer. The way Daisy and Tom look at each other, respond and react to one another says far more than any speeches, declarations of love or "romantic moments" with Gatsby. While some may feel that Edgerton over did it in portraying Tom's brash ways, he does show vulnerability, particularly when Gatsby starts pressuring Daisy to claim that she never loved her husband. I've never found Tom to be particularly sympathetic, but Edgerton manages to pull it off, as does Mulligan. Daisy as a character is much maligned but when push comes to shove, she was trapped in the high-society mindset into which she was born, and never pretended to be anything she was not. It was Gatsby who refused to accept reality, and this what ultimately led to his downfall. In fact, even when Gatsby tells Nick about his past, we can't even be entirely sure he is telling the truth, as he is so prone to fantasy. We are also not sure as viewers what was inside Daisy's heart and mind, perhaps she loved both men, but had to make the choice that was best for her, but not without consequences.
The costumes and sets will literally take your breath away, but the exclusion of a few crucial scenes (one of which does show up in the deleted scenes section of the special features of the DVD) may have helped to clear some things up.
It's not my favorite film adaptation of the novel but it's not as terrible as some are making it out to be.