A Visual Splendor,Old Sport!!!!

Rating: 8/10 (12 March 2014)

The Great Gatsby is a 3D film adaptation the 1925 novel of the same name that stars Leonardo DiCaprio, Tobey Maguire, Carey Mulligan, Joel Edgerton, and Elizabeth Debicki.It follows the life and times of millionaire Jay Gatsby and his neighbor Nick Carraway, who recounts his encounter with Gatsby at the height of the 1920's.This serves as a tribute to F. Scott Fitzgerald on the 116th anniversary of his birth and the 1925 novel of the same name.It was co-written and directed by Baz Luhrmann.
It is the spring of 1922, an era of loosening morals, glittering jazz, bootleg kings, and sky-rocketing stocks. Chasing his own American Dream, Nick lands next door to a mysterious, party-giving millionaire, Jay Gatsby and across the bay from his cousin,Daisy and her philandering, blue-blooded husband, Tom Buchanan. As Nick bears witness to the captivating world of the rich,he writes a tale that consists of impossible love, incorruptible dreams and tragedy that similar to our own struggles in the present.
This film is definitely a visually great.It won two Oscars for best production design and best costume design.Too bad that the viewer feels that too much effort was placed in it rather than Fitzgerald's story itself.Also,we get lost in following the material especially when we are continuously amazed with the visual effects of the movie that is so excessive just like the parties hosted by Gatsby himself. Too bad the this great story was presented in a boring and dull manner that one does not hold interest in the tales and themes it is trying to convey.In the end,lessons that could have been learned gets lost somewhere in this film.As for the performances,there is nothing really worthy to be mentioned despite of the talented cast involved in it.Too bad that it is only a minor improvement of the Robert Redford and Mia Farrow-starrer of the 1974 The Great Gatsby.But nevertheless,this film is definitely what Jay Gatsby would say if he were alive today,"A visual splendor,old sport!!!"