The Great Gatsby, Possibly My Next Favourite Movie

I just watched The Great Gatsby trailer and I am in love. I know, the trailer came out five months ago but I refused to watch it. Allow me to explain.

Every time a movie comes out that I want to see but it's based on a book, I feel that I have to read the book first. Most of the time, this doesn't work out. Water for Elephants looked amazing; it seemed like a magical, heart-wrenching story with a gorgeous circus for its setting, not to mention, I love elephants. So, I bought the book, but I didn't read it. I didn't see the movie in theatres because I was so determined to read the book first. After a while, the movie came out on DVD and I gave up. I watched it. It was good, but not amazing. A year later, I read the book. Now, that was amazing. Sometimes, it's the other way around. Although I didn't badly want to see Savages, I had the book, so I read it. It was terrible. It was a painful read, so much that I didn't really care to live through it again if the movie might be so terrible. So, I didn't see the movie. Both of these scenarios had played out a gazillion times.

I heard they were making a Great Gatsby movie. The book had been on my "to read" list for too long. I didn't really know much about it except that a lot of people loved it. I told myself that I would read the book before the trailer came out. I didn't. But I refused to watch the trailer. I didn't want the images of the actors to alter my perceptions of the characters in the book. Luckily, the movie got pushed to a later date and I wasn't bombarded with trailers on TV, so it was easy to avoid.

I finished reading The Great Gatsby last night. It was alright. I'm not a fan of the writing style but the story is just poetry. What the story needs is a new visualization, something dramatic and pulsing, glamourous and decadent. It needs someone who isn't afraid to be bold, who paints his scenes with glitz, who will give a love story the power it needs to crush you in the end.  Moulin Rouge! is my favourite movie because it is all these things, as well as a beautifully poetic story. What this book needs is exactly Baz Luhrmann and absolutely no one else. Luhrmann and The Great Gatsby is purely magic-in-the-making and it better break my heart.

And the Oscar Didn't Go to ... Moulin Rouge! /The Fellowship of the Ring

The Academy Awards are coming up this Sunday. While we're excited to enter multiple pools and prep themed food with our families, we're also kind of depressed about the whole thing because we're really disappointed with the nominees. (No Gosling = No Go!) And we know we'll be even more disappointed with the winners. Because, well, it's happened plenty of times before ...

THE YEAR: 2002


THE OTHER NOMINEES:

• A Beautiful Mind
• Gosford Park
• In the Bedroom

THE WINNER: A Beautiful Mind, a story about mental illness, genius and love, based on the bestselling book.


WHY THEY (PROBABLY) DIDN'T WIN: Up against, like I said, a movie that gracefully and movingly tells a story about mental illness, genius and love, these two epics didn't have much of a fighting chance. The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring received five more nominations than A Beautiful Mind (which had eight, the same as Moulin Rouge!), and would take home four (the same as A Beautiful Mind, Moulin Rouge! won two), however, in lesser recognized categories, ie., A Beautiful Mind won for Picture, Director, Supporting Actress and Adapted Screenplay, while FotR and Moulin Rouge! brought back awards for sound and visuals.

Though why'd it all go down that way? Moulin Rouge! would've been a bold choice, in all its glittery song and dance. With FotR, the series was bound to get more dramatic and presumably even more impressive as it went along (and it did!), so why not save the award for the last installment (and they did)?


WHY THEY SHOULD HAVE: These are two of my most favourite movies ever, and maybe for the reason that they're two of the most epic movies. They're both insanely dramatic, gorgeously composed and styled and beautifully written. Moulin Rouge! perfectly tied up Baz Luhrmann's Red Curtain Trilogy (what great name) with one of the most heart-breaking love stories, punctuated by an amazing soundtrack, stunning sets and charming direction. Meanwhile, FotR (still my favourite of the trilogy) introduced Tolkien fans to an annual tradition worth counting down to (which returns this year with The Hobbit), leading with a killer intro before delving into a magical, moving story with storylines of love, friendship, courage and loyalty.

DVDs for V-Day: Love Stories

I'm a hopeless romantic and as such, I can't help but be drawn to epic romance stories. I'm not too big on campy rom-coms (though I've seen too many of them) and I'm not into second chances (true love gets it right the first time). I'm into stories about deeply honest, pure love that goes to no ends to make sure that it is fulfilled. It also helps if someone tragically dies at the end.

This Valentine's Day, I'd like to ask you to suspend disbelief for a few moments and indulge in these moving, deeply emotional stories about love.

4) COLD MOUNTAIN

While Inman (Jude Law) and Ada (Nicole Kidman) are separated throughout most of the film, it's their enduring distant love that pulls you in. Although conscripted in the American Civil War, Inman can't help but follow his heart back to Ada, even if it means deserting the war. Meanwhile, as he treks his way back to her, Ada is left to worry about his safe return, while mourning the death of her father and trying to work the family farm without him. It's a story about hope and faith in a love that endures what feels like endless time to findally be reunited.

3) THE NOTEBOOK

It's tough to put The Notebook on this list without fear of being cliché, but I have to do it. There's a reason that this movie resonates as one of the greatest modern love stories of all time. It's about a guy, Noah (Ryan Gosling), who's unrelenting in chasing his true love, Allie (Rachel McAdams), when things being to fall apart after their picture-perfect summer. Through years of pain and waiting, Noah is unyielding, making for a very bitter-sweet ending.

2) KITES

This underrated Bollywood movie has been one of the most surprising movies I've seen in the past couple years. While it seems much of Bollywood dismisses it because it's so different from their usual fare (no dance numbers, a mix of languages, and extremely rebellious), it's gone mostly unnoticed by the rest of the world who don't look out for Bollywood exports. J (Hrithik Roshan) is an American who marries immigrant women to get them green cards, but when he marries Mexican woman Linda (Bárbara Mori), he feels there's something more there. Meanwhile, she's actually engaged to someone else and plans for divorce once the arrangement is through. But after discovering their true feelings, divorce is out of the question. Of course, her fiancé doesn't take it well and the two flee the country, running from guns and threats and car chases, until they can finally be alone together.

1) MOULIN ROUGE

This is my favourite movie ever. Of all time. Just watching the trailer nearly makes me teary. It's the most epic love story I've ever seen. Christian (Ewan McGregor) is a "penniless writer" who falls in love with Satine (Nicole Kidman), a courtesan and star of the Moulin Rouge night club. Of course, their love can never be; her job prevents her from falling in love, especially with someone who can't afford to keep up with her demands. But their love is destined to be and despite all odds, they see it through. Aside from being a beautiful story, it's also got some of the most stunning set and costume design, along with truly convincing acting. It is the most emotional movie I've ever seen.

We Dig Music: Moulin Rouge

As much as we love film, we also dig music. Once a month, we strum through films that wouldn't be what they are without music.

The movie: Full disclosure: This is my favourite movie of all time. I cannot count the times I've seen it. And cried every time. In 1899, a penniless writer, Christian (Ewan McGregor), goes to Paris for inspiration. One night at the deliciously sinful Moulin Rouge nightclub, he falls in love with the star courtesan, the Sparkling Diamond herself, Satine (Nicole Kidman). Of course, their love can never be (or can it?), but when the Duke of Monrth (Richard Roxburgh) stepping in to finance a new production at the club and placing a few demands of his own, doom is imminent.