Film Review -- The Great Gatsby

Baz Luhrmann's highly-anticipated adaptation of F. Scott Fitzgerald's classic stars Leonardo DiCaprio, Tobey Maguire, Carey Mulligan, Joel Edgerton, and Isla Fisher. In the height of the "Roaring Twenties," Nick Carraway (Maguire), an aspiring writer and bond salesman, rents a cottage on Long Island's West Egg, across the bay from the swanky East Egg palace of his cousin, Daisy Buchanan (Mulligan). His neighbor is a mysterious WWI veteran named Jay Gatsby (DiCaprio), who throws lavish parties every weekend with money no one knows how he obtained. Nick soon discovers that Gatsby and Daisy share a secret past, and the only person standing in the way between Gatsby and his dream is Daisy's philandering husband, Tom (Edgerton). Because I assumed that Luhrmann would take many stylistic liberties, I was very surprised at how faithful the film is to the book. I also didn't expect the subdued tone of the novel to work with Lurhmann's flashy, exaggerated style, but it actually worked very well -- his style perfectly captured the euphoric essence of the decade, with the aid of some modern music (a trademark Luhrmann feature). I especially loved that the film is largely soundtracked by hip-hop (from the likes of Jay-Z and Beyoncé), which represents today what Jazz represented back then. My expectations for this film were, unfortunately, pretty low going in, but I was very pleasantly surprised. All of the elements -- from the directing to the script to the acting to the settings and costumes -- blended seamlessly to create a very entertaining film. My only major complaint: I definitely would not have chosen Mulligan to play Daisy! She carries the role well enough, and is a fine actress, but I still think that Daisy needed to be more visually striking.....

Should you see it: Yes
Grade: A-

Film Review -- Side Effects

This 2012 thriller from Steven Soderbergh stars Rooney Mara, Jude Law, Channing Tatum, and Catherine Zeta-Jones. Emily Taylor (Mara) seems to have it all -- a solid job in New York and a loving husband, Martin (Tatum), who just got out of jail. Yet, she is severely depressed, and none of the traditional anti-depressants are having any effect on her. She turns to psychiatrist Jonathan Banks (Law), who, after conferring with Emily's previous psychiatrist, Victoria Siebert (Zeta-Jones), recommends that she try Ablixa, a new, but not widely-tested, antidepressant. At first, the medication seems to work -- until things take a very tragic turn. Dr. Banks sets out to uncover the secrets behind the puzzling episode, and his discoveries are nothing less than shocking. This film has great potential; the plot is not only interesting, but conceivable, and the acting is high-caliber, as you'd expect from this cast. The film falls flat, however, due to a major plot hole (which, of course, I won't reveal), and after you spot it, you can't really justify anything else that happened. It's a shame, because if the filmmakers had thought the detail through, this could have been a spectacular thriller. 

Should you see it: No
Grade: C

Film Review -- The Hours

The Hours is a 2003 drama directed by Stephen Daldry and starring Nicole Kidman, Julianne Moore, Meryl Streep, and Ed Harris. Based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel of the same name by Michael Cunningham, the plot follows the lives of three women living in three different time periods, but are all connected by Virginia Woolf's classic book Mrs. Dalloway. The first is Virginia Woolf herself (Kidman), who, in 1923, is in the process of writing Mrs. Dalloway in her estate in Richmond, England. Mentally ill, she struggles under her current circumstances and longs for her life back in London. The second is Laura Brown (Moore) a Los Angeles housewife in the 1950s. She is severely depressed with a life that she did not want to lead, and does not know how to escape. Finally, there is Clarissa Vaughan (Meryl Streep), a book editor in modern-day (2001) New York City, the living embodiment of Mrs. Dalloway. She deals with the ailing health of her AIDS-stricken friend, poet and Laura Brown's son Richard (Harris), while planning a party on his behalf. The three women also struggle with common issues, among them depression, suicide, and bisexuality. The film is very psychological; that is, the plot revolves almost entirely around the thoughts and emotions of the women. It is most definitely a film more appealing to women, but anyone can appreciate the amazing character study that Cunningham and Daldry construct. The film also benefits from wonderful performances from all of the leads. Kidman won the Best Actress Oscar for her performance, and although deserved, it was not necessarily better than those of Moore and Streep. In all, the film, although at times a little slow and dragging, is lovely -- a well-directed, well-acted, and well-written film. 

Should you see it: Yes
Grade: A-