Avocadometer Movie Review~September 29

The Great Gatsby
1974

Avocadometer: 65%
Reviews Counted: 100
Ripe for Tacos: 82 | Ready for the Compost: 18

     The plot of the movie was rather true to the book.  Events mirrored the book so well, I believe to a fault.  The movie tried to have quotes and exact scenes from the book at every change of the scene.  They did every given scene well, but sometimes the quotes Fitzgerald gives us don't totally fit the scene of a movie, and that awkwardness was evident.  Major plot elements such as Gatsby's extravagant parties, Tom and Myrtle's relationship, Jordan being an item with Nick, and Gatsby pursuing and making love to Daisy, Myrtle getting hit by the car driven by Daisy, Wilson shooting Gatsby and himself, and Nick heading up the funeral were all mirrored by the movie.
     The main actors were Daisy Buchanan, Tom Buchanan, Jordan Baker, Nick Carraway, and Jay Gatsby.  I believe Jordan was the only character represented in the correct fashion as described in Fitzgerald's book.  Daisy seemed so much more ditsy and air headed than I expected her from the book.  I expected her to be prettier, less interested in money, and certainly a brunette, as Fitzgerald made her.  I was under the impression from the book that Tom would be your massive, hulking NFL football player that is large, as well as tall.  I certainly did not expect him to look like a creeper.  Anyone with only a bottom half of a mustache sends up my creeper red flag!  He seemed somewhat awkward with his large height, in contrast to the book.  Jordan was played very well.  She seemed to like and be with Nick just as much as in the book and just as attractive, yet just as deceptive.  Nick was just too awkward in the movie!  I thought he was going to be this fun, hard-working younger guy who gets caught up in all the riches, but he turned out to be out-of-place and never genuine in his words or actions.  For example, in the movie, when he makes his final comment to Gatsby, there was just not the genuineness behind it.  Gatsby seemed too young.  I know he was about the same age as Nick, but regardless seemed out of place to have all his money at that age.  I also expected him more mysterious and secretive than he was in the movie.  In the movie, he seemed so much more forward and made calculated moves.  His suits definitely stayed true from book to movie.
     The cinematography is my main factor for dropping the Avocadometer from a high eighties score.  There are so many dang awkward scenes.  The camera is held for too long on some scenes and not long enough in others.  Many instances put the camera on a scene that conveys little to no interest, except maybe some scenery.  More songs need to be incorporated into the movie to acquire different moods.  One song was repeatedly played as a theme song for everything.
     The importance of geography, a recurring motif of the book, was barely noticeable in the movie.  East Egg and West Egg had few noticeable differences, even to someone who knows the book well.  The Valley of Ashes was portrayed a little better.  It was easier to recognize that it is an intermediary point between the two eggs.  This valley was depicted full of ashes very well.  The two eggs: nothing.  I couldn't tell a difference in coastlines, dress of people, anything!
     The most correlating item to the perception the book creates is the great replication of materials from the "Roaring Twenties" era.  The cars, gas pumps, cigarette holders, prominence of smoking, and clothing illustrated a great representation of the era!  The 20's Flapper Style...classic.
All the women in the movie followed this crazy style, as illustrated on the left.  The men wore suits nearly all the time.  I personally am not finding this Flapper style attractive, but hey I'm in 2011!  At that time, it sure must have been pretty!

Captain Morgan
Top Critic

In Theatres: a long time ago.
Genre: drama, romantic comedy, yes comedy.
Directed By: someone okay with awkward silences.
Rated: G, totally Great for anyone to watch.
                                            Written By: Scott F. Fitzgerald.

URL for the picture:  http://aubreylondonpinup.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/flappermmmmmm.jpg

La Vida de Jay Gatsby y F. Scott Fitzgerald~September 22

Joseph

A.P. English

September 22, 2011

La Vida de Jay Gatsby y F. Scott Fitzgerald

            The Great Gatsby has many people and events that show characteristics of its author, F. Scott Fitzgerald.  The book was written once Fitzgerald was married, as his money was dwindling.  As a writer, some of his ideals, values, and experiences were placed in the book, possibly on purpose, possibly not.  The Great Gatsby is an autobiography of Fitzgerald, represented mostly by the character Jay Gatsby.

