Keeping it Reel: The Great Gatsby Soundtrack!

"THE GREAT GATSBY"!!!

The music in “The Great Gatsby” is brilliantly crafted to each scene. The movie tells a story that takes place in the time period of the twenties. The songs selected take this blast from the past gives it a more modern spin. The songs are a blend of modern jazz and hip-hop, which appropriately connects the audience with the past while keeping familiarity of songs of this age. Overall the songs within the movie help to establish the moods of the scene and effectively display arguments of ethos, pathos, and logos appeal.

In one of the beginning scenes, Tom Buchannan takes Nick to his lover Myrtle’s apartment. A group of Myrtle and Tom’s New York friends join them at the apartment and suddenly a loud crazy party begins. The song “Who Gon Stop Me,” by Kanye West is playing all throughout this crazy scene. The song plays as a way to move the action of the party forward. It transitions from the different actors and shows them dancing, partying, kissing, ect. The director made a strategic choice conveying logos by choosing a popular song. It’s a modern song that people tend to associate with partying and having a good ole time in which nobody can stop them from having. Basically an I can do what I want and I’m gonna attitude is portrayed, which is accurate considering several people are committing adultery within the walls of the apartment. Logos is also evident by the volume and pace the director strategically chose for the scene. The music starts to get faster and more faded as the night goes on and they get drunker and drunker. The words start to blur out towards the end and it seems to be appear a symbol of their state of mind too as the alcohol is blurring their night. There’s a clear ethos appeal by giving immediate credibility to Kayne West, a very well known artist who is commonly associated with the party scene. I mean I know I personally can say when I hear Kayne West, I immediately feel like dancing and having a good time! In movies, “songs can serve as a kind of over-tune to suggest the mood or spirit of the film as a whole” (Giannetti 214). This is evident as pathos is continuously conveyed during the whole song as it gives off a fun and lively mood, with a hint of a rebellious nature.

Another song that greatly contributed arguments and to the mood of the film, played initially when Daisy and Jay Gatsby were reunited, “Young and Beautiful” by Lana Del Ray. The song has a dream like feeling that hits at the heart of the audience, appealing as a pathos argument. It has the ability to make one feel a since of love and sadness at the same time. This is not only an appeal to pathos, but logos as the song is echoed several times throughout the movie and reestablishes this mood of love and melancholy that directly fits the plot of the movie. The song plays while Jay and Daisy are passionately kissing, adding a sex appeal to the scene. The love is emotionally appealing as pathos arguments often “move their audience to sympathize with ideas that they connect to” (Lunsford 41). Once again, the director uses ethos by choosing the song of a well-known artist, Lana Del Ray. The song has a somewhat majestic and mysterious like quality to it and by echoing it several times throughout the film, I felt drawn into the love and sadness almost as if I was in a relationship with Jay Gatsby myself.

Overall, the songs in the movie provided many arguments that were very convincing and captivating to the audience. I believe that the songs chosen helped make the movie, as they contributed a certain uniqueness tying the two different time periods together. The party theme of the twenties and sad love story of the movie were portrayed by the music and due to these multi argument layered song choices I would give the movie a five slurpee rating.

Song/ Scene Links:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IT16CncS8I8
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kbDZtWOAnMc