The Great Gatsby
Short description
The Great Gatsby is a 1974 adaptation of F. Scott Fitzgerald's novel, set in New York during the 1920s. Nick Carraway, a young man from the Midwest, moves into a house on Long Island next to the mansion of Jay Gatsby, a wealthy and mysterious figure known for his extravagant parties. Nick is also cousin to Daisy Buchanan, who was once involved with Gatsby and is now married to the wealthy Tom Buchanan. Nick becomes the link that brings Gatsby and Daisy back together, drawing him into a circle of longing and conflict that ends in tragedy.
Jack Clayton directed the film, which sits between The Innocents (1961) and Something Wicked This Way Comes (1983) in his filmography, from a screenplay by Francis Ford Coppola. Robert Redford plays Gatsby and Mia Farrow plays Daisy, with Bruce Dern, Karen Black, Scott Wilson and Sam Waterston among the credited cast of 36. Produced by Paramount on a budget of 7 million dollars, it took 21 million dollars worldwide.
On IMDb the film holds a rating of 6.4 from around 29,000 votes, while on TMDB it has 6.3 from 527 votes. A critics' rating of 5.5 from 42 reviews places it below both audience scores.
What's left behind the scenes
- According to critics, it was not possible to transfer the style of the novel to the screen, despite the high budget.
- Rumor has it that Natalie Wood auditioned for the role of Daisy.
- Initially, the renowned writer Truman Capote took on the screenplay based on Fitzgerald's novel. However, the film's producers were strongly dissatisfied with what he had done to the original. Capote, who made no secret of his unconventional sexual orientation, promptly made Nick homosexual and Jordan a latent lesbian, for which he was disgracefully fired, and the screenplay was quickly finished in just three weeks by the still-young Francis Ford Coppola.
- Jack Nicholson and Steve McQueen could also have played Gatsby.
- Warren Beatty refused the role of Gatsby. He was initially even interested in the project, but when he learned that MacGraw would be his partner, he withdrew. According to Beatty, he couldn't even imagine having any “chemistry” with her.
- Howard Da Silva, who played Meyer Wolfsheim, also played George Wilson in the 1949 film version of 'The Great Gatsby'.
- The film is based on F. Scott Fitzgerald's novel 'The Great Gatsby' (1925).
- Producer Robert Evans, who owned the rights to the screenplay, wanted only one woman for the role of Daisy – his wife, Ali MacGraw. She was cast, but unexpectedly fell in love with Steve McQueen during the filming of 'The Getaway' and left Evans. In retaliation, he immediately replaced his wife with actress Mia Farrow.
- Initially, the screenplay based on Fitzgerald's novel was undertaken by the renowned writer Truman Capote. However, the film's producers strongly disliked Capote's portrayal of Nick as gay and Jordan as a latent lesbian. Francis Ford Coppola rewrote the screenplay in just three weeks.
- Mia Farrow was pregnant during filming, so the film features many close-ups of the actress, and she also wore costumes that could conceal her condition.
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