The Great Gatsby
by Jack Clayton
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Actor: Bruce Dern, Karen Black, Mia Farrow, Robert Redford, Scott WilsonDirector: Jack Clayton
Brand: REDFORD,ROBERT
Cinematographer: Douglas Slocombe
Editor: Tom Priestley
Writer: Francis Ford Coppola
Writer: F. Scott Fitzgerald
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Unknown), Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono; English (Subtitled); English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono; French (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono
Format: Anamorphic, Closed-captioned, Color, DVD, NTSC, Widescreen
Running Time: 144 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2003-12-02
Audience Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Studio: Paramount Pictures
DVD Reviews of The Great Gatsby
DVD Review: A VOICE FROM THE JAZZ AGE
Summary: 3 Stars
THIS REVIEW WAS WRITTEN AS A REVIEW FOR THE BOOK BY F. SCOTT FITZGERALD. MOST OF THE MAIN POINTS HERE ALSO RELATE TO THE MOVIE. HOWEVER, IF YOU HAVE A CHOICE READ THE BOOK. ROBERT REDFORD AND MIA FARROW ACT TOO WOODENLY TO CONVEY THE REAL PATHOS OF JAY GATSBY'S STRUGGLE AND ITS CAUTIONARY TALE- THE VERY RICH ARE QUITE DIFFERENT FROM US.
One would have to be rather pedantic not recognize that F. Scott Fitzgerald was an important novelistic voice of the Jazz Age in post World War I America. Certainly not the only voice of that age but the voice which best exemplifies the tensions between the mores of `old wealth' and the emerging sources of `new wealth' that were produced by the huge amount of money available, mainly through government contracts as result of the war or riches gained through the illegal liquor trade. That is the sociological underpinning that drives Fitzgerald's work. This is no better example of those strivings than the Great Gatsby. If nothing else it is a dramatic enactment of the strivings of the new money to `make it' in the world of high society, one way or another. And what better way to do that than in the age old tradition of buying one's way into that society through marriage. This is the modern American version of that story.
And the story itself? One Jay Gatsby, the former Jimmy Ganz, freshly reinventing himself after indeterminate service in the American military in World War I and loaded with cash from questionable financial resources, attempts to win, or rather re-win the affections of one Daisy Buchanan his vision of the perfect life companion and exemplar of the `old money' crowd that he wishes to crash. One little complication, however, gets in the way. She has found herself married to a brutish but wealthy member of that `old money' crowd. Gatsby's fumbling but lavish attempts to lure her away from the high society of Long Island, then the summer watering hole of the `old money', forms the core of the story. Gatsby's trial and tribulations on the way as narrated by Nick Carroway (and Gatsby's somewhat unwitting accomplice in the matter) keeps the story line going until the final deadly ending. The morale- the very rich are indeed very different from you or I. Moreover, someone else will always have to pick up the messes they have made for themselves. They merely move on. This may serve as a cautionary tale for that time and possibly today. Certainly nobody has chronicled the end of the age of American innocence signaled by the Jazz Age better than Fitzgerald.
A word on literary merits. According to the inevitable changes in literary fashion as well as literary politics Fitzgerald, for long a leading figure in the canon of American literature has been somewhat eclipsed by other more post-modernist trends. While I firmly believe that the Western canon is in dire need of expansion to include `third world', woman and minority voices Fitzgerald's literary merits stand on their own. His tightly- crafted story line, his sense of language and the flat-out fact that that he knew the subject matter that formed the basis of his expositions merit renewed consideration by today's reader. Simply put, if you want to understand part of what was going on in America in the 1920's before the Great Crash of 1929 then you simply have to read the man. If nothing else read the last few pages of Gatsby. If there is a better literary expression of the promise of America as seem by the early Dutch settlers of New York as the last best hope of civilization and the failure of that promise at the hands of the `robber barons' and their descendents I have not read it.
Description of The Great Gatsby
Nick Carraway, a young Midwesterner now living on Long Island, finds himself fascinated by the mysterious past and lavish lifestyle of his neighbor.This adaptation of the F. Scott Fitzgerald novel, scripted by Francis Ford Coppola, puts costume design and art direction above the intricacies of character. It's certainly a handsome try, and perhaps no movie could capture The Great Gatsby in its entirety. Robert Redford is an interesting casting choice as Gatsby, the millionaire isolated in his mansion, still dreaming of the woman he lost. And Sam Waterston is perfect as the narrator, Nick, who brings the dream girl Daisy Buchanan back to Gatsby. No, the problem seems to be that director Jack Clayton fell in love with the flapper dresses and the party scenes and the Jazz Age tunes, ending up with a Classics Illustrated version of a great book rather than a fresh, organic take on the text. While Redford grows more quietly intriguing in the film, Mia Farrow's pallid performance as Daisy leaves you wondering why Gatsby, or anyone else, should care so much about his grand passion. The effective supporting cast includes Bruce Dern as Daisy's husband, and Scott Wilson and Karen Black as the low-rent couple whose destinies cross the sun-drenched protagonists. (That's future star Patsy Kensit as Daisy's little daughter.) The film won two Oscars--not surprisingly, for costumes and musical score. --Robert Horton
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