The film stars Leonardo DiCaprio as a reclusive playboy known as Gatsby. Tobey Maguire's character narrates and is a man that befriends Gatsby, and forget the missleading title because Tobey Maguire's character is debatably the lead. Joel Edgerton and Carey Mulligan support and Baz Luhrmann directs.
I did enjoy the film and I thought it was well put together, well acted and well written but I did have problems with it. I didn't really connect with Baz Luhrmann's visual style for the film, which is very similar to his other works, (Australia, Moulin Rouge!, Romeo + Juliet.) I suppose I appreciate his films for the amount of man hours it looks like it takes to put one of them together but I just can't fully connect with characters in his films because the visuals are so huge and outrageous that it distances me from whats going on in the story. A good way of describing Baz Luhrmann's visuals is 'loud'. The film is just so overpoweringly huge and colourful that while trying to get invested in the story and it's characters the visuals take over and it turns into an arthouse film on crystal meth. Its like watching a film by Michael Bay if he suddenly decided he wanted to direct films like Brick. For this reason I could never be fully sucked into the film and even enjoy it too much. I hate to say it but I think this film would have benefited from a different director. I hate saying that because I appreciate and respect the amount of love and care Luhrmann must have had to make this film, but he's a director who makes films I (PERSONALLY) don't like. And obviously this is my blog, my writing and you don't have to agree with me.
Now for the good in the film, the soundtrack was great and it was written well. DiCaprio of course steals every scene he's in. I mean the man is one of the best actors working today, there is no way you can walk away from this film feeling that Leonardo DiCaprio was the weak link. I suppose my only problems with his character was how long it takes for him to come on screen. But if that happens in the book then fine, but I wouldn't know. For a very long time we are watching Tobey Maguire's character. Maguire was fine here, I had no real problem with his acting. I can't call the problem I did have with him a criticism but I found his presence in the film a distraction. Maguire is very well known to my generation and I could not stop thinking that I was just watching Peter Parker. Obviously this is my issue but actors are often deemed too famous for roles. For god sake Spielberg turned down some of the most well known actors in Hollywood for roles in Schindler's List for this very reason. Maguire being there mean't I was thinking about him as an actor and his previous work and not the story. And for anyone that will criticise me for not saying the same for DiCaprio, the same can't be said for DiCaprio. Maguire is an actor that plays relatively the same kind of character in everything so I couldn't stop seeing him as that character in this film and nothing else. DiCaprio puts on a different persona and 'acts' as the character would act. Tobey Maguire is Tobey Maguire and thats it. The rest of the cast was good, Joel Edgerton was great as the film's villain and Carey Mulligan was good as the love interest. I think Carey Mulligan may be one of my favourite actresses. I've liked everything I've seen her in and she did very well here.
If you're still reading this very long paragraphed review I will conclude by saying that I thought the film was well made. But didn't really connect with it and I thought it was style over substance. To quote Harry Plinkett, this film was like when you wave a shiny object in front of a cat. I probably will never watch it again and I've seen better performances from everyone in it. If you plan on seeing the film don't waste your money on the 3D it didn't contribute at all. I give the film 6.5/10.
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