Great Gatsby Film Analysis

The adaptation of literature into film is a process that requires careful and experienced methods of cinematic attention to details according to crucial narrative aspects of the literary piece. The film industry has been creating visual versions of literature for quite some time, but the advancement of modern technology has opened the door to a world full of new and exciting possibilities in terms of visual and special effects. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald is a timeless classic of the American literary canon, and is a popular choice for film adaptation because the vivid imagery and strategic symbolism of the plot that lends itself to visual recreation. Dixon (2003) comments on the problematic attempts of film adaptations of The Great Gatsby when he states, “…the various screenwriters and director who translated

Undeniably, ‘The Great Gatsby’ by F. Scott Fitzgerald and its film adaptation, which is set in the 1920’s and follows the storyline of the narrator Nick Carraway after he moves to West Egg on Long Island, were both great successes, with the book becoming widely recognized as an American classic, and the film making a worldwide gross of about $351 million and winning two Oscars. Although the movie is a satisfactory adaption with a lot of the plot being similar, there are still some minor and major differences between the film and the book between characters and the emotional roots and connection the audience has to the story. Separately both versions of the story are very impressive and entertaining, but some of the differences make the

The Great Gatsby, a renown novel authored by Scott F. Fitzgerald, describes the life of Jay Gatsby and his surrounding clique. Gatsby, a tycoon well known for his fabulous and extravagant parties, lives a quite interesting life during the roaring 20’s. The novel eventually became so famous, that it was translated into numerous languages, and even made it all the way to Hollywood. The novel first made the big screens as a silent film in 1924, then in the 70’s,and a few decades later it was reborn in 2013. Without a doubt, both films were a great hit, however the 2013 screening made the bigger bucks. Although the 2013 film contains ample similarities to Fitzgerald’s novel, there are definitely a couple of differences. One of few differences between the film of the novel, is how Baz Luhrmann presents Gatsby’s parties. Secondly, another difference between the film and the novel, is how Gatsby responds to the quarry he has with Tom Buchanan.

The movie rendition of The Great Gatsby excels at bringing the prosperity of the roaring 20s to life on-screen. The 1920s known for being very wild and crazy, and though the movie format, the 1920s are easier to visualize and makes it more stimulating. Even though the image of the setting

There are many films that can impact adults lives, however, through the works of Baz Luhrmann in film, and F. Scott Fitzgerald’s work in paper one can argue that the film “The Great Gatsby” can have a great effect on the viewers. The 2013 film by Baz Luhrmann steps out of the typical Hollywood regime through its colors, music and visual effects; this is done in order to perfectly convey the valuable lessons Fitzgerald brings. The Loyola University Chicago Film Committee should most definitely add the film, "The Great Gatsby," by author F. Scott Fitzgerald and director Baz Luhrmann in their top twenty films list. The film effectively shows to be useful for college students in a personal and academic form. The movie proves to be one worth watching as it conveys a powerful message for college students, regarding the American dream through music choice; while also useful as a teaching tool in teaching students color analysis through symbolism and plot development, which can be applied to their academic life.

Gatsby’s endless optimism and his “extraordinary gift for hope” induce feelings of pity for him (Fitzgerald, 2). Ultimately, the film adaptation better presents this quality in Gatsby, particularly towards the end of the movie, in comparison to the novel. The final time that Gatsby is shown on screen, he is seen reaching out across the water, which parallels earlier scenes in which he was shown doing the same thing. Even though a multitude of things have changed since the beginning of the story where he was reaching out towards the green light, Gatsby is still reaching for it, showing that his hope for his dream remained until the very end and also that the green light is still an object of great significance to him because he still believes in his dream of living with Daisy. In the novel, Nick Carraway implies that Gatsby has given up on his dream, explaining that Gatsby “knew that he had lost that part of it, the freshest and the best, forever” (153). Additionally, the significance of the green light disappears in the novel: “his [Gatsby’s] count of enchanted objects had diminished by one” (93). It is more challenging to feel pity for a character who gives up on his dream at the end rather than one who continues to believe in it, even if it is foolish to believe that the dream will ever be realized. One can relate to Gatsby as an ambitious dreamer, and the dedication that he displays in the film by continuing to strive for that dream is an admirable quality that makes him easier to sympathize with. Similarly, in the novel, Gatsby has also given up on the idea that Daisy will call him on the morning after their fateful drive back from New York City. After seeing Gatsby alive for the last time, Nick says “I have an idea that Gatsby himself didn’t believe it [the phone call from Daisy] would come, and perhaps he no longer cared” (161). Comparatively, in the film adaptation, the phone does indeed ring as Gatsby is getting out of his pool, and Gatsby is convinced that it is Daisy who is calling. Gatsby’s last word is simply “Daisy”, showing he still had hope that she would call after all, for if he did not truly believe that she would call then he would not have been so quick to assume that the call was coming

