Gatsby

The writers wanted to use a blend of modern music and 1920's style music because they thought that the styles would not flow but "weave" as they said. They knew that Hip Hop was all about power, money, sex, and violence. This is easy to relate to the lifestyles of people living in the 1920's. At, the time, alcohol was illegal, so often times this created many problems and created more crimes and violence among people. People who had alcohol had money and power and people were obsessed with these things at the time. So, it is easy to see how the themes of Hip Hop relate. Many of the songs are obviously inspired by 1920’s music as well. Songs such as Will-i-am’s Bang Bang, sound like they are from the time period, as there is rapping and singing to 1920’s Jazz in the background. The music also adds curiosity to the movie, as younger people are more likely to listen t Hip Hop then they are 1920’s Jazz. This will make a wider variety of people interested in the movie to see it. The music was an interesting choice. It’s rare that one hears a mix of genres such as Hip Hop and Jazz. It created its own genre almost. It has its own sound. Many of the songs in the film were very slow though. They almost had a sense of sadness or depression. This slow and sad song adds to the film very well. The story of Great Gatsby is not necessarily a happy one, although the time period was very party oriented and it was about fun and dancing. The music put into the film emphasizes the sad aspects of the movie. It highlights them and brings them to thought. If they had used 1920’s Jazz, although appropriate, would always seem upbeat and the harshness of the story and the life of Jay Gatsby would almost be lost. This music is unlike anything people today have seen. This concept is much like the music of the 1920’s. The music back then was viewed as racy and rebellious and quite odd or out of place for people. This is exactly how the music in the movie is for people today. The writers also seemed to take the time to focus on how the lyrics relate to the film. Obviously, Amy Winehouse’s Back to Black relates to the story. However, most of them seem to explain the story of Jay Gatsby and Daisy. For example, Lana Del Ray’s Young and Beautiful. This song contains lyrics telling a story of love. She contains lyrics like “he is my sun, he makes me shine like diamonds” and “will you still love me when I’m no longer young and beautiful.” This relates to how Daisy feels about Jay. They used to love each other but then she went away and got married. The songs explain how, when she meets Jay again, she remembers everything they did together and that she still loves him and she realizes that Jay never stopped loving him. So, for many reasons, the music that they incorporated into the movie seemed odd at first but flowed well into the story and time period and created a film with its own unique mood.