Rating of
1/4
Why Am I Not Surprised?
Matt - wrote on 06/02/13
I am not a fan of Baz Luhrmann. I see his movies in the hopes that at some point he will redeem himself or show some signs of inner genius. But each time I just find myself disappointed yet again by his ignorance.
This time, it might be the worst he's yet made.
First, let me tell you that he calls this movie an "Australian movie" because it was his idea to make it. Never mind that it's based of the great American novel, never mind that its subtext most commonly relates to the American Dream, never mind that it takes place in the Roaring 20's of America, in New York City, one of the most nationalistic places of the time. Now it's Australian. Because he said so.
The opening line, "In my younger and more vulnerable years, my father gave me some advice that I've been turning over in my mind ever since," is ruined in the very first scene. The idea behind the character of Nick Carraway is that he's the apathetic middleman in the whole story. He doesn't care about what happens, he's just interested in how it plays out. Luhrmann transformed him into an nosy (expletive deleted) so that Tobey Maguire could move his tiny mouth a little more.
I'm okay with changing elements of a story when translating from book to film as long as it doesn't mess with the thesis. Unfortunately, the two most important factors of expressing that thesis have been removed in this version. For sake of spoilers, I won't say what. But if you've read the book, you know what they are.
Much of the crew said that Baz wanted to capture the essence of the 1920's. So how did he go about it? Dubstep, of course! While he was at it, he managed to blow the 20's way out of proportion. That wasn't the American 1920's. That's how the 2010's would be under prohibition and economic exploitation.
Without going into too much detail, I was greatly offended. It seemed like an attack on American culture. Like a big middle finger to who we once were as a country. It may not have been the proudest point in our past, but that was America. Now it looks even worse, and I can't blame the performances.
The only thing Baz is really good at is set design. I'll give him that. He has some remarkable creativity there. But other than that, I can't stand what he does to classics. First Shakespeare, then musical theater, and now Fitzgerald? He might as well take the next step and start remaking The Lord of the Rings to continue the literary trilogy of butchering. Then he can ruin Tennessee Williams and Swan Lake, and he'll have a horrible trilogy for theater as well. Let's just pray he stays out of the music industry.
