Movie Review: Not Exactly Your Grandmother's Gatsby

Critics' reviews for Baz Luhrmann's interpretation of F. Scott Fitzgerald's culturally and generationally transcendent masterpiece, The Great Gatsby, have been mixed, to be coy. If I could shout anything from the rooftops in response to seeing this film, it'd be this: the common denominator for enjoying this movie is Luhrmann. If you come into it expecting to see, not only an American classic, but a Luhrmann film, in all its gaudy, festive glory, you should walk out of the theater having enjoyed yourself.

However, if you want to see the book played out before you exactly the way Fitzgerald wrote it, be warned. After all, this is the same guy who dressed Harold Perrineau in drag as a Black Mercutio. What were you really expecting?

Movie poster for Baz Luhrmann's The Great Gatsby

If anything, Luhrmann is allowed to take liberties with the story because, at this point in time, who hasn't either read the book (even if it was only because you had to in high school) or seen one of the films? We all know the story well: the central themes of opulence, the American Dream, the decadence and restlessness of the Jazz Age. The callousness of love and the lengths we would go to in order to hold onto it, no matter how far away it is. And we are reminded that it can seem impossibly far away, even if it's just across the bay. 

Still, knowing how the story ends allows us to feel everything so much more profoundly. All of Gatsby's boyish optimism about his future with Daisy is heartbreaking because we want to believe it with him, as we did when we first encountered the story, but we know the tragedy that awaits him for wanting so badly things he simply wasn't "born with," as Tom Buchanan puts it. But our knowledge of the material, and the high pedestal on which we place Gatsby, can also be a downfall for a director who has to impress a cynical audience. We know what we're looking for in each of the roles and Luhrmann's way of introducing his reincarnated characters seems to be a grand reveal that drags on a bit long or comes off a bit too forced. For example, Daisy's first appearance is only her hand and the sound of her childlike giggles. You see a body part here and there as she is slowly uncoiled among a room of excessively billowing white curtains, until she is finally uncovered, emerging like an angel from the sea of milky white. Except, it doesn't really end up having that impact. It's more, "Get to the point, already! We know it's Carey Mulligan."

Now, it wouldn't be a true Baz Luhrmann film if it didn't have two things: an audacious, scene-stealing soundtrack and an outrageous party scene. Give Luhrmann a party scene and he becomes a kid in a candy store. "It's like an amusement park!" Nick beams wondrously at his first Gatsby party. And an amusement park it is. Luhrmann's ability to create a party scene in which everyone appears to be on acid is no new feat. Creating an ambiance of the craziest party you've ever been to is a trademark of his most famous films (again, Harold Perrineau, white wig, shimmery ensemble). But it's unfortunately not enough to make the first half of this movie any less draggy than it ended up (no pun intended, there was no cross-dressing in this film). 

The second half, I will say, surprisingly stuck pretty closely to the book and the 1974 film. And that's where it takes the cake. Although I thoroughly enjoyed Robert Redford as Gatsby and loved hating Mia Farrow as Daisy, that movie (146 minutes long) seemed to go on forever. This one (143 minutes long), while the scenes could have been shorter, was at least entertaining to look at. And to listen to. With all the hype and controversy surrounding the film's soundtrack, it's safe to say that it was hard not to notice all the modern music these 20s characters were dancing to (at one point, a group of African Americans pass by the central characters in a car being driven by a White man, while they sip champagne and blast Jay-Z's "Izzo (H.O.V.A.)"). 

But with that being said, most of the songs barely appeared for more than a passing moment. I was able to make out the opening lyrics of Florence + the Machine's dramatic ballad "Over the Love" before it left as quickly as it came. I also heard a glimpse of the barely recognizable Beyonce cover of "Back in Black" before that, too, faded away in a flash. At the end of it all, it was Jay-Z and Lana Del Rey who were the clear centerpieces of the film. Jay-Z's "$100 Bill," "No Church in the Wild," "Who Gon Stop Me" and "Izzo (H.O.V.A.)" appeared in the film/trailer. 

But Luhrmann makes it clear that Del Rey's "Young and Beautiful," which he co-wrote with her, is the real star here. The song surfaces, ever changing, several times throughout Daisy and Gatsby's encounters and really reminds you of the beautiful synergy between film and music. Sometimes, certain films are elevated by their scores and soundtracks. Similarly, certain songs are more powerful in the context of a scene. This is the case for "Young and Beautiful." While it's another musical triumph for Del Rey, on its own, it doesn't reach the crescendo, the grand finale, that you want it to. In the context of Gatsby and Daisy reuniting for the first time in years and staring ravenously into each other's eyes, it's enough to give you goosebumps. It works perfectly as the theme song of Daisy's life, and her sorrowful, passionate, if not vapid, relationship with Gatsby.

DiCaprio as Gatsby, anxiously awaiting a reunion with Daisy (Mulligan)

While I may have (and perhaps still kind of do) have my reservations about the modernized soundtrack (I would have liked to hear an Eight to the Bar song), it speaks to my earlier reference that the story of Gatsby is intergenerational. It works as well in 2013 as it did in the 20s, 40s and 70s. And it's even more so exemplified in people like Jay-Z, who can easily be considered a hip-hop Gatsby. He went from poverty to extreme wealth, prestige and being married to one of the most beautiful and powerful women on the planet (who, interestingly enough, comes from money...see what I did there?). The soundtrack is an interpretation itself of how we interpret a universal theme all these years later from a pastiche of our favorite artists across multiple genres of music. 