            As a youth, Fitzgerald lived on the outskirts of wealthy neighborhoods, but was never accepted by the other rich kids.  As an adult in The Great Gatsby, Jay Gatsby certainly lived surrounded by the “new money” wealth of West Egg, New York.  He was not truly accepted by the other rich folk on the island as a true friend or acquaintance.  The other “new money” people only went to his parties to have a good time, but not because they respected or were good friends with Gatsby.  “As soon as I arrived I made an attempt to find my host, but the two or three people of whom I asked his whereabouts stared at me in such an amazed way, and denied so vehemently any knowledge of his movements…” (42).  After attending St. Paul Academy, Fitzgerald joined the Navy and was stationed at Camp Sheridan.  Gatsby joined a branch of the United States military and was stationed in Germany.  Gatsby, in saying how he recognized Nick from the war, says, “‘I was in the Seventh Infantry until June nineteen-eighteen.  I knew I’d seen you somewhere before’” (47).

            At age 22, Fitzgerald met Zelda Sayre and the two had a relationship, until Fitzgerald’s proposal was denied because of his lack of money.  After writing the book This Side of Paradise, Fitzgerald came into a great deal of money, and Zelda married him one week later.  Gatsby met Daisy and they had a relationship when Gatsby was in his early twenties.  When Gatsby is gone because of military duties, Daisy decided to marry another suitable man with money.  Five years later, when Gatsby had a fancy mansion and tons of money, Daisy gave him another chance and appeared to love him once again.  “Gatsby’s eyes floated toward her.  ‘Ah,’ she cried, ‘you look so cool.’  Their eyes met, and they stared together at each other, alone in space” (119).  Fitzgerald and Zelda had an unstable and turbulent lifestyle, largely due to their alcoholism.  The world of Jay Gatsby revolved around alcohol.  Bootlegging is the implied main source of income for Gatsby to host all his extravagant parties, which were always brimming with all sorts of alcohol.  “‘I found out what your ‘drug-stores’ were.’  He turned to us and spoke rapidly.  ‘He and this Wolfsheim bought up a lot of side-street drug-stores here and in Chicago and sold grain alcohol over the counter.  That’s one of his little stunts.  I picked him for a bootlegger the first time I saw him, and I wasn’t far wrong’” (133).

            The love of Fitzgerald’s life, Zelda, had only one child, whom she gave birth to one year after their marriage.  The love of Gatsby’s life, Daisy, also had an only child, a daughter.  Her daughter was mostly taken care of by a nurse.  “I woke up out of the ether with an utterly abandoned feeling, and asked the nurse right away if it was a boy or a girl.  She told me it was a girl, and so I turned my head away and wept.  ‘All right,’ I said, ‘I’m glad it’s a girl” (17). 

Both Fitzgerald and Gatsby died a rather premature death.  Fitzgerald died at the age of 44 in 1940.  Gatsby also suffered an early death in his early thirties.  Nick narrating about Gatsby at their meeting early in the summer, said “…an elegant young roughneck, a year or two over thirty…” (48).  Fitzgerald died in “literary oblivion” and had no friends in the end.  His obituaries were gloomy and focused on hardships.  The funeral after Gatsby’s death showed few friends and moral supporters.  Nick, Gatsby’s father, and Owl Eyes were the only people to go to the funeral out of respect for Gatsby.  “The minister glanced several times at his watch, so I took him aside and asked him to wait for half an hour.  But it wasn’t any use.  Nobody came” (174). The love of both Fitzgerald and Gatsby were not supportive in the end.  Zelda had three breakdowns related to alcohol and was in very poor condition.  Daisy realized when Gatsby died, so did her opportunities for obtaining his money.  “…I could only remember, without resentment, that Daisy hadn’t sent a message or a flower” (174).

            F. Scott Fitzgerald wrote The Great Gatsby in 1925.  This book illustrates many parallels between the choices and lives of F. Scott Fitzgerald and Jay Gatsby.  The two men had many similarities in the choices they made, such as resorting to alcohol in one way or another to solve a problem and joining a branch of the military.  Gatsby and Fitzgerald shared multiple experiences, such as rejection from the girl of their dreams because of being too poor and also having few friends in the end of their lives for support.  This book is realistic fiction and serves as F. Scott Fitzgerald’s autobiography.