Director Baz Luhrmann's approach in producing The Great Gatsby was "If some people are going to hate it, why not go balls-out?" (Mensa, Time Magazine) No matter what there would be a myriad of critics of The Great Gatsby soundtrack. Whether he followed the script entirely, used only classical and jazz influences for the music or even produced a less intense film-someone was going to have a complaint. So why not give those who are going to hate it something substantial to hold onto? That's just what he did; using his personal style of incorporating novel themed music with a relative genre that's popular today. For The Great Gatsby, it was drawing inspiration from the Jazz Age and today's hip-hop, similar to Jazz in the sense of it's uprise from the underground to becoming widely known and appreciated. Overall the soundtrack touches on old Jazz, party Jazz, and Hip Hop in a way that reflects the behavior and luxury of the 1920s. As well as aspects of the characters in the novel, especially within the song $100 bill by Jay-Z.

The film adaptation of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s American novel “The Great Gatsby” (1925) approaches and interprets said literary classic with important accuracy in respect to the plot. The appealing pathos towards the audience through Leonardo DiCaprio’s portrayal of Gatsby, as well as Gatsby’s scripted character alone, exaggerates the themes intended for the better. Though Hollywood changes certain details visually, romanticizing scenes through modernized music and settings, it does not diminish the major elements of “The Great Gatsby” but perhaps strengthens interest and success in response, which is relative to the individual.

Throughout all of social media and pop culture, there is a question which is reflected upon time and time again: which is better, the book or the movie? With classic, incomparable novels such as F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, such a task as conveying the symbolism and in-depth messages into a film is an impressive, yet daunting, feat. However, Baz Luhrmann, renowned Australian director, accepted this challenge with his 2013 film of the same title, The Great Gatsby. Luhrmann’s incorporation of accurate dialogue and details from the novel lend a sense of awe and appreciation to the film, though in retrospect, some of his choices in music and means of telling the story distract the audience from the experience and vary from the accuracy of the novel.

The Great Gatsby, a story that I have admired since high school, became a huge inspiration to teachers and students through its imagery and symbolism. Stemming from the book written by F. Scott Fitzgerald in 1925, there have been several attempts to accurately demonstrate Fitzgerald’s publishing in film form. “Gatsby has had four film adaptations, with two especially big-budget, well-known movies: the 1974 version starring Robert Redford and the 2013 film with Leonardo DiCaprio. There was also a silent film adaptation made in 1926, just one year after the novel came out, but that film has been lost, with only a one-minute trailer that survives to attest to its existence” (Wulick). Although The Great Gatsby has several adaptations, the 2013 film starring Leonardo Dicaprio was particularly exciting due to the level of technology behind the film industry at that the time. I immediately became excited after I heard about the production, and it lived up to every expectation I had through traditional film techniques alongside modern film techniques. Obtaining the American dream is the most prominent message in The Great Gatsby, and is clearly demonstrated through music, costume, lighting, and camera angles.

