Misses on subtlety, scores on lead

Rating: 6/10 (19 May 2013)

Let me start off by saying I have an automatic bias: I've read the original novel by F. Scott Fitzgerald, so this review is coming from the standpoint of someone who knows and enjoys the story.
Now let's talk about some good things in this movie. I thought Leonardo DiCaprio did a wonderful job as Gatsby, he was perfect for such a complex role. He never overdid it or underplayed Gatsby which I appreciated. He played the character very well and you could feel his hopefulness and blindly romantic personality radiate from the screen. Carey Mulligan wasn't too bad either. I've heard complaints about Tobey Macguire's performance, but I honestly didn't mind. None of the actors were awful, most were either OK or did really well. I also loved the costumes and the actual parties of the movies. I don't know how accurate any of it is (although I suspect some of the party scenes were a little too modernized, but we'll get to that in a minute), but it was visually pleasing. The changes to the story were obvious but didn't distract.
Now on to some of my complaints. I think a million people have said this already but I want to say it again: the symbolism. Fitzgerald was a master at weaving in subtle symbols and parallel metaphors with each of his stories. In the book, the green light is talked about maybe once and then at the end. Here, it's every five minutes. I know the director must have wanted everyone to understand it, but shoving it in our faces is not the way to go. The audience can think for themselves, so it's up to them to draw their own conclusions. The end result of Gatsby's blind ambition is detracted somewhat because the green light isn't as powerful as in the book. Some of the music choices I completely disagreed with: Kanye West, Jay Z, and some form of Dubstep in a movie set in 1920's? I understand the need to connect with a modern audience, and it worked in Romeo and Juliet. But it only worked because Romeo and Juliet is a story that can be told at any time (seriously, does anyone actually know off the top of their head what year it's set in?). The Great Gatsby is suppose to be set in the 1920's and can only be set in that time period because that decade created these characters and those circumstances. There had to be a stock market boom, there had to be a war, there had to be a shift in the way people lived their life. So to try and modernize it with 2013 rapping is kind of an insult to the book.
My final major complaint is the editing. I don't know how many times the focus switched sporadically between Daisy and Nick in that one conversation at the beginning of the movie, but it was distracting. It felt like the movie was going much too quickly, it kept jumping here, there and everywhere.
My final review? Other then the subtlety, the editing and the music, it's a pretty good movie. The atmosphere is solid and you get drawn into this world quite easily. I say check it out, if not for the sole reason of DiCaprio's performance, because he is indeed, the Great Gatsby.