Nick Carraway is a young bond salesman who rents a cottage near the mansion of the wealthy and reclusive Jay Gatsby. Nick gets to know his neighbor, Gatsby, who was a poor man named Gatz before he left to fight in World War I. Gatsby was in love with a beautiful woman from a wealthy family, Daisy. When he returned, Gatz was determined prove himself worthy to win her hand, even though Daisy had by this time married the socially prominent Tom Buchanan. Gatsby has yet to give up on his romantic dream and enlists Nick, who is distantly related to Daisy, in his plan.
Cast
Toby Stephens as Jay Gatsby
Mira Sorvino as Daisy Buchanan
Paul Rudd as Nick Carraway
Martin Donovan as Tom Buchanan
Francie Swift as Jordan Baker
Heather Goldenhersh as Myrtle Wilson
Matt Malloy as Klipspringer
Characters
Nick Carraway – One of the main characters and the narrator of the movie, Nick Carraway is a Yale graduate and World War I veteran from the Midwest. Working as a bond salesman after the war, Carraway moves to West Egg to live near his cousin Daisy Buchanan. In West Egg, Carraway meets his next door neighbour, none other than the movie’s main character, Jay Gatsby. In awe of Gatsby’s wealth, history, and lifestyle, Carraway befriends him and immediately becomes even more intrigued with the mysterious socialite. Being the movie’s most grounded, optimistic, and practical character, Carraway’s narrations act as the commentator of everyone’s inner thoughts giving the audience a much more in depth understanding of the plot.
Jay Gatsby – Originally born James “Jimmy” Gatz from North Dakota, Gatsby was a major in World War I where he first fell in love with Daisy Buchanan. However being poor and not from a patrician family, Daisy was married to another man, Tom Buchanan. From this point on, Gatsby dedicated to making his life into one suitable enough for Daisy and be able to finally win her love. From being a soldier to a businessman, with his new riches, Gatsby buys a mansion in West Egg directly across the water from Daisy’s home in order to keep a watchful eye on the love of his life. Gatsby is known for throwing elaborate and extravagant parties at his mansion in hopes that one day Daisy might show up and he would be able to win her back with his immense new wealth. According to Some Sort of Epic Grandeur, Matthew J. Bruccoli's biography of F. Scott Fitzgerald, the character is based on the bootlegger and former World War officer, Max Gerlach.
Daisy Buchanan – The character of Daisy Fay Buchanan portrays a warm, flirtatious, and selfish married woman from South Kentucky. Daisy’s character is married to a man named Tom Buchanan and they have one daughter together. Being cousins with Nick Carraway who is slowly developing a new friendship with Jay Gatsby, Daisy Buchanan is reunited with her former lover none other than Gatsby himself. In good reasoning, her reunion with Gatsby arouses the jealousy and suspicion of her husband. It has often been said that the character of Daisy Buchanan was based on the American socialite Ginevra King.
Thomas “Tom” Buchanan – Thomas Buchanan, the husband of Daisy Buchanan, plays the role of a classic wealthy American man coming from a socialite family. Unlike Jay Gatsby, Thomas Buchanan’s family background and riches were enough to win over Daisy and marry her, which stirred up tension between Tom and Gatsby. Despite his relationship with Daisy, Tom becomes involved in a side love affair with a character named Myrtle Wilson.
Jordan Baker – Coming from Louisville, the character of Jordan Baker plays the main love interest of Nick Carraway. It is also revealed that she had a past with Daisy Buchanan and was aware of her whole love affair, past and present, with Jay Gatsby.
Myrtle Wilson – Myrtle Wilson, despite her humble roots, is a character portrayed as desperately desiring to be sophisticated and wealthy, coming off as tacky to the narrator Nick Carraway. Being unhappily married to her husband for two years now due to his lack of wealth and social status, Myrtle has an affair with Tom Buchanan.
A&E Network launched a widespread marketing campaign for their 2001 programming, with a major focus on The Great Gatsby. For Gatsby, they hosted national and local sweepstakes sponsored by US Airways and Waterford Crystal and tied them into high schools, colleges, and libraries. Displays were reportedly placed in 12,000 libraries nationwide, and A&E held acting contests at 23,000 high schools and colleges. An in-flight featurette,The Making of the Great Gatsby, played on US Airways during the holiday season.
The film has a 27% on Rotten Tomatoes. On IMDB it has a score of 5.8/10. Caryn James of the New York Times praised Paul Rudd as "brilliant" in the role of Nick Carraway, but called the film "uneven, flat-footed" and wrote the "film might have survived its pedestrian style, but it can't survive a leaden Gatsby."
