Rachel Hursen
Staff Writer
“The Great Gatsby,” originally a novel by F. Scott Fitzgerald, is currently being put to film for the second time. The first adaptation, directed by Jack Clayton, came out in 1874 with Robert Redford and Mia Farrow as Gatsby and Daisy, the lovers who weren’t.
The new adaptation is being filmed in Australia and under “Moulin Rouge” director Baz Luhrmann. The film, which does not yet have a release date, will star Leonardo DiCaprio as Gatsby and Carey Mulligan as Daisy. Tobey Maguire will play protagonist Nick Carraway.
Interestingly enough the film will be made in 3D. This new fad has been implemented regularly in recent films, including Pixar’s “Toy Story 3” and Tim Burton’s “Alice in Wonderland.”
What is the appeal of 3D? It was hard to find one. Rather, there were many opinions against the 3D trend. Northwestern University freshman Margaret Flynn feels that “characters will drive this story, not special effects. But as long as people will pay for it, it will hang around.”
Hampden-Sydney College sophomore Patrick McCue believes that 3D is a fad that will run its course. “It takes an otherwise simple activity and makes it cumbersome. You have to find these glasses, remember to carry them with you, and then are forced to wear them.” His solution? “If they figure out 3D movies that the naked eye can see, it will be much more successful.”
Perhaps, though, the main issue with 3D is that it is not being developed to its full potential. “Avatar,” said Seton Hill University (SHU) freshman Ryan Eddy, “is an example of 3D being used the right way.” He also said that 3D has come a long way from “the Spy Kids shooting slime through the screen”, and there is an “incredible amount of potential that we haven’t yet lived up to.”
As far as the actual film, many felt that the actors chosen were decent enough, though perhaps not up to their own image of the ideal movie. SHU freshman Allie Davis was not a fan of the choice of Carey Mulligan for the role of Daisy, though she admitted, “I feel whomever they get to play Daisy will not be as I pictured her. Whoever they get will not be right.” SHU freshman Amy Carlson felt that Mulligan was “way too young; she has a baby face.”
The choice of Maguire for Carraway was generally lauded, Eddy insisting that he could see Maguire “bossin’ up that role.”
DiCaprio, however, raised some eyebrows. Flynn was very against the choice, saying he does not hold the charm necessary to be Gatsby. As fan of the book, she said, “I can’t see Leo being able to do a smile that makes the person he’s smiling at feel as though he sees everything good about them.”
It was widely felt that DiCaprio could pull off the personality of Gatsby, citing the confidence he showed in the 2010 box office hit “Inception,” but insisted that he simply did not have the right look, his round face and boyish looks giving him the disadvantage.
In theaters in 2012, “The Great Gatsby” is already receiving mixed reviews. Only time and the box office numbers will tell if it will be the next big hit or just another typical film adaptation that students fall asleep to during English class.