The Great Gatsby: Film and Novel Comparison Essay

All too often the film industry takes a book and changes it for movie purposes. The resulting film, no matter how good or bad it may be as a stand alone, is inevitably criticized with those all too familiar words “The book was better.” However, The Great Gatsby has found itself within a group of the select few book based movies that has very few changes from the book at all. In fact, most of the lines the actors used were straight quotes from the book. A good majority of the characters, settings, words, and events in both the film and the book are identical,but not perfectly so. There are still a few things that must be changed either due to translation from page to screen or due to stylistic choice by the director.

In Scott Fitzgerald’s book version of The Great Gatsby, we can find many differences within the characterizations. Gatsby is portrayed differently in the book than in the movie. For example, in the book, Gatsby was frightened and aware of the fact that Daisy would never be his. In the book he was worried saying, “No telephone message arrived…” This quote shows how he seemed anxious from not hearing from Daisy. In the quote, “Gatsby

The actor choices from the film compare to what the book envisioned, but also contrast. The character of Daisy is not similar in the film to what the book

The Great Gatsby film compared to the novel is very fast and busy. It zips through all the details that Fitzgerald puts into the novel at such depth. Luhrmann skips through all of the important stuff and instead focus on the parties and the material goods that the characters possess and not so much there relationships with one another. In the book Fitzgerald describes things very well, but in the movie they only brush the surface of what Fitzgerald was trying the say. The parties are also very loud and they don’t seem to belong in the 1920’s.

Houses in The Great Gatsby are another on of the very important symbols, depicting conspicuous consumption, and the hopeless wish of the American dream. "the one on my right was a colossal affair by any standard—it was a factual imitation of some Hotel de Ville in Normandy, with a tower on one side, ing new under a thin beard of raw ivy, and a marble swimming pool, and more than forty acres of lawn and garden. it was Gatsby's mansion (9)." Gatsby's house, and his elaborate parties, signify a certain emptiness in Gatsby. His only reason for setting up these gigantic parties in his large house is to, though futile, attract the attention of Daisy. His enormous house goes to show that he has this money to spend, but spends it on something that will not help him to be happy, or to catch the attention of Daisy; This is probably the most conspicuous consumption of all. Tom Buchanan also has a large house, but for entirely different reasons. "Their house was even more elaborate than I expected, a cheerful red-and-white Georgian Colonial mansion, overlooking the bay. The lawn started at the beach and ran toward the front door for a quarter of a mile,

In the movie they describe Myrtle as beautiful women with no gleam of beauty on her face. I think they say this because everyone now a day is getting builled over how we look in society or how we dress or act. In the book they describe her face containing no facet or glam of beauty. But they did describe her as

As the old saying goes, “A man’s home is his castle,” meaning that a man can take refuge within his house, safe from the outside world. This is not so in The Great Gatsby. In the novel, instead of sheltering their inhabitants, houses reflect the inhabitants’ personalities. Jay Gatsby and his house are both ostentatious, hospitable, and stuck in the past. Similarly, Daisy Buchanan is cheery, with inner depression, as is her house. Finally, both George Wilson and his house are dreary and uninteresting. Houses in The Great Gatsby serve to embody the characteristics of their occupants.

“What is better, the book or movie?” a commonly asked question by many individuals who are curious to know one’s opinion on a novel or film he/she is interested in. The book is usually always better than the movie because the book is more detailed, one gets to know the characters better, and it allows one to be more creative and have his/her own interpretation on what is occurring. In this case, The Great Gatsby is a remarkable 1925 novel written by F. Scott Fitzgerald, which was made into various movie adaptions in 1926, 1949, 1974, 2000 and 2013. Each version takes place in drastically different periods, so each type has its own take on the film, also depending on the director’s vision. This goes to show that the cinema has been trying periodically to recreate F. Scott Fitzgerald’s classic, but the attempts of the movies have mostly failed. In particular, the 1974 film decreases its effectiveness in representing the message that Fitzgerald was attempting to demonstrate in the book, which contributes to the book being significantly better than the film for various reasons.

The plot and the setting of book and movie are very similar. There was a lot of thins borrowed from the book, but there was a lot changed as well. The movie followed the plot of book very closely and portrayed the setting of the book very well. A lot of the dialogue was borrowed and spoken directly as it was in the book.

Jay Gatsby is, by far, the most complex character in both the book and the movie. He is a very mysterious person, he doesn't tell anyone anything about his past. The book shows this in more depth than the movie does, it captures his sense of mystery, and it is almost pouring out of every page. He is also a prime example of how money can't buy happiness, he had a very large mansion, he threw lavish parties, he had first editions, he had many servants, and he had the best suits, but he didn't have anyone to love him, Daisy, in the same way he loved her.

In the novel, Jay Gatsby, an exceedingly wealthy man, throws extravagant, and lavish parties, but behind his wealth, and all the parties he remains unsatisfied. Daisy questions, “I love it, but I don’t see how you live there all alone.” (Fitzgerald 90). In this scene Daisy is astonished by the enormous size of Gatsby's mansion. His mansion is so large yet he has no one to fill it. He has so many rooms and accommodations for everyone but his empty house is a representation of his empty heart; for without Daisy it

The 2013 drama/romance movie, The Great Gatsby, is the second movie adaption made based off the novel written by F. Scott Fitzgerald in 1925. Co-written and directed by Baz Luhrmann, this film received both glory and criticism upon its release. The Great Gatsby is well known for its “Gatsby era” as well as the love encircled between money and power. Without the glitz and glam of this story in conjunction with the forever love Jay Gatsby, a millionaire known for his magnificent parties, holds for Daisy Buchanan, The Great Gatsby would not be as acclaimed of a story. Baz Luhrmann makes sure to emphasize these characteristics throughout the film through his use of symbolism, irony, and imagery.

With most books that get turned into movies, you feel like the movie has holes in it compared to the book and that the movie just does not do any justice to the movie. That, however, is not the case when it comes to “The Great Gatsby”. The movie greatly resembles the book and leave the audience praising how well the characters are portrayed and how the details are explained. However there are slight differences in the film and the novel.

“The Great Gatsby” movie is based on a well-known book by F. Scott Fitzgerald’s, a well-known author that wrote American fiction. Maurer wrote that F. Scott Fitzgerald was known for his imagistic and wonderful composition. He could analyze the inclination of his era during a politically complex time of American History (Maurer, 2016). There have been a number of reincarnations of “The Great Gatsby” in cinematography. Baz Lurhmann, a popular director of all times recreated the movie and took the story to a whole new level. Baz Lurhmann has adapted the story and fit his visual style of production similar to other recognisable Lurhmann films such as Moulin Rouge and Romeo and Juliet but he manages to preserve the core story.

The Great Gatsby is a phenomenal movie with drama and romance. It is every bit as exciting as the book by F. Fitzgerald. The parties are spectacularly projected as an extravaganza. Many themes and messages are given throughout the movie, so sit back with a relaxed mind. Enjoy the touch of the lively jazz ages that the director Baz Luhrmann produces. He creates a tremendous setting with the old fashioned antique like clothing.