Review of The Great Gatsby

I've loved this book for many years. First, I've read it in High School (required reading) in a foreign language translation. Then, when I learned English, I read it few times in the original. I agree with all those who believe that this novel is not "adaptable" for the screen: it is written as a single point of view narrative and it cannot be followed closely in a movie version or it would be a mega "snooze fest". In addition it has so many themes that any adaptation would need to necessarily drop some of them or the movie would be an overblown, 4 hour opus. Having said that, I feel I need to write a "few words" in defense of the 1949 adaptation. Even though this version was plagued by many challenges (low budget; censorship crippled script, that seems to assume no intelligence on the part of the viewer, therefore providing endless and superfluous back story explanations; Paramount's reluctance to produce/promote it; last minute appointed director, who was more experienced with light comedy; rather plain actress in the role of Daisy; some liberties with the character of Jordan Baker, etc.), I feel that it hit all the main themes of the book spot on and it kept the viewer engaged for the duration (something, which cannot be said of the much more lavish 1974 version). But most of all: I loved Alan Ladd as Gatsby. There are many gems in his version, such as: Gatsby, awkwardly, trying to bribe Nick; Gatsby giddy with pride and joy, showing Daisy his lavish closets; his confusion when he discovers that Daisy has a daughter; his shock when he finds out Daisy's "true colors"; and, finally, when he sits alone, so small, in the great big house, with all his dreams crumbling around him. I cared about Ladd's Gatsby as much as I did about Fitzgerald's. And in the end that's what movies are supposed to do: make us care. I will skip over the Luhrmann/DiCaprio version (least said, soonest mended) but only to say, that it is the ONLY version of Great Gatsby (I saw 4: 1949, 1974, 2000 – TV movie and 2012) in which I was longing for Wilson to finally show up and put DiCaprio's Gatsby out of his misery.