The Great Gatsby - Historum

**Mohammed the Persian** · May 22nd, 2012, 10:26 PM

The trailer for the new movie is out

GREAT GATSBY Trailer (2012) Movie HD - YouTube

How many of you are looking forward to it ? How many of you have read it ?
I already watched the 1974 film about it, not as good as I'd hope it would be.

**Rosi** · May 22nd, 2012, 11:53 PM

I've read the book and loved the character of Gatsby. Don't really care about the movie though even though I like DiCaprio.

**Mike McClure** · May 23rd, 2012, 01:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rosi

I've read the book and loved the character of Gatsby. Don't really care about the movie though even though I like DiCaprio.

I haven't read the book. Does the trailer look like they have the feel of the book?

skizzerflake · May 23rd, 2012, 01:17 PM

Oh, my, I was looking forward to a Gatsby with DiCaprio and McGuire in the lead roles, but now I'm not sure. Like everything that comes out of the big studios these days, it just looks inflated...big sets, elaborate productions, digital FX-ed scenes, etc. The book is quite up close and personal, about the characters, not the stuff of "casts of thousands" and acrobatic dancers in speakeasies the size of stadiums. Why are they doing this?

Gatsby is a great story that pretty much begat the "live fast and die young" ethos. The story has about a half dozen main characters living in a small, elite community in a semi-rural corner of Long Island that's become neuvo-McMansion-land. They drink a lot, screw around and drive too fast and it all goes to rack and ruin, but it's not a story that demands huge production, in fact it's mainly about characters. So what's next..."On The Road" with Dean Moriarty driving some huge light speed vehicle?

Way back in my college days, I inhabited a bar that had formerly been a speakeasy in the days when Fitzgerald was living in Baltimore. The men's room had his and Hemmingway's graffiti carefully preserved on one wall. That delightful little space was nothing like what I saw in this trailer.

Oh...my...my...I watched that trailer again and this movie will be 3D...even less like the book than the first time I watched. The only thing that looked right was the yellow car. I had even thought that DiCaprio and McGuire would make good versions of Gatsby and Nick Carraway, but I think they will just get lost in all the spectacle. Fitzgerald starts to look like "Thor".

**Rosi** · May 27th, 2012, 11:57 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mike McClure

I haven't read the book. Does the trailer look like they have the feel of the book?

Well, the story did paint an intriguing picture of America at the time but there's an understated quality to Fitzgerald's writing. The trailer though makes the story look very loud, garish and extravagant. Gatsby's is a passionate but subtle character in the book; he's a mystery to the readers till the end. I can't tell from the trailer how they have treated his character, however, if I watch the movie it will only be for DiCaprio.

**Rosi** · May 27th, 2012, 11:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by skizzerflake

Oh, my, I was looking forward to a Gatsby with DiCaprio and McGuire in the lead roles, but now I'm not sure. Like everything that comes out of the big studios these days, it just looks inflated...big sets, elaborate productions, digital FX-ed scenes, etc. The book is quite up close and personal, about the characters, not the stuff of "casts of thousands" and acrobatic dancers in speakeasies the size of stadiums. Why are they doing this?

That's vintage Baz Luhrman.

Robespierre · May 27th, 2012, 12:34 PM

I love the book. I usually spend a weekend every year reading it.

I can't stand the director of this movie. I think the actors and story will make it bearable. I'm not going to go see it, though. Maybe rent it or something.

skizzerflake · May 27th, 2012, 07:36 PM

I know that you can never be TOO cynical about the movie business, but what took me by surprise is that I could really see DiCaprio as Gatsby and Toby McQuire as Nick, so, until I saw the trailer I was guardedly optimistic. DiCaprio could bring off the enigmatic character of Gatsby and I could see McGuire being the "in over his head" Carraway, so it COULD be really good. Of course, box office always wins (a lesson Gatsby would probably understand) and audiences will compare to the newest installment of Thor or Mission Impossible, so there you go.