REVIEW | THE GREAT GATSBY (2013)

I'm not a huge fan of Baz Luhrmann. I've never outright hated any of his films, but neither have any been particularly memorable for me. His films are colourful and fantastical, big production value and budgets that make third world countries weep. Hollywood has gotten into the habit of thinking that if they blind the audience with special effects and enough smoke and mirrors we'll forget that they don't have a half decent storyline. You've got to give it to Luhrmann though, the man knows his aesthetic and knows that it matters. 

The cinematography was stunning, as was to be expected. I especially loved the scene transitions. I felt the overwhelming, dizzying opulence and excess as if I were Nick Carraway. Those who dress the film down as one big party forget that that was the entire point of the era, and The Great Gatsby. Anything to impress Daisy Buchanan. Anything to draw the attention of the one he loves. Anything to be good enough. 

I enjoyed the synchronicity of the background action, for example, the actions of the waitstaff. However, the extent of the staging did at times make me feel like Luhrmann still thought he was choreographing a theatre scene for Moulin Rouge.

One thing critics can all agree on is the amazing soundtrack. My opinion was certain from the moment I heard Gershwin's "Rhapsody in Blue", one of my favourite pieces of classical music that contains the very essence of New York. 

The casting was perfect. I can't think of anyone better to play the mysterious, troubled Gatsby than Leonardo DiCaprio. And, for once, Carey Mulligan played a character that suited what she's like every time I see her (and don't mistake her for Michelle Williams)–perpetually on the verge of tears, simpering and kind of vapid. Elizabeth Debicki's nonchalantly elegant performance as Jordan Baker was a highlight for me. Joel Edgerton's rendition of Tom Buchanan was suitably debauched, egotistical and controlling. Tobey Maguire as the earnest, somewhat out of place narrator Nick Carraway put on as strong a performance as a plot device character would allow.

Unlike Daisy Buchanan, this modern version of The Great Gatsby was not shallow, as many assured me it was. Anyone whose heartstrings were not tugged and frustrated by the struggle of the nouveau riche to measure up to old money and pedigree must have left their heart at home. I think the film succeeded in capturing the all-consuming, misplaced love of Gatsby. Always tortuously in sight, but forever out of reach. 

All glitter and no Gatsby, you say? I disagree.