A mixed bag. First, the good. This is probably the best looking movie I've seen in a while. If you've seen any of Baz Luhrman's other movies (Romeo + Juliet, Moulin Rouge), you'll have an idea of what to expect. Everything looks good, amazingly good. The party scenes are overloaded with glitz and glamour, the outdoor scenes resemble something from a fairy tale. Lurhman also knows how to make his actors look good. Its no surprise that the last time Leonardo DiCaprio and Baz Luhrman together (Romeo + Juliet in 1996), it launched DiCaprio's career and made him an international heart throb. The music accompanies the hyper stylized direction of the film with lush scores and energetic samples of its diverse soundtrack throughout the whole movie. If I could only rate this movie on how it looks and how it sounds, I'd probably give it a 10/10.
But then there's the plot and the character relationships. I'm not going to criticize F. Scott Fitzgerald's novel, because that novel is a masterpiece. Unfortunately, the plot doesn't translate as well on screen. The first half was okay, the second half seemed to drag for me. The movie's resolution isn't as good as it's setup. The motivations of the characters seem hinted at but not thoroughly explored.
Overall, probably worth seeing just for the visuals and the music.
7.5/10
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