What are everyones opinions on Jack Clayton's rendition of The great Gatsby (1974, Robert Redford)?

Question

I personally feel they made this film without reading the novel at all, just resorting to wikipedia for a brief synopsis. i feel the casting (bar mia farrow and sam waterson) to be dreadful, choosing to make myrtle skinny as out, tom looking rather puny and casting robert redford without once looking at his (supposedly gorgeous) smile. the tone of the film just didnt feel right, i still feel it was a fantastic movie, just a movie that doesnt live up to the novel at all. Mia Farrow was fantastic, exactly how i imagined Daisy B, and i believe Jordan Baker (Lois Chiles) did a great job with a great voice) but the rest of it was lame. other than casting being fatal, they missed out some of the best and most important parts of the book! the last paragraph for instance, which i think is the most important in the book, where we see into the mind of F. S. F. but they completely missed it out! i was highly disapointed at that. Although the music for it was fantastic.

just wanted to hear your thoughts.

Answer 1

I find that is the case with many movies based on great books.  A movie can never do justice to a good book.  Movies can be only so long or no one will watch them, though in 1974 longer movies were more common.  If time is limited, they can't possibly include enough to satisfy people who liked the book.  I rarely watch a movie based on  a book I really like unless I have first heard very good things about it.  One of my exceptions was Doctor Zhivago - but that is a very long movie.