In this luxurious and imaginative adaptation of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s 1925 novel The Great Gatsby, director Baz Luhrmann who is known for his inventive and hyper-imaginative direction, transforms reality into abstract. In the novel Fitzgerald describes Gatsby’s parties to include lavish dancing and drinking, whereas Luhrmann is able to bring this to life in complete color enabling the audience to immerse themselves in the wildness of the roaring twenties. The film is full of luxurious car races, flamboyant over the top parties and simply stunning visuals that take you into a dreamlike world. The mise-en-scene is filled with lights and colors that fill the viewers’ eyes, costumes that amaze and dazzle, and music that overwhelms the audience

In “The Great Gatsby,” Fitzgerald uses imagery, phrasing and his word choices to take the reader into Gatsby’s world of trials and tribulations. The novel is still to date one of the greatest ever written and with that comes the crave to bring written words from black and white and bring it to the big screen. In the film, “The Great Gatsby,” Luhrmann, grabs the viewers and fills their eyes with a flashback to the 20’s with the help of camera angles, character perception, and spectacular scenery. Even with the extensive knowledge of the original novel, the movie changes and twists the imagery, along with interpretation and cutting and stitching of the plot, to conform it to fit in the movie world. By doing this, the viewers of the film lose the true meaning of some scenes and instead impacts their mind with spectacular eye-catching fluff the director and writers of the film implanted into their version of the film.

“So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past.” (Fitzgerald 182). This very sentence can send even the most unfeeling man into the realms of emotion. Due to this works substantial dive into the world of the “roaring twenties,” most remakes have fallen short of producing the same moving themes and morals as the book and support the cliché that the book is always better than the movie. However, the 2013 remake directed by Baz Luhrmann rises from the ashes of the previous movies and puts together a Gatsby sized spectacle of color, dances and mystique that would have made Fitzgerald proud. While keeping the same plot and using direct quotes from the book narration, the movie morphs the ending from merely thought provoking, to a tragic and more localized sadness for Gatsby and his loss due to the unlikely connection between the viewer and Gatsby. These, combined with the stunning visuals and dramatizations, make the movie a more relevant piece of art in the twenty-first century

When someone is talking about the “American Dream” usually what comes to mind is the pursuit of happiness and individualism; however, after WW1 as the nations wealth increased and materialism heightened, this concept started to reshape. As massive wealth differences started to become so prevalent in society, this American dream in the 1920’s shifted it’s focus to the desire for this luxurious lifestyles. This decadence and the American Dream was a large theme of the 2013 film The Great Gatsby directed and cowritten by Baz Luhrmann. Along with many other themes such as love, triumph and tragedy, wealth, ethics, and the past. This film is widely known for it’s elite use of film form to express these themes such as mise-en-scene, sound, and narrative. A particular scene that has a variety of the well used cinematic techniques in the film, was the extravagant party scene at the protagonist Jay Gatsby multi-million dollar mansion. This illuminating, frenetic scene blows you away with this enormous, energetic, brightly colored, and lavish celebration. This party scene is really important to the film because it holds many significance to the overall themes and key messages. When Tobey Maguire, playing Nick Caraway and the narrator, wanders the humungous party, he suddenly runs into Jay Gatsby himself. At that moment when Gatsby introduces himself he seems glowing with confidence and wealth, as fireworks go off and people cheer behind him. This scene had a great amount of attention

Based off of the 1925 book that’s considered a “Great American Novel”, The Great Gatsby (Baz Luhrmann, 2013) is an American movie (however filming strictly took place in Australia) directed by Baz Luhrmann who is “known for his lavish productions, over-the-top techniques, and emphasis on heightened reality” (Kuiper, 2013). The one hundred and forty two minute movie is based on Jay Gatsby, a rich man who is very mysterious as he never leaves his home despite having hundreds of lavishing parties. The only time he was seen as a party was when Nick Carraway was invited to one of his parties. All other guest before Carraway has denied ever seeing Gatsby. He previously met Daisy while being stationed in the military for World War I., trying to win back Daisy Buchanan, a woman from Louisville, Kentucky who is married to Tom Buchanan and is the cousin of Nick Carraway. She met Gatsby while he was being stationed for War during World War I while they had a brief fling, nothing ever really came of it. This love story took place during the Western culture era during the “Roaring Twenties”.