The Great Gatsby Book Vs Movie

Isabelle Getten

Mr. Shellenberger

English P5

2/26/16

The 1974 movie version of The Great Gatsby is overall worth viewing in class. The movie is quite close to the original book version of The Great Gatsby and even portrayed some of the same characteristics of the actual characters in the book. It’s closely relevant to the book, but there are some minor differences in the movie that make it worth watching and contrasting between the two. The movie brings the book to life, especially to some individuals who have poor comprehensive skills when it comes to literature. The movie validates what one reads in the book, and it’s reassuring and interesting to see it come to life on screen. Most importantly, the movie changes the protagonist and plot entirely and it is fascinating to see it in a different light than what the book attempts to show. The 1974 movie version of The Great Gatsby is worth viewing in class.

Some may say that the movie is not worth watching due to the extreme closeness of the book, but, there are some minor differences that are enjoyable to nit pick out of the movie. For instance, in the novel, Gatsby tells Nick his entire true backstory, especially the parts about his relationship with the millionaire Dan Cody. Gatsby also reveals his true name to Nick, James Gats, in the book. Neither of these two minor, yet major, events happen in the movie. In the novel, Nick runs into an unnamed, curious man that Nick calls “Owl Eyes” at the party, and he is never even so much as appeared in the movie. In the novel, when Nick first arrives at Gatsby’s party, he finds himself talking to Gatsby without even realizing it, but in the movie Nick is personally escorted by Gatsby’s security guard to meet Gatsby privately. This is interesting to see because it gives somewhat of a twist on Gatsby’s personality, he appears to be even more antisocial and creepy in the movie than he does in the book. There were dozens more small differences that occur in the movie so it would be false to say that the movie is identical to the novel. The minor differences in the movie create a more interesting and intriguing atmosphere for the movie.

The movie brings all of the characters in the book to life, and portrays their personality on screen. The book also contains a wide range of extensive vocabulary and it may be difficult to truly understand the concept of the novel for those who are somewhat illiterate, or incomprehensive. For instance, the movie portrays Daisy as a spoiled, shallow rich girl just as she is described in the book and it’s intriguing to watch her cry over Gatsby’s expensive shirts due to the fact that she didn’t marry him when he was poor, and it is much easier to understand. Excerpts from the book may