The Great Gatsby

Every once in a while, I arrive at a cross road and actually manage to choose the one feeling like the right one. In this case, it is the night of my last exam and once again I had a decision to make, and I am so glad I decided to spend the night watching a movie. To be fair, the other option was training which quite frankly I did not feel like doing, at all. But I had such a great night with a lovely group of people and it is truly one of those rare occasions that I feel like the stars are aligned. (Get ready for more melodramatic ranting here, I'm just in one of those moods, you know).

So tonight, I went and watched the Great Gatsby. I have to say if it wasn't for my friends inviting me I may have never watched it at all. The American 20s isn't exactly one of the periods I'm most familiar with, and I've never read the book. And yes I'm one of those annoying people who get real fidgety about watching a movie before a book. But I just needed to do something other than being in college and out of the whole air of study that had been drowning me for just about 5 weeks now. My exam being on the third last day, meant that my torture was long and slow. And slow it really was. People had started partying long before the adrenaline even kicked in, and slowly waned off, and yet I still wake every morning with notes and thoughts on all things economics. I am finally liberated. First year, I can finally say goodbye to you (I had a really long first year, I'll might get into that at some point, but not today.)

If I were to sum up the whole movie in one sentence, I will pick a question instead. And this is it, "What is life?". I know this may not be the typical reaction but about halfway through the movie, I kept wandering over and over again on the question. The movie itself was a brilliant production and my friend who loves the book loves the movie and claims it has remained faithful. She even said it cleared out certain ambiguity that the book contained. The music was superbly chosen to create atmospheres of illuminance and of course the cinematography was amazing. It was really well made. But naturally what hits home are the emotions it stirs up in you.

It displays a New York all glitz and glamour, complete with sex lies and betrayal hiding beneath the thin veil of glitter. It lets you have a glimpse of the impossibly rich, money at their disposable and the world as their playground. What more could they possibly want? Nothing and everything. The walls patterned with gold lining accented with dark shades of black, majestic and awe inspiring when it hosts a bevy of people drinking their minds silly. But in the morning, silence rings so loudly it deafens your ears. The hallways stretched so long your legs feel tired just by looking at it. Is it all really worth it?

So I have to say here that this may not be what every one feels when watching the movie. But it certainly is to me. I see a portrayal of vacuous and empty lives desperate for some sense of gravity to pull them back down to earth. And I don't want to be like that. I'm so afraid that humanity has lost its vigour and passion, its empathy and love for one another, and this movie amplifies these fears. The irony was a few hours before I was having my last paper writing about the Great Depression. Yes, the Great Depression was the direct result of the spending habits of the roaring twenties.

I shall end talk of this here now because I have a feeling that I could go on forever. This is more a reflection on life rather than a review itself and so I apologise for that. This is also my first post after a long hibernation due to exams, therefore the words are pouring out of mind incoherently. I might just be glad that after a whole month of economic writing I can think about something besides supply and demand it all its glorious lives it takes (I'm talking mathematically, conceptually, historically, environmentally. Oh yes, the whole range). So again I'm sorry if this post makes no sense whatsoever, but thanks for sticking through anyway.

I guess I should end with saying a little bit more on the movie. It was great. The actors were awesome, and as mentioned, music cinematography, just the whole package. It would be so well worth your money and so much more.

You can get a copy of the book from Amazon or The Book Depository. As for me, I'll wait for my friend's promised book to arrive, in October.

Would I recommend it?
A million times over.
How much do I rate it?
9/10
Would I watch it again?
Yes, definitely.

ps exams are officially over. Ahmahgad. Still need to get to cleaning up my lovely desk. And trust me, it has been much much worst than this.

Hope you have a great day. The sun is shining over here up north.

Thanks for reading!