Trailer Watch: The Great Gatsby

The Great Gatsby is a literary classic by F. Scott Fitzgerald, and is one of my favourite books, having read it for the first time 2 years ago in my 12th grade literature class. Gatsby is a book about love, life, desire, and hidden pasts. It follows Nick Carraway, after having moved to West Egg, New York. He quickly gets wrapped up in a very twisted plot after meeting his next door neighbour, the infamous Jay Gatsby, and revisiting his cousin Daisy and her husband Tom. Through Nick, Daisy and Gatsby are reunited, having had a passionate past with many secrets. It quickly becomes a tangled web for Daisy, Gatsby, Tom, and especially Nick.

They started casting this film around the time I was reading it in 12th grade, so my literature class was really excited to hear Leo Dicaprio was playing Gatsby. We were also a little skeptical as it was Baz Luhrman directing, who`s films include Romeo + Juliet, Moulin Rouge and Australia. What kind of film would it turn out to be?

And though the film isn't slated to be released until Christmas Day, we got a very early trailer. And I must say, Luhrman has taken a very flamboyant look to the movie. While most people, and other movies, have been more of a "prim and proper" look to Gatsby, this book/movie is also set in the 1920's, the roaring Jazz age. It's interesting the look that Luhrman has selected for this movie, but it's not a surprising one.

Already some people have said it's too "modern". Although this could be due to the modern music used in the trailer, added for dramatic effect and to draw more of the masses in, making it "relevant". However, I rewatched the trailer on mute, and this movie looks like it could be very good, indeed. Yes, it's different from the book. It's over-the-top, it's colourful, it's flashy. And while we didn't get to see much of a performance from any of the characters, they certainly look good.

All in all, this movie, if well recieved, could be a major contender at this years Awards Season. It's one of the most popular and beloved books, in a year of literary classics coming to the screen. Obviously, it has big chances on landing the art nominations, whether this movie is actually any good or not. And while Leo is garnering more attention for his evil role in Django Unchained, Carey Mulligan looks like she could be a contender this year (whether lead or supporting is yet to be seen), and even Tobey MacGuire.

All in all, I'm really excited for this movie. It looks exciting, and I'm really looking forward to seeing if the movie will be very true to the text. However, it's already had a few lines straight from the book, and they've kept a couple parts that I recognize, from the book.

I'm just really excited, and being a literature fangirl right now.