Living the lavish life 💸

I like pretty much every Leonardo DiCaprio film that I have ever seen. The guy plays so many cool characters and always seems to be in some wildly popular cinema. It is a wonder that it took me so long to finally watch The Great Gatsby, but I can, at last, say that I have seen it. The film was released all the way back in 2013, but I am somehow just now taking a few hours out of my life to see it from start to finish.

The film takes place in New York City during the roaring 20s. There were many people who had obtained massive levels of wealth and money was being spent in careless ways. The year was 1922, just before the Great Depression of 1929-33. Life was grand and nobody knew what was to come.

The movie begins with a focus on Nick Carraway (Tobey Maguire), the writer/trader. He was telling the story of The Great Gatsby to what seemed to be a therapist of sorts. The professional encouraged Nick to write down his memories so that he could process everything that happened better. This means the movie is mostly from Nick's point of view. Nick movies into a run-down little cottage in between a bunch of mansions.

Nick is a cousin of Daisy Buchanan (Carey Mulligan) who is married to the ultra-wealthy Tom Buchanan (Joel Edgerton). Tom is corrupt and will use his money to escape the bad things that he deserves. Daisy loves Nick like a brother and this forces him to spend more time than he would like with Tom.

Tom is cheating on Daisy and isn't afraid to hide it from Nick. Nick cares for Daisy and hates to see her being mistreated by Tom. Tom is so powerful that there is nothing that Nick can do to stop him. He even joins in on the fun one night and parties with a bunch of girls.

Daisy's best friend is Jordan Baker (Elizabeth Debicki). Daisy hopes to get Nick and Jordan to start dating. They hang out frequently and this is where Nick first hears of Gatsby. Evidently, Jordan goes to Gatsby's parties and has even met him before.

Nick realizes that he is Gatsby's neighbor. They often see each other from afar through the windows. They have yet to properly meet, but it seems as though they are destined to.

One day, Nick gets a personal invitation to one of Gatsby's big parties. Nick has no idea that everyone else just shows up to the parties, so watching him wave around his invitation is quite comical.

Most people have no idea who Gatsby is, although they are at his estate every weekend. Gatsby doesn't just throw parties, they are gigantic events that put any party you have ever been at to shame. Nick happens to bump into a man and so begins a conversation. Just as fireworks begin to erupt, Nick learns that the man he is speaking with is Gatsby. They make plans to hang out again the next morning.

Gatsby continually calls Nick "Old Sport". They become close friends in no time and Nick is fascinated by Gatsby's extraordinary life. He still isn't quite sure how any of this has come to be, but it is much better than being broke and having nothing to look forward to. Nick begins to ask himself how he still knows little to nothing about Gatsby.

It turns out that Gatsby knew Daisy before WWI (1914-1918). When he went off to war, Daisy thought that she would never see him again. Gatsby had a secret plan to arrive back to her once he had made something of himself. He had obtained so much and wished to impress her with how far he had come. He is aware that Tom and Daisy are married, but even that won't stop Gatsby from getting his girl back.

Gatsby asks for Nick's and of course, he is happy to assist his wealthy new friend. Nick was asked to lure Daisy over so that Gatsby and she could finally become reacquainted. It was done in a dramatic fashion, as with everything that Gatsby does. For the first time, you begin to see that he isn't perfect. Gatsby is so nervous to finally see Daisy again, which becomes hilarious.

Daisy is miserable with her life, she has done and seen everything with Tom. It doesn't take much for Gatsby to finally give her a reason to be happy again. They begin to spend time together and don't want to ever be separated again. Nick is always there playing the third wheel.

Gatsby starts to make it clear he will be taking Daisy back. She wants to go through with it but is terrified to tell Tom of her desires. Gatsby is insistent and pushes her to tell Tom that she never loved him.

Daisy is still too afraid to tell Tom what Gatsby wants to hear. This eventually leads to Gatsby and Tom getting into a huge argument in front of everyone. Gatsby ends up losing his control, which scares Daisy. Tom may not be a great husband, but at least he doesn't physically abuse her. This scene shows that Gatsby may be capable of something like that and it is a huge turning point for the plot.

After Gatsby's explosion, things go downhill for him. Nick is pretty much the only person to stay by Gatsby's side no matter what. This all culminates in a dramatic finish that is sure to leave viewers torn.

I really enjoyed The Great Gatsby, waiting so many years to finally watch it felt well worth the wait. If you are like me and still haven't given this film a chance, you totally should soon. Most movie lovers have probably already seen The Great Gatsby, but surely not 100% of the world's population. Check out the trailer below and see what you think.