I had no interest in seeing Gatsby until I read this review.

Summary:

Rich folk are fuckin' with ya.

I loved the over-the-top weirdness that was Moulin Rouge, including all the odd use of music. So I very much expect Gatsby to stray from the source material, and some odd music choices wouldn't surprise me either.

I'm very much looking forward to seeing this movie.

@3 - exactly how I feel. Also, I'd watch Carey Mulligan clip her toenails for two hours, so I'm pretty sure I'll enjoy the hell out of Gatsby, whatever it's flaws, simply for her presence in it.

Trouble is, Luhrmann seems to think Fitzgerald's title, "Great Gatsby," to mean, literally, great. As in magnificent. But he meant it ironically: Gatsby is a truly horrible and morally corrupt man who uses his charm for criminal ends.

my favorite jab that none of the college kids sitting around me seemed to get was when Daisy slipped a pen into Buchannan's pocket in the party scene "in case you need to write down any phone numbers." aka, "whatever, I know you fuck other people. why don't you go chase that for a bit and leave me to my flirtation." I laughed.

To be fair, Daisy wasn't a very exceptional lady. It's what Gatsby saw in her that makes all the difference.

Saw it yesterday and am completely with you on this one, Paul.

I don't think adaptations should necessarily be slavish in dedication to the source material, the decision to have Nick narrating from a mental institution was baffling to me. And even from a Jay-Z fan, the score was super distracting. It's obvious the director wanted this movie to be a commentary on contemporary culture, but the movie sits awkwardly in two worlds.

I honestly wish Luhrmann had pulled a Romeo + Juliet and simply set the story in 2007 America, before the crash. The Great Gatsby was written in 1925, less than 5 years before the Gilded Age imploded in financial ruin. The odes to modern culture would have been less jarring, and you would hardly need to change the story. Uber-class of idle rich, fiddling while Rome burns? Backdrop of popular discontent and spiritual directionlessness? Fitzgerald's book was meant as a critique of the relentless pursuit of the "American Dream", and you know what they say about history repeating itself.

Paul,

WOW, great review!!! I do not recall a film, book, or theater review engaging me or being quite so fair and thorough as this.

A truly excellent review!

Good to see Paul Constant lighten up a little and enjoy a movie. It's a fair homage to Roger Ebert.

Now I really want to see this, too. Good one, Paul Constant!

It doesn't sound like "Gatsby" will replace "Strictly Ballroom" in my heart, but I'm looking forward to giving it a try.

Well now here is a first class review. Do I still miss Lindy? YES, but this is an improvement that doesn't make me miss her less, but makes me appreciate you more.

I agree with this review. I can see why a lot of critics didn't like this adaptation, but I thought it was kind of fabulous. The first two acts were great fun to watch and the third act really got to me -- I actually misted up a bit at the end. I also don't understand what else critics expected, coming from Luhrmann. If you've hated all his previous work and sit through this with your arms crossed, waiting to be won over, you'll probably be disappointed.

@1: Ditto!

But if I hated Moulin Rouge, I will hate this movie, right?

Because I hated Moulin Rouge.

Enjoy this Summer hit...'cause Star Trek Into The Darkness looks like it's going to make Star Trek V look positively riveting

I know this film will appeal to a certain amount of people, but I'm guessing since I hated his version of Romeo & Juliet — and honestly, don't love the book — I won't like either.

Still, that was a great review, Paul.

@5: Pfffft. The title is meant both literally and ironically.

The irony is Gatsby was not the entitled WASP with a trust fund that he tried to pass himself off as. He was a southern hick who made his fortune as a bootlegger. His crime, if any, was being a member of the wrong class.

And yet the man pulled himself out of poverty, made piles of money, and loved more truly and deeply than anyone in the book, ultimately giving his life for that love.

@ 16: Yes, I completely agree with you there. I got free tickets to see Moulin Rouge in downtown Seattle when it first came out and all I can say is, "Thank God, I didn't shell out any money for it" What a giant, steaming pile of crap. My two friends loved it and apparently so did every single other person in the theater. I had to be restrained from throwing something at the screen, I hated it that much!

And Romeo+Juliet... meh.... it would have been good if some of those younger actors had actually understood the text before they filmed the movie. Painful to watch.

I loved his Romeo + Juliet, and saying "those younger actors" makes you sound a bit crotchety.