REVIEW: Music from Baz Luhrmann's Film The Great Gatsby

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**WARNING: Possible spoilers for the book/movie, read with caution. (I try to keep it as spoiler-free as possible)

It's finally here! The highly-anticipated soundtrack from The Great Gatsby directed by Baz Luhrmann (Moulin Rouge!, Romeo + Juliet), in theatres May 10th. 

Don't get me wrong, I'm BEYOND excited for this movie (helloooo Leo). However, as a big fan of the original book by F. Scott Fitzgerald, I'm a bit iffy of the direction it seems to be going in (big and elaborate, rather than understated glamour like the novel), but I'm willing to accept the artistic interpretation as is and that it's a movie, and a movie needs entertainment value. Also, it's Baz Luhrmann, who's known for his elaborate and loud cinematography style.

Anyway! That being said, this soundtrack is fitting for a modern interpretation of the Jazz Age novel. With featured artists such as Lana Del Rey, Florence + The Machine, Jack White, Beyonce, The xx, and Jay Z, the music inspired by the film tries to capture the spirit created in West Egg. This soundtrack is what I would imagine Jay Gatsby's DJ would play if he had parties in modern-day New York.

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The tracks vary from revamped, orchestrated jazz versions of current songs ("Crazy In Love", "Young and Beautiful", "Bang Bang") to allude to a Jazz Age atmosphere (which is brilliantly executed by The Bryan Ferry Orchestra), along with tracks with dissonant harmonies, which I like to think is symbolic of Daisy's and Gatsby's relationship. Nero's "Into The Past" as well as The xx's "Together" are simply two examples of this theme.


Other songs are inspired straight from the book themselves, such as "Over The Love" by Florence + The Machine ("There's a green light in my eyes / and my lover on my mind"), "Kill and Run" by Sia, which alludes to the main climaxes near the end of the story, and "Into The Past" by Nero, possibly based on the last lines of the book (arguably one of the best and my favorite sentences in any book I've read):

"Gatsby believed in the green light, the orgastic future that year by year recedes before us. It eluded us then, but that's no matter - tomorrow we will run faster, stretch out our arms farther ... And one fine morning ---

So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past." 

My prediction of the film, based on the soundtrack, is to give the audience an even more romanticized and over-the-top impression of the Jazz Age, only to have the illusion stripped away in the final scenes/chapters of the story (as the novel by Fitzgerald does). These are my hopes, anyway.

The only problem I have with this soundtrack is that it focuses almost too much on Gatsby and Daisy's romance. The book was a commentary on the Jazz Age with the romance as part of that, but it was not the main focus of the book. But either way, I think it will be excellent.

My personal favorite tracks are "Heart's A Mess" by Gotye, "Crazy In Love" by Emeli Sandé and The Bryan Ferry Orchestra, "Over The Love" by Florence + The Machine, "No Church In The Wild" by Kanye West and Jay Z, "Into The Past" by Nero, and "Young and Beautiful" by Lana Del Rey. 

Here's the full track list (not including audio snippets from the movie, which are included on the deluxe edition):

1. 100$ Bill - Jay-Z
2. Back To Black - Beyoncé x André 3000
3. Bang Bang - will.i.am
4. A Little Party Never Killed Nobody (All We Got) - Fergie + Q Tip + GoonRock
5. Young And Beautiful - Lana Del Rey
6. Love Is The Drug - Bryan Ferry with The Bryan Ferry Orchestra
7. Heart's A Mess - Gotye
8. Over The Love - Florence + The Machine
9. Where The Wind Blows - Coco O. of Quadron
10. No Church In The Wild - Jay-Z, Kanye West
11. Crazy in Love - Emeli Sandé and The Bryan Ferry Orchestra
12. Together – The xx
13. Hearts A Mess - Gotye
14. Love Is Blindness – Jack White
15. Into the Past - Nero
16. Kill and Run - Sia

For those with Spotify, you can listen to the whole album here! 

You can also watch a 5-minute clip from the movie here:

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What are your thoughts on the soundtrack? Do you love it or hate it? Leave a comment and tell us what you think!
Till next time xx,

Sierra

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