The Great Gatsby

The Great Gatsby, has been remade and reimagined once again for the 21st century. Based on the great American novel written by Scott Fitzgerald in 1925, this classic tale has been told and retold numerous times: in 1926 it was presented as a silent film, then in 1949 it was created as a black and white "talkie," and in 1974 Robert Redford and Mia Farrow gave the film a good run. There was a TV adaptation in 2000, and in 2002, there was a hip-hop version made. Now, in 2013, Leonardo DiCaprio and Toby Maguire gave the story new life. I read the novel in college for my freshman American literature class, and I think I recently watched some of the 1974 movie on television, very late at night. I was wary of another interpretation of the wonderful book – however, this film did not disappoint me. The producers, writers and directors did a decent job in capturing the atmosphere, character development and emotion of the story. The actors did a fine job, even Leonardo DiCaprio, seemed to rise to the occasion. I particularly enjoyed the music and the computer-generated graphics. These two modern tools gave the movie a unique and dreamlike feel that I felt remained true to the original novel. The music was a blend of 1920s jazz and current Jay-Z inspired, written and performed songs, all nicely done. The CGI enhanced the mood of the film, creating comic book like scenery, fantastic party scenes, and smoothed out action sequences. This all brought me deep into the world view of Nick, the narrator of the story. The visual and auditory effects entertained me from the beginning to the end, even though I knew the story. I especially liked the idea that the movie showed some of Fitzgerald's words and sentences as they were produced on the typewriter, floating and blending mystically with the atmosphere of the film. With all of that, what really made the movie is the classic love story. Definitely worth a read, and a rental!