Therapy for Mr. Jay Gatsby~September 16

Date of Appointment: September 15, 2011
Subject: J. Gatsby
Therapist: Joseph
Behavior in Need of Correcting: making and distributing alcohol illegally, arrogant personality, Byronic hero traits, etc.

In my little office space I find a middle aged man, clearly rich from the clothing worn.  I guess it is time for me to begin another one of these dang appointments with dysfunctional people.  ^sigh^ here goes.

Mr. Gatsby!  How are you?
  Some small talk
So what is it you enjoy in life most, your large mansion or perhaps all the people you see?

Well truly neither.  What I want more than anything is the bright-eyed, flowery girl, Daisy Buchanan.  My life since I met her a few years back has revolved around her.  You see, old sport, I was her vehicle driver back in the day and decided I loved her more than anything and she wanted me, but I was too poor.  So she went off and got married to some rich jock, Tom.  What kind of dang plain name is that?

I would not name my boy that.  Now I have been to a few of your parties and seen much dancing and drinking, but never you.  What about that?

To be truthful, and, old sport, you recall all of these therapies are confidential of course?

Of course sir.

OK.  Well I throw all my parties based on finding Daisy.  I have spent all my days asking around my own parties to see if anyone knows her.  No luck.  I check the newspapers daily for any word of her.  None.  What can I do to find her?

Mr. Gatsby, you seem like a shy man.  Why don't you have the courage to just call her up one of these days?  If she remembers you, great and you have nothing to lose, if not there's plenty of other fish in the sea.

I suppose you're right.  Although, a way I could meet her is formulating: my neighbor, Nick, has mentioned her a few times.  Right there can be my tricky knight to recapture my lovely queen.

Well sir, it looks like you have the beginnings of a plan for getting your girl.  I am going to have to let you go because I see the makings of a plot I could be legally required to tell the authorities.  So until next time, keep working on your daily sit-ups and I will send home with you a list of prescriptions to take.

Thanks, old sport.
Gatsby exits.  Whew!  About time.  I really need to get a new job where I talk to functional members of society. This job just doesn't cut it anymore, despite the good pay.

Prescriptions for J. Gatsby:
2 shots of whiskey or vodka at each of your parties for an enjoyment of life, 2 grams of love to be taken 4 times a week, and 3 grams of self-confidence to be taken twice per week.  $1.29 enclosed ITunes gift card for purchase of Gold Digger by Kanye West, 1919 remix; in time you'll understand the song.

