FEBRUARY WATCH PARTY - The Great Gatsby (2013), Jacob's Ladder (1990), Fantastic Planet (1973)
"A writer and wall street trader, Nick Carraway, finds himself drawn to the past and lifestyle of his mysterious millionaire neighbor, Jay Gatsby, amid the riotous parties of the Jazz Age."
- IMDB
I've seen the movie a couple times and had to read the book and write essays for college. I decided to revisit the movie after several years and I was reminded what a true masterpiece it was. Not only is it a classic tale by F. Scott Fitzgerald, a beautiful love letter to the Jazz Age - this Leonardo DiCaprio adaption is absolutely stunning. It's a solid adaption of the book and translated the pages with such style and splendor. It was a celebration of the roaring 20s with the spectacular costumes and set designs. The use of new music was honestly welcoming, oddly enough, and somehow fit with the energy of the film.
I've already written essays on this movie, but feel free to do your own research and analysis. So much symbolism, like so much lol. God being a figure mentioned a lot. The concept of rich people and their life style. Did Daisy actually love Gatsby and/or Tom, or neither? This tragic love story has truly stood the test of time and Gatsby himself has remained a very iconic character in literature that we can spend an hour talking about.
My Rating: ★★★★★★★★☆☆
"Mourning his dead child, a haunted Vietnam War veteran attempts to uncover his past while suffering from a severe case of dissociation. To do so, he must decipher reality and life from his own dreams, delusions, and perceptions of death."
- IMDB
Jacob's Ladder has been on my list for a while and I totally forgot why until I started watching. This is meant to be film that ultimately exposes a government conspiracy on scientific experiments done on soldiers during the Vietnam War. While I'm sure something like that happened, that's not really what you take away from this film. The main character is just going on this consistent spiral of madness and you are along for the ride. You have no idea what's real and not real, even looking back on moments that should've been real, after the movie you're unsure all over again. His hallucinations are legit terrifying. Maybe don't watch this movie alone in the dark at 3am.
My Rating: ★★★★★★★☆☆☆
"On a faraway planet where blue giants rule, oppressed humanoids rebel against their machine-like leaders."
- IMDB
Going back even further to the psychedelic 70s. Wow. This is an experience. What's cool is that I watched it with 2 other people and all 3 of us had 3 different ideas on what the moral of the story was. And honestly, I don't think either of us were right or wrong. But I really need to stress - psychedelic👏70s👏 This is definitely a weird sci-fi animated extravaganza that definitely belongs in that decade.
My Rating: ★★★★★★★★★☆