On the fence with The Great Gatsby: Official movie trailer

F. Scott Fitzgerald's famous "beloved" novel The Great Gatsby is being remade as a motion picture this coming Christmas and it seems that the movie execs want to build a proper hype by releasing the official trailer right before summer consumes us in all it's blockbuster glory. 

Still, it's all a little too much to take in. The imagery is strong. The promo photos are absolutely breathtaking. Carey Mulligan is Daisy Buchanan. As for the choice of Leonardo DiCaprio to play the mysterious but wholly endearing Jay Gatsby, well... I'm a little apprehensive. 

I make no grips against his talent or movie star good looks. Leo has both in abundance. Regardless, there is a something wanting. The trailer does not seem to reflect the hope and hopelessness of its main character. It's all about Gatsby and DiCaprio, as far as the trailer suggest, falls flat.

I'd really like to be excited about this but I just can't help but approach this trailer with the utmost caution. Sure, it's bright and shiny and those that have read the book more than once will see the scenes played out right before your eyes. But it's almost too bright to look at. The trailer is positively blinding. It's too shiny, glossed over and magnificent. It's as if the deceptive world Gatsby created to draw Daisy back to him has been made real. Only the deception is part of the allure. You want to be taken in and taken for a ride.

Director Baz Lurhmann appears to be recreating his Romeo+Juliet formula complete with leading man. The music is too modern to truly represent jazz age America and it would be a great tragedy to lose that part of the story. Of course comparisons can be made to the excesses of then to our modern society today but that is missing the point entirely. Gatsby is a man unlike any other; he breaks the mold for the archetypal rags to riches hero. He is a character that embodies the spirit of the time. Let's hope the sense of the time is not lost in the modernization of the soundtrack as Lurhmann is all too well known for.

It would be unfair not to mention the 1974 classic of the same name with Robert Redford and Mia Farrow as Jay Gatsby and Daisy Buchanan. The screenplay was written by Francis Ford Coppola and it is hard to see how this latest version will stand up to such an enthralling film.

One thing is for sure, the costumes look amazing.

See for yourself:




I'd also like to mention that as I write this I'm wearing my Great Gatsby tee :) So you know I mean business!

Cali enthusiast rejoice: Best Coast's The Only Place album review

Best Coast released its sophomore album The Only Place this month just in time for summer.

Some of the newer songs are a bit redundant mainly because they start off with the same guitar and drum intro (“The Only Place,” “Why I Cry,” and “Let’s Go Home”), but regardless of this minor set back the new songs are magnificent in their simplicity. Clear and precise, the record’s sound is flourishing and straightforward. Less bouncy than 2010 Crazy For You, the album has a good mixture of sad sentiment and off the wall shennantics.

Two pre-Crazy For You songs "Dreaming My Life Away" and "Up All Night" were reworked to fit on the record and are stunning. I had to go back and listen to the originals to compare them. Once a confusing mess of emo surf pop the songs now reflect the shiny inner turmoil that is equally poignant and refreshing.

The older versions are full of fuzzy guitar, weak layered vocals that are lo-fi to the core.

Heart wrenching and sweet, the new version of "Up All Night" offers up a clearer view into singer Bethany Cosentino’s psyche. It is a song full of longing. Instead of the fuzzy guitars and lo-fi layered vocals, "Up All Night" is distinct yet follows closely the classic Best Coast style fans have grown to love.

 

“Let’s Go Home” is probably the most fun song off of The Only Place besides the title track "The Only Place," an open love letter to California. Loud and energetic, “Let's Go Home” is the kind of song that makes listeners want to jump on their beds on in all its bratty glory. It's a modern anthem for homebodies everywhere in a similar vein to Weezer's "In the Garage."

On the flip side, songs like “My Life” and "No One Like You" are dripping with whiny girl rock sentiments that border on the edge of twee pop absurdity. Somehow, it works. Cosentino croons her tragic love stories of heart break and loneliness like a pro.

Bethany’s pain is beautiful. She sings with depth and precision unlike anyone else and always manages to keep it fun.

Listen to: “Better Girl,” “How They Want Me To Be,” and “Up All Night.”