The Great Gatsby (2013)

The poster itself shows the wide range of costumes used
in the film

Director: Baz Luhrmann
Story: Baz Luhrmann and Craig Pearce (based on the novel by F. Scott Fitzgerald) 
Cast: Leonardo DiCaprio, Tobey Maguire, Carey Mulligan, Joel Edgerton 
Music: Craig Armstrong
Time: 141 minutes
Bottom-line: Many a time boring, but a dazzling ride

It was a long time since I had seen a good DiCaprio film, and The Great Gatsby wasn’t the best choice. The film stars Leo DiCaprio and Tobey Maguire in the lead roles, with Carey Mulligan and Joel Edgerton in the supporting roles. Though it was a critical failure, I liked the film to some extent. The main highlight is the lavish production design.

DiCaprio as Jay Gatsby

Nick Carraway (Maguire) is being treated in a sanatorium, when he narrates the story of (and simultaneously writes a book about) Jay Gatsby (DiCaprio), a man whom he describes as ‘the most hopeful person he had even met’. In 1922, Nick moves to New York, where his neighbour (later found to be Gatsby) lives in an enormous mansion. Nick’s sister, Daisy (Mulligan) lives across the bay, and is married to Tom Buchanan (Edgerton). Edgerton, however, has an affair with someone else. Nick’s neighbour is very mysterious: he throws expensive parties for no apparent reason, and all the people of the city attend, even without invitation. Nick is the only one who actually gets invited, and he learns that none of them have really met Gatsby! So what is the real nature of Gatsby? And why is he the great Gatsby? Watch the film to find out!

Maguire as Nick, with DiCaprio

The story is boring. I thought The Wolf of Wall Street was the film with maximum amount of screen time given to partying, but I think this film tops that. For the first thirty minutes or so, the story is very slow, with lots of time given to parties at New York and Gatsby’s. I found the story boring at many places, and I felt that after thirty minutes, the film suddenly moved very fast, and the ending was also sort of abrupt. The pace of the film wasn’t satisfactory. But at the end, you feel sorry for Gatsby. (Spoiler alert) Nick says (about Gatsby), “Of all the people who attended his parties, no one attended his funeral. And from Daisy, not even a flower.” This shows a sad reality, where things are being loved more than people. As long as someone does good deeds to you, you remember them. Once they are gone or once they stop doing the good things, you forget them instantly.

Mulligan as Daisy

Now, as I said, the parties and celebrations slow the pace of the film, but, I admit, they are visually stunning. The production design in the film is most certainly award-worthy as are the costumes (and they did win the Oscars). The elaborate settings, lavish costumes and designs are breathtaking (full credits to Catherine Martin, who won her 4th Oscar). The camera work was also excellent, even though I couldn’t enjoy it fully, for I saw it the film in 2D (and this is a 3D film). I also liked Craig Armstrong’s score.

Edgerton as Tom

In the acting part, DiCaprio’s performance is the best. The film gets a little entertaining only after DiCaprio comes on screen, which, surprisingly, is only after thirty minutes or so after the start of the film. His slightly different accent, fast dialogues, and a range of expressions make his performance stand out. His character is also a mysterious one. His true nature is shown as the film progresses, and in the end, as I said, you feel sorry for him. This is why Nick changes the title of his story from Gatsby to The Great Gatsby. Tobey Maguire’s acting was poor most of the time. Edgerton and Mulligan have done well too; Edgerton’s acting starts off poorly but gets better towards the end. Four-time National Award winner from India, Amitabh Bachchan, also makes a cameo role in the film, as Gatsby’s friend, Meyer Wolfsheim.

One such party at Gatsby's. Like I said, one has to admire the
settings!

To sum up, Baz Luhrmann’s The Great Gatsby is a film that excels in production design, costumes and settings (See the poster I used, and read the caption). I felt amazed at the amount spent for these things (the budget is an estimated $105 million, which, compared to films like Avatar and Spiderman 3, is less), but final result was well worth it. Leo’s acting is superb, but that of the others are okay. The story is boring, but the ending was good. If you a Leo fan, go for it (that was the main reason I saw the film!) but it is certainly not one of his best.

My Rating: 3/5
Rotten Tomatoes rating: 49%