- Actors: Robert Redford, Mia Farrow, Bruce Dern, Karen Black, Scott Wilson
- Directors: Jack Clayton
- Writers: F. Scott Fitzgerald, Francis Ford Coppola
- Producers: David Merrick, Hank Moonjean
- Format: Anamorphic, Closed-captioned, Colour, DVD-Video, NTSC, Widescreen
- Language English, French
- Subtitles: English
- Region: Region 1 (US and Canada DVD formats.)
- Number of discs: 1
- Classification: PG
- Studio: Paramount
- DVD Release Date: 2 Dec 2003
- Run Time: 144 minutes
- Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (31 customer reviews)
- ASIN: B0000AUHQT
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 44,354 in Film & TV (See Top 100 in Film & TV)
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Reviews
Amazon.co.uk Review
Perhaps no movie could capture F Scott Fitzgerald's novel The Great Gatsby in its entirety, but this adaptation, scripted by Francis Ford Coppola, is certainly a handsome try, putting costume design and art direction above the intricacies of character. Robert Redford is an interesting casting choice as Gatsby, the millionaire isolated in his mansion, still dreaming of the woman he lost. And Sam Waterston is perfect as the narrator, Nick, who brings the dream girl Daisy Buchanan back to Gatsby.
The problem seems to be that director Jack Clayton fell in love with the flapper dresses and the party scenes and the jazz age tunes, ending up with a Classics Illustrated version of a great book rather than a fresh, organic take on the text. While Redford grows more quietly intriguing in the film, Mia Farrow's pallid performance as Daisy leaves you wondering why Gatsby, or anyone else, should care so much about his grand passion. The effective supporting cast includes Bruce Dern as Daisy's husband, and Scott Wilson and Karen Black as the low-rent couple whose destinies cross the sun-drenched protagonists. (That's future star Patsy Kensit as Daisy's little daughter.) The film won two Oscars--not surprisingly, for costumes and musical score. --Robert Horton
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
10 of 10 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
I read the book for my book club. Having done so I wanted to see the film interpretation. I found it a good reflection of the book (so many films are not!)The choice of actors was inspired. Robert Redford made a 'Great Gatsby' - just as I imagined him from the text. Bruce Dern, Lois Chiles and Sam Waterstone (as the narrator)were also well cast. I was disappointed with Mia Farrow - only in that she did'nt meet my expectations of Daisy but I think if I had'nt read the book I would have been satisfied. My husband - not having read the book - was pleasently surprised that the film had a lot more to offer than the 'romantic' story he had expected. The fabulous written text was not lost in the film and reflected the wealthy twenties in the USA beautifully. A 'must see' for readers of 'modern classics' and anyone who enjoys a story that does'nt quite end the way you expect.
19 of 20 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
I read the Fitzgerald novel recently, and having realised it fitted perfectly with my desire to teach a topic at A2 based on "The Other"/"The Oustider", I realised that it would be a perfect novel to teach. So, it followed that I would see what the film is like and how it may help to imagine the world the novel is set in.
Filmed in hazy bright white 1920s style (with subtle 1970s styling) this film is delightful to watch purelt based on the aesthetic it presents.
Like any film adaptation it takes liberties with the original text, but this is one that is very true to the original and feels authentic.
For those who are like me and enjoy watching films for their beauty in cinematography, costume and setting, this is a great film. The acting is good and transmits the awkward, strange, dream-like feeling of the novel.
A film well worth watching.
Filmed in hazy bright white 1920s style (with subtle 1970s styling) this film is delightful to watch purelt based on the aesthetic it presents.
Like any film adaptation it takes liberties with the original text, but this is one that is very true to the original and feels authentic.
For those who are like me and enjoy watching films for their beauty in cinematography, costume and setting, this is a great film. The acting is good and transmits the awkward, strange, dream-like feeling of the novel.
A film well worth watching.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
For some reason I had never seen this version of "The Great Gatsby"; having recently read the novel, I thought I might finally watch it.
My main impressions were that (1) the screenplay follows Fitzgerald's novel more closely than most screen adaptations of books and (2) on the other hand, the effect of the story gets blurred behind a fog, that is: the production of this movie as a sort of "roaring twenties epic" rather than the more intimate, people-focused feel of the novel. The film has outstanding production values: cinematography, sets, wardrobe - but rather than just serve as a tool to recreate the 1920s, they became a goal in itself, as if the director was thinking something like, "it would be a shame not to use our budget to its fullest" or "let's give the folks who might find the story too boring something gorgeous to look at".
As for the cast: I thought the main actors were very good, and that the cast gave good portrayals of the characters, with one exception, Bruce Dern as Tom Buchanan. It is not that his acting was bad, on the contrary: I think he was miscast as Tom, and his interpretation of what Tom was like was all wrong. In the novel, Tom Buchanan is a more natural, straightforward kind of brute, as summarized by Nick, the narrator, as he concludes that he could not remain angry at Tom since he was like a child. Bruce Dern plays Tom as a more self-aware kind of con man. In the novel, at the end (no spoilers), I could believe Tom's sincerety as he expresses his feelings; in the film, he sounds like a hypocrite.
