The Great Gatsby review

Well old sport, it wasn't as bad as some people are saying.
So as far as I know The Great Gatsby has been made into a movie adaptation about three times. I've heard none of the other times were any good. Now, I haven't seen the others but as far as I know, this one is probably the best and most likely the most faithful to the source material. It's is about an aspiring writer named Nick Carraway, who moves to Long Island in the summer of 1922. He befriends a playboy millionaire named Jay Gatsby and gets thrown into an adventure of a lifetime. The movie was shown in 3D, had some incredibly flashy visuals, and had a lot of rap and pop music played over everything. The 3D was fairly unnecessary but I have to say that the director used the contemporary music to his advantage. I thought putting Jay-Z in this movie would be just plain ridiculous but it worked pretty well. I've never seen anything by Baz Luhrmann so I can't compare this to anything else he's done, but the direction was interesting and almost beautiful. Some things are quite overdone and cheesy. When Gatsby is introduced, he is followed by fireworks and a big swell of music. It seemed a bit much but then again, that's Jay Gatsby. He's extravagant and overdoes things. So maybe that introduction was fitting to the character. Then again, maybe it was not. The acting here is mostly just okay with some exceptions. Joel Edgarton plays the racist, rich, polo player, Tom Buchanan, and he does it fine I guess. Tobey Maguire is the story's narrator, Nick Carraway. His acting is alright but he never really displays too much emotion or really does anything special. Carey Mulligan does great as Daisy Buchanan, Gatsby's love interest, she played the part exactly like you would picture when you read the book. Leonardo DiCaprio does the best out of the whole cast. He plays Gatsby with an unreal perfection. He shows the nervousness, insecurity, and mysteriousness of Jay Gatsby so well it's really incredible. Even if the excessive effects, 3D, and rap music are too much for you, DiCaprio's performance saves the film. The writers of the movie added in a part about how Nick is admitted to a sanitarium after the events of the movie. It wasn't necessary and I don't know why it was added in but they used it well and it didn't interfere with the story. I suppose you can't ask for a perfect adaptation of the book because it's impossible. What makes the book so good isn't what can be truly told on screen. People may try for many years, but I don't think anyone will really capture the beautiful prose of the book for the movies. This current adaptation may be the best we'll ever get. I give The Great Gatsby 3.3 out of 5 stars. You can follow me on Twitter @WhitsMovies and like me on Facebook at Facebook.com/WhitsMovies. Happy Viewing!