The Great Gatsby (1949)

Director:

Elliott Nugent

Writers:

F. Scott Fitzgerald (novel)
Owen Davis (play) ...

Release Date:

13 July 1949 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

A Great Cast... A Great Novel... A Great Motion Picture

Plot:

In this "adaptation" of the F. Scott Fitzgerald novel, a Jazz Age bootlegger learns the hard way about the wages of sin.

Plot Keywords:

Tragedy | Jazz Age | Bootlegger | Obsession | Veteran

Cast

Alan Ladd	...	Jay Gatsby
Betty Field	...	Daisy Buchanan
Macdonald Carey	...	Nicholas 'Nick' Carraway
Ruth Hussey	...	Jordan Baker
Barry Sullivan	...	Tom Buchanaan
Howard Da Silva	...	Wilson
Shelley Winters	...	Myrtle Wilson
Henry Hull	...	Dan Cody
Ed Begley	...	Myron Lupus
Elisha Cook Jr.	...	Klipspringer
Nicholas Joy	...	Drunken Guest at Party
Walter Greaza	...	Kinsella
Tito Vuolo	...	Mavromichaelis
Ray Walker	...	Real Estate Man
Diane Nance	...	Pamela

Runtime:

91 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15

Company:

Paramount Pictures

Trivia:

Tyrone Power was set to star with Gene Tierney. This would have been the fourth time they appeared on screen. When Tierney was dropped from production Power dropped out.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Alan Ladd: The True Quiet Man (1999) (TV)

Very good film version of the original novel.

This version of Scott Fitzgerald's short novel is remarkably faithful to the original and infinitely more successful as a film than the big budget version which appeared two decades later, starring Robert Redford. Alan Ladd puts in an excellent performance in the title role simply by playing the usual Ladd persona. The character of Gatsby in the novel is not fully fleshed out, nor did the author intend him to be more than an illusive figure fired by an obsession. Ladd, who was not an actor of any great talent, seems to be particularly suited to the part. Redford, a much greater actor, added a dimension, the aura of the 'glamorous' leading male star, which the reader does not associate with the Gatsby of the novel and as a consequence, is not convincing. The 1949 version, in monochrome, captures much of the atmosphere of the 'jazz age' which strangely does not come over in the lavish period detail of the later version. The gallery of supporting players contributes significantly to the success of the film. There are a few minor faults, such as the montage shots in the opening sequences which border on cliché. Nick Carraway is less prominent than the author might have intended. But the essence of the novel is there.