Top Ten List of My Labor Day Weekend Activities~September 8

10 thousand feet in elevation is the approximate height of Livingston Peak.  Monday I accomplished the feat of climbing this mountain.  The relief of the mountain is about five thousand feet.  I had such a fun time!  I got to spend the day with my dad and get some good exercise.
9 bars were on the cattle guard I helped fix.  Sunday morning I got up at seven o'clock to help Riley McKenney.  The cattle guard has a little bump before it and fell into the pit beneath it, pulled by Riley's heavy equipment the day before.  Riley used a "skid steer" to chain up the cattle guard and lift it up and out of the pit.  The number of bars on it proved difficult to balance, being it was an odd number.  We ended up chaining it up between bar four and five.  We succeeded in getting it back into place!
8  seats are located in a black Cadillac Escalade.  Sunday morning I had some tasty waffles and relaxing in my bathrobe, watched Zombieland.  In Zombieland, Tallahassee makes his first appearance driving up in the glorified vehicle.  He hits multiple zombies with this vehicle's door, but later loses his car to some clever girls.  I was twice lucky enough to drive the spacious Escalade.  Andrew's aunt allowed me to drive her green Cadillac on dirt roads and around Billings, my two favorite times driving.
7 goals scored in our soccer game by kids from Big Timber.  I play on a team for Columbus, comprised exclusively of Columbus kids, except for Andrew, Shane, and myself.  Andrew scored one goal, Shane scored two, and I scored four.  We won the game with a final score of seven to four on a hot, sunny Saturday afternoon.
6 beings went on the hike to Livingston Peak.  My Monday consisted of going to my dad's studio, where we met his friend Steve.  When we loaded up into the car, my dad's golden retriever, Jade, obviously hopped in for the ride.  We drove to the house of another one of my dad's friends, Sheila.  She loaded up with her dog, Wiggles.  With all six of us piled into the car, we headed to the base of Livingston Peak.  We all made it to the saddle before the peak, but due to the beautiful scenery there, Sheila remained to paint postcards.  The six of us all made it home safely in the afternoon.
5 recognizable names in the "name can" at the top of Livingston Peak.  When we finally reached the top of Livingston Peak, I looked around to find the name can, full of names and comments of many people who had previously been to the top of the peak.  The can, in this case, was filled with some food, pens, empty gun shells, and the many signed scraps of paper.  Of course I just had to read every scrap of paper down to the letter of who had been to the peak before.  I knew five of these people.  I knew three of them due to my club team and the remaining two were brothers of a friend's ex-girlfriend.  When I finished reading all the names, I added mine to the list and wrote and dated a small note in Spanish.  When you climb to the peak, look for Joseph in there.
4 goals were scored by me in Saturday's game.  I scored a right-foot goal in the first quarter, a header in the second quarter, and two goals in the final quarter.  My final two goals were with my left and right foot, respectively.  I scored no goals in the third quarter, due to coach wanting me to play keeper.  The header I scored is the first I have scored since I can remember, possibly forever.
3 goals comprised my American hat trick and nearly would have accomplished my first "true" hat trick.  A hat trick in the United States is merely scoring three goals, but in Europe a "true" hat trick must be scored by left foot, right foot, and the head.  They must also be uninterrupted and cannot be scored from a penalty kick.  I accomplished the American version with flying colors, but my first three goals were interrupted by at least three other goals.  None of my goals were penalties and I got a left, right, and header for goals.
2 girls that moved to Billings went to the After School Program, where I work.  I was so disappointed to learn that I would no longer have them at my tutoring job.  The two spotted me at the Reedpoint Sheep Drive.  The younger one was in my kindergarten class last year at my work.  The sheep drive was quite fun.  It was the first one I had been to, with great food and many people I knew.
1 game of "rock soccer" was played on Sunday.  In the late afternoon, my mom and I took a slow walk down to the river with some snacks.  We found a sandy patch along the Yellowstone to sit down.  My mother showed me a small rock she found that was nearly perfectly spherical.  I sure knew what to do with that rock!  I set up rocks on each end of the sand patch for goals for a great game of rock soccer.  After removing shoes, we dribbled, shot, kicked, and missed the small "ball".  This was such a fun time, but guess who won!
0 things I wish I did this weekend that I missed.

The autopsy of reading chapter one of The Great Gatsby~September 1

Subject:  The Great Gatsby
Part of Inspection:  Chapter 1
Date Inspected:  September 1, 2011
Approximate Date of Grave Occurrence:  August 30, 2011
Coroner: Joseph
Physical Observations:  At cutting of the chest, a broken heart was found.  Blood alcohol levels were found extremely high.

General Observations:  More facts of seeing the subject are coming back to me.  Background investigations of the family have renewed forgotten characteristics of seeing my subject two years ago for a yearly check-up.  The subject's acquaintances have been renewed to me as Daisy, Tom, and Jordan.  Tom  gave me some limited information on what motives our subject had and activities on the night of August 30, 2011.  Neither Jordan nor Daisy revealed much to me, but I had the feeling that they were withholding some information from the interview.  When I began to inspect my subject, there was some confusion as to who it was.  In the first few minutes, I was under the impression I was looking at a certain F. S. Fitzgerald.  I later learned that the subject was more or less known as Nick and I had received the wrong coroner's report.  The incorrect file seemed to have something to do with the subject.  I believe possibly F. S. Fitzgerald was the father of the subject.  It so happens that both the wrong report and the subject had  insufficient funds for marriage during their early years.  Having previous knowledge of my subject from biographical slideshows viewed in the hospital were beneficial to this autopsy.  I cannot now say what could have caused the grave occurrence, but possible illegal activities could have resulted in tensions.

Suggested Cause of Grave Occurrence:  Not sufficient evidence.  Must read ensuing chapters.