by Jessica Ham

Special coupon for Dinuba Platinum Theatre at the end of this review.

The Great Gatsby has been my favorite book for years. It is beautiful and tragic and inspires you to experience life on a bigger scale. This book means the world to me so I was very nervous about seeing Baz Luhrmann’s adaptation of it. I was worried it would be too flashy or the meaning of the book would get lost somehow. But, I was pleasantly surprised.

Many people have been criticizing the movie, but I loved it so much. To me, it was so much like the book that it made my heart sing with gratitude towards the director. I wanted to call him up right then and there and thank him for portraying my favorite book of all time so beautifully. I don’t care what people are saying, it is exactly like the book, minus a couple of things in the movie that were added to make it transfer better from book to film. Because let’s face it, some things that make sense in a book do not make sense in a movie. But all in all, I thought it was as much like the book as it could be. It was beautiful and it made me want to cry because it was so wonderful.

Leonardo DiCaprio was the perfect Gatsby. He was shy, insightful, positive, loving, and mysterious, just like Gatsby was in the novel. He made him exactly as how I imagined him while reading the book. If Leo doesn’t win an Oscar for this stellar performance, I will be utterly disappointed. Tobey Maguire as Nick was perfection. He was awkward and a little dorky just like he is in the novel. And any scene that he had with Gatsby, you could just see how much Nick cared for him. The Nick and Gatsby friendship is my favorite part of the novel and they both portrayed that beautifully and perfectly. Carey Mulligan, who played Daisy, was also brilliant. She made you love Daisy and hate her at the same time.

People complain, but to me, that was the most perfect an adaptation of a novel could have been.

You can learn more about the plot of this movie in Jessica’s review of the book, The Great Gatsby, right here in KRL.

The Great Gatsby is currently playing at Dinuba Platinum Theatres 6, also in 3D. Showtimes can be found on their website. Platinum Theaters Dinuba 6 now proudly presents digital quality films in 2-D and 3-D with 5.1 Dolby digital surround sound to maximize your movie experience.

Print this coupon and enjoy a special discount for Kings River Life readers only!

Jessica Ham is 20 years old and an ongoing contributor to our Teen Talk section; with dreams of being on Broadway, she’s right at home covering Entertainment.