Movie Review - The Great Gatsby

I have to say the 2013 movie The Great Gatsby was one that I eagerly awaited to hit theaters. It's my all time favorite book and I was very excited to see another cinematic version of F. Scott Fitzgerald's extraordinary book. With high expectations, a film I so desperately wanted to love fell far from those expectations and currently stands as the most disappointing movie of 2013.

The timeless tale of Jay Gatsby wasn't done justice in this film adaptation. I found it hard to believe that they used one of the greatest stories ever told to basically be used as a way to show off some flashy special effects. There are many scenes in this movie that stand no purpose other than to be used for 3D technology. I also found it difficult to imagine myself at one of Gatsby's larger than life parties which take place in the 1920's yet somehow they're playing horrible rap music by Jay-Z and other modern music artists.

Despite all the huge failings that this movie had for me, I was very impressed with Leonardo DiCaprio's portrayal of Jay Gatsby. I feel he really understood the character and portrayed him in a way that any fan of the book would be able to to respect. My one gripe may be that they use Gatsby's nickname for Nick, "Old Sport" far too much and it becomes quite annoying after hearing it a few times. On the opposite side of the spectrum, Tobey Maguire was miss cast here. I also hated that they turned Nick's narration of the story as if he was writing the novel, The Great Gatsby, himself.

The film may follow the novel closely at times but overall it was a miss for me. It was like going out to dinner and ordering fillet of beef. The waiter brings it to the table and at first it looks delicious but the minute you cut into it you see it's over done and rather bland.