thedailywhat:

Movie Trailer of the Day: Flashy first trailer for Moulin Rouge director Baz Luhrmann’s movie adaptation of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, starring Tobey Maguire as narrator Nick Carraway, Carey Mulligan as Daisy Buchanan, and Leonardo DiCaprio as the titular Gatsby.

Here’s the official synopsis:

The Great Gatsby follows Fitzgerald-like, would-be writer Nick Carraway as he leaves the Midwest and comes to New York City in the spring of 1922, an era of loosening morals, glittering jazz and bootleg kings.

Chasing his own American Dream, Nick lands next door to a mysterious, party-giving millionaire, Jay Gatsby, and across the bay from his cousin, Daisy, and her philandering, blue-blooded husband, Tom Buchanan. It is thus that Nick is drawn into the captivating world of the super rich, their illusions, loves and deceits. As Nick bears witness, within and without the world he inhabits, he pens a tale of impossible love, incorruptible dreams and high-octane tragedy, and holds a mirror to our own modern times and struggles.

The Great Gatsby opens in 3D on December 25th.

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So here’s the thing: I’m very excited for the performances in this movie, but I was never a big Baz Lurhmann fan. I can appreciate that he has a vision and a style, but it’s just not my cup of tea. I don’t like that it appears that more than half of the sets in this film are computer animated and I don’t like the music in this trailer. I think if a story is non-fanciful or non-explosion based that they need to man-up and build real sets. I always think real sets are much better looking than computer animated sets. Hell, it probably costs more to do the animation than to build the sets. But again, I am excited for the performances, I think this was well cast (Baz Lurhmann always casts well). I just think Baz Lurhmann’s style just lends itself to a more fanciful movie like Moulin Rouge) and the costumes are beautiful and I’m sure he does a fine job on the actual directing. It’s just the music and computer animation that I find a bit annoying.

immediateandforever:

effyeahnerdfighters:

The Great Gatsby: Living the Dream in the Valley of Ashes

In which John discusses critical readings of The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, including metaphors and symbols like the color yellow, the green light at the end of the dock, the eyes of Doctor TJ Eckleburg, the valley of ashes, and the American dream.

I also write books. They are not as good as The Great Gatsby. My new one, The Fault in Our Stars, is available for preorder now: http://dft.ba/-tfios All preorders will be autographed.

[help transcribe the video]

“I don’t know where people got the idea that characters in books are supposed to be likable.” TY John Green. (I love when he plays english teacher :3)

I hated The Great Gatsby when I read it in high school, but this makes me want to give it another chance. Sophomores in high school who’s family members are going through serious problems beyond their control should not be expected to like a classic book about Rich People Problems. I’ve always had my fair share of white people problems, but I also have a deep proletariat-like bitterness towards the excessively rich, especially ones that are not real. I’m sure I would appreciate the book now.