The Great Gatsby

To get ready for the new version of 'The Great Gatsby' directed by Baz Luhrmann I thought I would catch another interpretation of the story.
I also read the book as well to get ready. I read it more for the story than for the deeper subtext of the events. I know that it is highly respected and beloved. I quite liked the book for its romantic elements. I do feel that I'd need a class to learn some of the more deeper meanings.
As interpreted by Francis Ford Coppola and Jack Clayton, 'The Great Gatsby' is an excellent romantic drama. I know that not many people appreciate the film but I quite enjoyed it. To me they have captured the mood of the book really well with its interpretation of the rich and how they behave. It shows how rich people have not changed all that much over time in the way they behave. Film makers just love to stage the grand parties that Jay Gatsby throws. Let's them go really overboard in the extravagance. There is also the way the rich treat the lower classes and their lack of feeling or emotion for people who do not fit into their world. Normally someone like Nick Carraway would feel this contempt but by virtue of his proximity through location and relation he gets drawn into this dazzling world of the rich. I was worried that the films length would be too long but I was not bored at all.
Robert Redford is perfectly cast as the elusive Gatsby. Redford gives a nicely subdued performance that captures the character perfectly. While he does like to show off he does not do it in an obvious way. I also really loved Mia Farrow. I've mostly seen her in Woody Allen films and this is a performance that is very different to what I've seen her in before. Mia captures the many moods of Daisy so well and the tragic nature of her character. Bruce Dern is excellent as the thuggish Tom. Bruce captures the nastiness of the character perfectly. Lately I've been watching the TV series 'The Newsroom' so it was nice to see one of Sam Waterston's earlier films. He is brilliant as the naïve Nick. Sam brings out the sweetness and innocence of the character as navigates this world if opulence.
I did not think this was as bad as everyone says it is. I thought it captured the book really well.