A good film, yet full of holes.

Rating: 7/10 (10 May 2013)

Now, I've just returned from a screening of the film in all of it's Real-D glory and I return home, writing on my computer with mixed feelings. Why? Perhaps is because as much as I love this book and I love DiCaprio, I just can't bring myself to love this film. Its greatest pitfall has to be the set design. I can't bring myself to love a movie where every scene that doesn't occur in some tiny room, is so blatantly CGI'ed. I found it difficult to grasp the glamor of the homes of Gatsby and the Buchanans for the pure fact that it was so fake that I didn't care. You can't try to impress me with a home I know isn't real.
Granted, I knew ahead of time that this film would be completely exaggerated in every way, the same way that our loving director gave us a shocking adaptation of R+J. The wardrobe and make up were done brilliantly and the first thing I thought about when the movie ended was "Damn, if only I had a nice suit like that...". The reason why I say this is because our loving Nick Carraway has been destroyed by Toby McGuire. It's no secret that Toby and Leo are good friends and it's likely the reason he got the role as Nick because he was the worst actor in this film. His robotic voice as a narrator doesn't draw you in and it bores you because Toby has ripped apart everything that makes Nick who he is which is another problem on its own.
Our beloved, despised, and alluring set of characters are whittled down to nothing more than people who just happen to be around Gatsby. Everything takes a back-burner to Gatsby crisis, including the detailed life of the protagonist! Nearly EVERYTHING that provides character development for Nick is removed from the film and essentially for every character as well. I know I'm jaded because I despise the modern age of Hollywood and its over-simplicity of everything just to make a quick buck, but seriously? Did you have to destroy the real issues of this book and make it into a romance? Where the issues that Fitzgerald wanted to bring to attention are nearly ignored? Shame on you!
The Soundtrack.....it's been over-hyped as expected and nothing is really special about it. I expected there to at least be some sort of Jazz in the film, but in the end, if you ignore the brilliant submissions by Florence and Lana Del Rey, you have a TERRIBLE soundtrack that doesn't fit with the plot. By the end of it, I hated when the bands would come out and pretend to play music for some crappy electronic beat that magically played...There aren't any speakers, nor are there turntables or special effects so where the heck is this thumping bass coming from? At first, I thought it was non-diegetic sound to entertain the viewer, but during a scene I quickly realized that it's diegetic and it can be heard muffled in the background.
But in the end, Gatsby, Tom, Jordan, Daisy all were supported with good acting and they managed to make this an enjoyable experience for me. A classic to be? Not at all. Worth the money to watch? Yes! It'll entertain you and amaze you with the rich cinematography. The use of colors is phenomenal and well done, just try to get past that awful narration!