It starred Robert Redford, the biggest, most glamorous movie star of the era. The screenplay was by Francis Ford Coppola, coming off writing Oscars for "The Godfather" and "Patton." The art direction was sumptuous, and the costumes -- which helped launch a new craze for 1920s-inspired fashion -- were designed by the then little-known Ralph Lauren, among others.
And yet the movie, though a box-office success, fell far short of the novel. Critics at the time roasted it, and it's been largely forgotten since its release.
There are lots of reasons that the 1974 "Gatsby" hasn't become a film classic equal to the book's literary status. The actors were, perhaps, miscast: Redford a little too perfect given Gatsby's rough edges, Bruce Dern too unpolished for rich Yalie Tom Buchanan. Director Jack Clayton may have paid more attention to the opulent settings than the relationships between the characters.
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