And of course, the film could have completely flopped if not for proper casting. Leonardo DiCaprio recalls his earlier boyishness as Gatsby, making you fall for him all over again in a way you haven't since Jack Dawson. Tobey Maguire is a perfect wallflower as the observant and perceptive Nick Carraway. Newcomer Elizabeth Debicki is stunning, yet understated, as bystander Jordan. Carey Mulligan makes for a Daisy that is more difficult to hate as she doesn't appear as vain and materialistic (probably more a result of the writing), but fairy-ish and aloof nonetheless. Joel Edgerton is deliciously virile and wicked as Tom Buchanan. And some nice surprises appear, such as Bollywood superstar Amitabh Bachchan as Meyer Wolfsheim. 

I could go on, but I've already given you a mouthful to chew on while you contemplate how you'll feel about the remastered Gatsby. It's not perfect, and I certainly WOULD NOT recommend seeing it in 3D, but all in all, give it a fair and honest try, go in with a complete open mind and remember: it's definitely not your grandmother's Gatsby.

"127 Hours" Movie Review

I apologize for the lateness of this. I saw this film and wrote this review well over a month ago and just realized I had never published it. But just to keep some content flowing, and to help out those who are in need of a good film to watch, and to celebrate the Golden Globe nods (and snubs) for this film.

127 Hours: A-

Danny Boyle is something of a genius. The Slumdog Millionaire director managed to make a full-length film out of one man being pinned to a wall for five days. The film 127 Hours is based on the true story of hiker Aron Ralston, whose arm gets pinned in between a boulder and the wall of a cliff, rendering him trapped for five days with a very limited supply of food and water. The film shows off Boyle’s intricate signature of bright colors, varying angles, stunning racing visuals, and his love for AR Rahman.

In the picture, based on Ralston’s book, Between a Rock and a Hard Place, Ralston (portrayed by the intense, unavoidably lovable James Franco) takes a journey through Blue John Canyon near Moab, Utah in April 2003. With a ballsy spirit, he decides to tell absolutely no one where he is going. In a heart-stopping moment, Ralston comes across a loose part of the cliff, which sends him barreling down the cave…and the rock right on top of him. We watch Ralston keep himself surprisingly calm as he tries several ways to free his crushed arm, including chipping away at it with a dull knife to no avail.

Boyle creates a fabulous sense of being there as we observe a man breaking down before our eyes, forced to drink his own urine, record a visual obituary and, eventually, cut off his own arm to free himself. The gut-wrenching moments when Ralston’s water spills, when he’s forced to break his own bones and pop his veins, and the subtle sigh of relief when he is finally free ,will surely stay with you for a long time. The film will leave you appreciating little things you take for granted such as water, food, sunlight, even the ability to masturbate. It opens for wide release on November 19, 2010. Warning: this movie is NOT for the squeamish.

"Black Swan" Review

Black Swan: A

After countless views of the trailer for Darren Aronofsky's psychological doppelganger thriller "Black Swan," it's easy to think of this movie as a lustful thriller accompanied by a beautiful performance by the Natalie Portman (which, by the way, she trained and worked her ass off for to look like a real ballerina). All this is completely true, but all must be warned that it actually gets kind of gory. Had I watched this movie alone I probably wouldn't have noticed, but with a theater full of gasping, moaning and overall freaking out people, I can conclude that it might gross you out at times.

But isn't Darren Aronofsky great at that? He made a masterpiece out of "The Wrestler" using the same first-person pain-inducing techniques. With his handheld camera, ascending orchestra, brutal close-ups and swift motions, Aronofsky catapults you into the unraveling mind of Nina Sayers (Portman), a dedicated, shy, twentysomething ballet dancer who still lives with her mother, sleeps with dozens of stuffed animals and falls asleep to the sounds of a music box. You feel it every time she tears a piece of skin, suffers a hangnail, and endures whatever other bloody laceration or frightening encounter that may or may not have actually happened.

Nina starts out normal enough, but once she's made prima ballerina of "Swan Lake," she becomes obsessed with perfection, as she must be able to play both the white swan and the seductive black swan. She perfectly encapsulates the demurity of the white swan, but she cannot relinquish control enough to convincingly play the black swan. Newcomer Lily (Mila Kunis, with whom I now desire to enter into a relationship) is the epitome of the bewitching black swan, and is made her alternate by artistic director of the Ballet Company, Thomas (seductively played by the dashing, delicious Vincent Cassel that France has the pleasure of seeing as a leading man rather than the constant villain that America is exposed to).

Nina's intimidation of Lily and fear of being cast aside as former Swan Queen Beth (Winona Ryder) was drives her insane as she slowly sheds her innocent image and unleashes a darker side that sees her fighting her rival, her mother (Barbara Hershey channeling Piper Laurie in "Carrie") and herself.

The movie can be interpreted as not only the struggle for greatness in one's art, but also a narrative on the brutal nature with which Hollywood starlets are easily replaced with the next best thing and cast aside. Possibly one of the most carefully casted movies, it seems these roles were written for Portman and Ryder, the hard-working good-girl and the aging superstar who has had her time, respectively.

"Swan" may leave some wanting more, but the beauty of creating a masterpiece that speaks for itself is never having to explain anything. There are hints to Nina's self-destructive past and the ending will absolutely leave you wondering, but there couldn't have been a better way to end such a movie. Yes, it's a bit ridiculous at times, but approached from an artistic standpoint, it's a delightful, if not tragic, production and a sure Oscar contender.

(By the way, I'm not a professional critic by any means.)