GATSBY

Last night I went to see The Great Gatsby with some friends. I've read the book at least three times since leaving high school and spent a lot of time picking it apart and thinking about it. Naturally, I'd been dying to see the film. I was even excited when I found out that Baz Luhrmann was directing it. The reasons people don't often like his movies are the reasons I love them--the surreal, over-the-top cinematography and modern soundtracks in period stories.

Gatsby exceeded my expectations. Jay-Z produced one heck of a soundtrack. It was lovely to look at, and yet wasn't as odd as Moulin Rouge or Romeo + Juliet. The acting was great. I've never been a huge fan of Tobey Maguire. However, I think he was really good as Nick. Against all these colorful people with put-upon personalities, Nick could be boring, but he's not. It was actually a relief to see him, a decent guy just trying to get by among the flashy degenerates. Leo, as expected, was perfect. I don't know how he did it, but he really melted into being Gatsby. I stared and stared and couldn't convince myself that it was Leo DiCaprio on the screen. Even his skin seemed to be different.

And I don't want to spoil anything, but the symbolism was spot-on and I was overall extremely pleased with the movie.