The So-So 'Gatsby'

I was fully thrilled awaiting the release (following a postponed Christmas day release teaser) of Baz Luhrmann's first film in five years - The Great Gatsby. Why? Luhrmann (Romeo + Juliet, Moulin Rouge!) + DiCaprio. I love both and had great expectations, though possibly too great. The Great Gatsby follows the story of Midwestern writer Nick Carraway (Tobey Maguire), who comes to an illuminating New York in the summer of 1922. Carraway is drawn into the excess world of his rich and mysterious neighbor Jay Gatsby, played by the incomparable Leonardo DiCaprio. Gatsby, who gets a James Bond entrance, throws weekly extravagant parties for random people to show up to, and show up they do, while he manages to remain shrouded in mystery. Rarely does Gatsby expose his identity, yet everyone seems to have a story about who this Gatsby is, and where he comes from. We learn later that Gatsby puts on all these parties in hopes that his across the bay neighbor, Daisy Buchanan (Carraway's cousin), will walk into one. A body of water lies inbetween lost love, and the past that haunts Gatsby.

Seeing the roaring '20s in 3D seemed like there could be no better way to do so. Luhrmann's pictures are painted for audience's eyes, as if every person was just given crystal blue persuasion contacts - visually striking, unforgettable, and absorbing - Luhrrman-ating. This is why it pains me to say it: there were several aspects of this film I simply could not digest. Carey Mulligan (An Education, Wall Street 2) is a relative newcomer, and falls short of playing the sweet and sought-after Daisy, "the golden girl." Mulligan does not have the It girl factor needed to fill such a role, being the knock-off Michelle Williams. In fact, the female casting seemed to be off across the board. None were particularly pleasing, nor memorable for such a stage. In the exciting jazz age of 1922 I see no room, purpose, or pleasure for executive producer Jay-Z's intrusive R&B/hip hop score selections, nor would F. Scott Fitzgerald in his 1922 short stories book Tales of the Jazz Age. It's fine and dandy that the song playing in the background is saying "black-on-black," though it's all white-on-white onscreen. With such elaborate and stunning sets for the party scenes in Gatsby's Art Deco mansion, just jazz would have suited the scenes. Luhrmann is a fan of using unknowns performing popular cover songs in his films, and though they worked in Romeo + Juliet and Moulin Rouge!, they did not here. Another problem is the film's running time, which dragged on almost an hour longer than their invitation read. The drama, lust for love, and tragedy is all there in the Fitzgerald novel, but doesn't quite make its way to the screen as it should in Luhrmann's screen adaptation. The Great Gatsby wasn't the cat's meow, not even pajamas.