THE GREAT GATSBY

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1343092/fullcredits?ref_=tt_cl_sm#cast

At a showing of Baz Luhrmann’s long-awaited production of The Great Gatsby, my pencil was thoroughly sharpened and ready to tear apart his near-sided vision, embarrassing anachronisms and stale script delivered by overdressed floor models. And… I was surprised.  Not only does everything look great but the cast works at the best level of their respective careers. 

Leonardo DiCaprio sells his Gatsby with the same suave exuberance that Gatsby uses to sell himself. Carey Mulligan as Daisy Buchanan portrays perfectly the anguish a real-life Daisy would face and not the spoiled rich-girl routine we would expect. Tobey Maguire turns in the first truly adult performance of his career. But the breakout part goes to Joel Edgerton as Daisy’s husband Tom, an athletic hulk of a man from the Entitled Class who doesn't intend to lose what he considers his.

Yes, the story is shallow and narrow-minded but that’s because the F. Scott Fitzgerald novel on which it is based, the bane of literature-averse high school kids throughout the land, is also shallow and narrow-minded. While Fitzgerald’s work is wrought with exquisite imagery it’s never been a favorite of mine. He pretends to cast a cynical eye toward the trivial worries of the wealthy while also yearning whole-heartedly to be part of that world.

Director Baz Luhrmann has no such worries and doesn't quibble about showing us the Jazz Age in all it’s it debauched and excessive opulence. This is an eye catching film from start to finish and although I was a fan of last year’s Life of Pi, I found myself wondering if I’d ever seen a color film before. Well, I've never seen one like this. Luhrmann’s trick, if you want to call it that, is to give us the fuzzy, soft-focus look at the era we've grown up seeing in old film prints and bring it to life with splashes of outrageous color. Some scenes are literally dizzying. Throw in some contemporary Rap and R&B to make us comfortable and we seem to be seeing something ancient but truly alive.

The Great Gatsby

I could write a pretty good doctoral thesis about how Hollywood has expunged the dirty little secret of its Golden Age. While minorities were making unique contributions to our culture, they still faced barriers to full participation in society. Movies exacerbated this injustice with shameful images of black butlers, chauffeurs and buffoons.  You may rest assured you won’t see these clips when the Oscar show opens up the vault. Luhrmann, luckily, has no such hindrance and we’re shown the richness of the Jazz Age in all its colorful diversity.  We’re also treated to women with curves and showgirls with heft, just as it really was.  Carey Mulligan is not shaped like the stick-thin flappers we recall from the New Yorker illustrations and her wardrobe reflects this fact.

Fitzgerald once said: There are no second acts in American lives. And this couldn't be truer in the case of his hero, tragically trying to buy a new past for himself but with Daisy by his side this time. The innocent pointlessness is what Luhrmann and DiCaprio communicate so well. Gatsby’s obsession with Daisy becomes pathetic and desperate. In the end, Gatsby gets shot down in manner as shocking as another big fella who took New York by storm in search of a blond.  Film nerds such as your humble critic will notice in this scene homage to another pool scene in Sunset Boulevard.

If need be, this is the kind of movie you’d want to take the in-laws or your parents to see so they’ll think you've got interests beyond bare-handed cat fishing programs and super hero films. And for that I’m giving The Great Gatsby three Dr. Ecklebergs out of four.

   

This Week’s Overlooked Film of Significance: What’s Eating Gilbert Grape – In DiCaprio’s second major theatrical film, he managed to upstage an excellent Johnny Depp and walk away with an Oscar nom at the tender age of 18. There are few more poignant lines in movies than, “Say ‘Thank you,’ Gilbert. Say ‘Thank you.’”