Many people have criticized the casting of Mia Farrow as Daisy. I thought she was an excellent choice. Granted, she may not correspond precisely to how Daisy is described in the novel. But she conveys the character's shallowness, with feelings that are fickle but nevertheless genuine, and which can plausibly charm those, like Gatsby, who mistake her present-moment, circumstancial feelings for something more durable and profound. The contrast between Daisy's personality with the more intelligent and perceptive Jordan, well played by Lois Chiles, is immediate and very true to the book.
As for Robert Redford as Jay Gatsby: my expectations sunk when I saw how the film changed the scene where Nick is introduced to Gatsby: from a casual encounter in the middle of the party, as in the book, to a mysterious, "James Bond villain" meeting in the film. Maybe the director felt it necessary to do that because the book scene would not work on screen, since viewers would immediately recognize Redford. But in any case, I thought that after that scene, Redford's portrayal of Gatsby was very good and mostly true to the book.
Overall, I recommend this film; but, maybe ironically, I think it might have been a truer portrayal of Fitzgerald's novel if it had been made with a smaller budget.
My main impressions were that (1) the screenplay follows Fitzgerald's novel more closely than most screen adaptations of books and (2) on the other hand, the effect of the story gets blurred behind a fog, that is: the production of this movie as a sort of "roaring twenties epic" rather than the more intimate, people-focused feel of the novel. The film has outstanding production values: cinematography, sets, wardrobe - but rather than just serve as a tool to recreate the 1920s, they became a goal in itself, as if the director was thinking something like, "it would be a shame not to use our budget to its fullest" or "let's give the folks who might find the story too boring something gorgeous to look at".
As for the cast: I thought the main actors were very good, and that the cast gave good portrayals of the characters, with one exception, Bruce Dern as Tom Buchanan. It is not that his acting was bad, on the contrary: I think he was miscast as Tom, and his interpretation of what Tom was like was all wrong. In the novel, Tom Buchanan is a more natural, straightforward kind of brute, as summarized by Nick, the narrator, as he concludes that he could not remain angry at Tom since he was like a child. Bruce Dern plays Tom as a more self-aware kind of con man. In the novel, at the end (no spoilers), I could believe Tom's sincerety as he expresses his feelings; in the film, he sounds like a hypocrite.
Many people have criticized the casting of Mia Farrow as Daisy. I thought she was an excellent choice. Granted, she may not correspond precisely to how Daisy is described in the novel. But she conveys the character's shallowness, with feelings that are fickle but nevertheless genuine, and which can plausibly charm those, like Gatsby, who mistake her present-moment, circumstancial feelings for something more durable and profound. The contrast between Daisy's personality with the more intelligent and perceptive Jordan, well played by Lois Chiles, is immediate and very true to the book.
As for Robert Redford as Jay Gatsby: my expectations sunk when I saw how the film changed the scene where Nick is introduced to Gatsby: from a casual encounter in the middle of the party, as in the book, to a mysterious, "James Bond villain" meeting in the film. Maybe the director felt it necessary to do that because the book scene would not work on screen, since viewers would immediately recognize Redford. But in any case, I thought that after that scene, Redford's portrayal of Gatsby was very good and mostly true to the book.
Overall, I recommend this film; but, maybe ironically, I think it might have been a truer portrayal of Fitzgerald's novel if it had been made with a smaller budget.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Why is the 1949 version with Alan Ladd unavailable?
I watched the movie version with Robert Redford and it's o.k.. There is a much better version from 1949 with Alan Ladd, unfortunately still not available on DVD :(. Read more
Published 28 days ago by C. Mathieu
Quaint 20's Hokum
I had my reservations in seeing this--but my wife wanted to see it.
Anyhow ,I found it slow and trying to capture the essence of the 'Flapper 'days. Read more
Anyhow ,I found it slow and trying to capture the essence of the 'Flapper 'days. Read more
Published 3 months ago by Mr. R. F. Calver
The Great Gatsby
this is an excellent adjunct to studying 'The Great Gatsby' for exam purposes provided the Student can identify what has been omitted and what over/underplayed. Read more
Published 4 months ago by E. Boyle
good to have for secondary school!
Purchased this book to help me through my studies in 5th year when I was studying English. Great buy and helped me out a lot.
Published 7 months ago by Miss Jessica McNally
The Great Gatsby DVD
Fantastic DVD. This is surely the most beautiful film ever made. It is a perfect book and makes a perfect film. Mia Farrow is stunning as Daisy, wonderfully neurotic and quivering. Read more
Published 7 months ago by Florizel
Excellent
Bought this for my son who is studying it at school and it was just as I remembered. Turned up in excellent condition and on time
Published 9 months ago by dpd
Great for Student
My son is studying the Great Gatsby for AS Level so this has been a really useful learning tool. Highly recommended to other students. Read more
Published 13 months ago by N
Well worth watching
This is a fairly faithful adaptation of the novel. Although there is certainly nothing wrong with the script, acting etc it is the visual aspects of the film which are most... Read more
Published 14 months ago by Graham R. Hill
The Great Gatsby
This was a great, spectacular film. Beautiful staged sets, cars, music and excellent acting from a wide selection of stars. Read more
Published 17 months ago by Adam
Good supporting actors
It's obviously a treat to sit and watch a Scott Fitzgerald adaptation but there are mixed blessings here. Read more
Published 17 months ago by Mr. P. G. Mccarthy
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