“The Great Gatsby” (2013) is not just another movie; it is a movie about writer and wall street trader of the name Nick Carraway who finds himself drawn to the mysterious lifestyle of his neighbor known as Jay Gastby. It is a great love story turned tragic. 

In the movie, I appreciated mysterious aspects, such as how it always feels like there is something big right around the corner seconds away from happening. I also enjoyed the aspect of the movie going back and forth from the future and the present, even going far into the past a few times—almost as if Carraway is telling an old story to a friend. The movie is a great production and was directed by Braz Luhrmann, who produced the movies Romeo and Juliet and Elvis, which he won a golden globe for. 

“The Great Gatsby” takes place during the summer of 1922, on Long Island. Nick Carraway, played by Tobey Maguire, narrates the story about his neighbor Jay Gatsby, played by Leonardo Dicaprio, an extremely wealthy, mysterious man who throws extravagant parties in West Egg, Long Island, trying to get his long lost love. Daisy Buchanan, played by Carry Mulligan, to show up and rekindle feelings they once felt. The outstanding movie explores wealth, the American Dream, class and even moral decay below the happy, fun facade of the roaring 20s.

During the movie, Nick Carraway learns about Jay Gatsby and they almost immediately hit it off. We learn about Gatsby’s past and his extravagant parties that he throws. Carraway quickly finds the truth and jumps in to help Gatsby and Daisy. They soon get caught up with a big problem, which takes a violent turn for the worst.  

Jay Gatsby is a very complex character who is a self-made millionaire displaying the American Dream and its many flaws. He also shows characteristics of a relentless pursuit of wealth and status, driven by his love for Daisy who has a higher social class than him. Nick Carraway is best known for being an honest yet loyal man, who always finds the good in people; though, his optimism begins to fade when he starts to notice and exudes the carelessness of the roaring 20s. Daisy Buchanan is known as a very immoral, beautiful woman who chases wealth and class; people often see her as shallow and selfish. Jordan Baker is Daisy, Nick and Gatsby’s friend who is known as a dishonest, aloof character often found yawning or not paying attention to someone as they talk about something she’s uninterested in.

The movie was filmed extremely well. The lighting and the editing shown was immaculate, clean, neat and nearly flawless; additionally, the music added to the background of “The Great Gatsby” makes the movie so much more intense and entertaining, causing viewers to not want to take their eyes off the screen. 

Ultimately with many twists and turns, the movie is a great production, with 4.3 stars in my eyes. It will always be great and memorable: a love story turned tragic.