Rewind: “The Great Gatsby” is the perfect summer sendoff

Luhrmann is no stranger to splashy modernizations of period pieces, having previously released “Moulin Rouge” and “Romeo and Juliet,” which brought Shakespeare’s star-crossed lovers into a contemporary setting.

The film boasts a star-studded cast with Leonardo DiCaprio as the titular Gatsby and Tobey Maguire of “Spider-Man” fame serving as audience stand-in Carraway. Carey Mulligan and Joel Edgerton round out the principal cast as Daisy Buchanan, Nick’s cousin and Gatsby's former flame, and her husband Tom. Each actor embodies their role perfectly, from Maguire as the everyman to Edgerton’s portrayal of Tom as a boorish brute of a man. The palpable chemistry between DiCaprio and Mulligan as old lovers who have reconnected years later makes the tragic finale all the more heartbreaking.

Although the costume design and set dressings may have gotten attention at the Academy Awards, the film’s musical elements are what set it apart from previous adaptations. “The Great Gatsby” takes place during the so-called Jazz Age and yet jazz never seems to factor into Luhrmann’s film in any significant way. Instead, the soundtrack is modernized and features songs by artists like Jack White and Kanye West. It may seem anachronistic at first but the music captures the raucous atmosphere of Gatsby’s famed house parties in a way jazz would not be able to for contemporary ears. The former “bad boy” genre is now too closely associated with dimly lit clubs and beatniks in berets to pack the same punch it would have in Fitzgerald’s time.

Summer’s end has a particular nostalgia to it and the end of “The Great Gatsby” captures that feeling perfectly in its final scenes. From the shocking conclusion to Gatsby’s story to the hope-filled closing narration by Carraway, it’s a story of optimism, idealism and the dangers of decadence. There is a reason the word “great” is right in the title.

Lurhmann’s “The Great Gatsby” is rated PG-13. It is currently available to stream on HBO Max.