4. Removing Gatsby's Father And The Funeral Scene
Among the weak narrative changes, this one bothers me the least, but it still bears mentioning. In the book, after Gatsby's death, Carraway waits for people to show up to mourn Gatsby, trying to reach Wolfsheim and anyone else who cared for Gatsby, but no one shows up. No one except for Henry Gatz, Gatsby's father, who in a very saddening scene describes how very proud he is of his son (Assuming that his wealth and success were earned by legitimate means) and how sure he is that Gatsby must have had many friends. It's then all the more devastating when Henry sits waiting for all of Gatsby's many friends, only for no one to show up. This heart breaking moment conveys how a man who lives for nothing but an illusion will have only ghosts to miss him. The movie's ending, already moving and poignant, could have stood to benefit from this inclusion. As it stands the movie ends as a moment between Gatsby and Caraway, and I understand Luhrmann's approach. He actually shot the scenes with Gatsby's father, but explained that he sees the arc of the movie in a particular way: Opening with Caraway and Gatsby, expanding to include others, and narrowing back down to Carraway and Gatsby again. The funnel approach is a good one, but something about the movie's resolution just feels too quick. The build to Gatsby's death plays like a Greek tragedy, to a grand theatrical finish. But everything afterwards falls away within the span of 5 minutes. Next thing you know Caraway is finishing his memoir and the movie's over. It needed more padding to allow the finale to breath, to allow the viewer to digest it. Henry at the funeral provides exactly that breathing room. I'd argue that it would also give the entire idea of Gatsby's failed life more weight. Who better to break a life's illusion than a proud father who sees his son's life destroyed? The ending works fine the way it does, but including Henry Gatz would have driven home the movie's message even more. But again, that's what we have the extended Blu-ray for.