Heading For A Fall

I’ve no idea whether MD’s Sunday training is on and I can’t get a straight answer out of anyone, so assume it isn’t. It's not been a great addition to our training repertoire so far. Instead I take boys on the park but it’s a bit hot for them, which I suppose has to be good for March. Afterwards they both look exhausted so I slip off to meet L at the cinema. I thought she was off for a girlie cinema afternoon with Daughter but Daughter has declined. She'll have to make do with my company instead.

So hot on the heels of the Arthur Miller experience on Friday night, I get to see another classic, The Great Gatsby. Now I’ve already ‘read’ the book, on audio, and I couldn’t really get the hang of it. Well I understood it but just couldn't get excited by it. Perhaps the fact it was on audio was the problem.

The film, made in 1974 and not a huge success at the time, seemed to stick very closely to F. Scott Fitzgerald's novel. Which perhaps wasn't what I needed.

We are sometime in the 1920’s, when Nick Carraway moves into a modest Long Island cottage next door to the large mansion that belongs to the mysterious Jay Gatsby. A man who frequently throws lavish parties but rarely bothers to attend them himself. Gatsby is played by Robert Redford, who somehow to me, just didn't seem right for the role.

Nick is gradually drawn into Gatsby's world, the world of the decadent upper-class, helped by the fact that Nick's cousin, Daisy Buchanan, and Gatsby were once lovers. Gatsby is still totally in lust with Daisy, although she is now married to the immensely dislikeable Tom, who could give her the life of privilege she so desired because five years ago Gatsby had nothing. That’s some women for you; chase the wallet and not the heart. Since then Gatsby had worked his way up the moneyed scale via some highly dubious means.



Now with Nick’s help, because Gatsby comes over as a bit on a wimp on the seduction front, they restart their affair. All this happens amidst a series of indiscretions by, well just about everyone. Daisy's husband Tom brazenly carries on his own infidelity with Myrtle Wilson, the local garage mechanic's wife. While Nick himself longs to get physical with another high society babe, Jordan Baker, but seems to be the one getting the least action.



Naturally they’re all heading for a fall and the film builds slowly towards this. I found the book slowly paced, and it's only like a pamphlet (or four CDs!), but the film takes things on to a new, two and a half hour level.

The story culminates in tragedy, several deaths and perhaps a dose of the ‘just desserts’. Myrtle is run down by Daisy but Gatsby carries the bullet for it, literally, despatched by Myrtle’s husband, the only moral person in the story. Who then turns the gun on himself. Despite this triple tragedy, high society and in particular Daisy and Tom carry on regardless, without a care to what had happened. Only Nick and Gatsby’s father attend his funeral.

A pleasant and glitzy period film but not exactly riveting, I’m afraid.

Later I fit in another run, this time with the dogs; both look reluctant although MD is first to the door. Doggo hides under the table, not that this is unusual. Once we start running, MD changes his mind and after he’s seen a couple of squirrels off, he’s ready to be carried home. Eventually, after a lot of coaxing, we meet L at the gym.

L meets us outside and then goes off to get us a couple of drinks. Whilst she’s gone MD starts having a yapping fit and it takes me some time to calm him down. Unfortunately I hadn’t translated his yaps very accurately or else I would have known that he was saying ’Look, look, Doggo’s gone inside the leisure centre’ and sure enough he had, having negotiated his way through the electric doors and past reception. We watch as L lead him back outside again with a security guard in hot pursuit.

We walk back and spend a chilled Sunday night with curry and another episode of South Riding. One day, I’m sure, we’ll finish this series.