MovieChat Forums > The Great Gatsby (2001) Discussion > Toby Stephens makes a Great Gatsby!!

Toby Stephens makes a Great Gatsby!!

posted 17 years ago by clashie999
23 replies | jump to latest

I saw this movie because I was made to by those horrible people that call themselves my teachers any who!
I knew Toby Stephens from Jane Eyre and I was surprise with his great accent.
If I didn't know he was British I would of sworn he was American. Not to take away from the movie but all time I watched I only noticed this.
Whatever it is you think of the movie (bad or great!) I think that you should really appreciate the great Toby Stephens for playing a Great Gatsby!!

"You can't repeat the past"

[–] juliechen 17 years ago

I completely agree! I just borrowed this movie from the library, after reading the book in school, and I loved it. I thought it was extremely faithful to the book, and unlike how I've heard the other film adaptations are. Toby Stephens is a perfect Gatsby, and he was so charming that I felt sorry for him over and over. I also really liked Nick Carraway because he was exactly like the way I imagined him while reading the book, but just slightly more attractive, which is a bonus. Also, I thought Mira Sirvano was amazing as Daisy - she was just as pretty and angelic as I had imagined. This was such a good movie!

[–] 17 years ago

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[–] clashie999 17 years ago

I think that the casting production was best at some parts and in others they
didn't meet the expectations.
But you can't blame them they are only human.

Yet I don't think that the Mira Sorvino's interpretation of Daisy should not
interferer with the great performance of Toby Stephens.

"They are a rotten crowd! Your worth the whole dam bunch!"

[–] ADN14 17 years ago

He was a terrible Gatsby. The way he said his words and Old Sport after a long pause. He is a terrible actor for this role.

[–] Yorick_Brown 17 years ago

I found Stephens to be pretty wooden actually.

"The final word in the final sentence you uttered to me was love."

-Snow Patrol

[–] andrewbruske 17 years ago

Gatsby is supposed to be wooden, and is supposed to be ill-at-ease with the high class idiom he has chosen for himself. That's what makes Stephens, as a non-American pretending to be American, so perfect for the role.

[–] Yorick_Brown 17 years ago

I disagree. I don't think it was am acting choice at all.

His performance was wooden and ameteurish because it was wooden and amateurish.

"Just scratching around for something to believe in. Something to believe in..."

-Aqualung

[–] 17 years ago

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[–] Yorick_Brown 17 years ago

I don't need to read the book again.

These are my feelings on Stephens' performance and I felt he was very wooden

Jane says it's a long way out...
I'm gonna make it out
'Cause I'm about her

-5 for Fighting

[–] ADN14 17 years ago

Stevens was awful. The long pauses after old sport made awkward moments. Paul Rudd would have been the better choice.

[–] adanedhel728 16 years ago

I agree, I think he was great. Something about his demeanor allowed for him to be detestably charming, which is exactly how I imagined Gatsby.

[–] shmasp 16 years ago

I'm watching this movie in my english class right now, and i think he's alright. My teacher complains about him almost every time he comes on screen, but i think he makes a good Gatsby. I had been picturing Gabriel Macht as Gatsby, but now i think he would make a great Tom. I also thought that Stephens shouldve played Tom because of his stuck up look and maneurisms. But oh well. I guess I'll have to live with this cast for another 2 days...

[–] ADN14 16 years ago

The casting for this movie was not very good. But then again it is hard to top a fantastic actor in Robert Redford who was the original. If they do a remake then I think Christian Bale would be a solid choice.

[–] fanaticita 16 years ago

I loved this version of Gatsby. I remember studying the book in college, and this version covered a lot of material that the original (with Redford) did not.
Toby Stephens is a fantastic actor. Watch him closely. He is a subtle actor, but his emotions were very clear.

[–] 16 years ago

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[–] linda303 15 years ago

Robert Redford was a perfect Gatsby, except for his age. Toby Stephens was perfectly adequate.

Your teachers should have had you watch the 1974 version. The screenplay is by Francis Ford Coppola and is much truer to the original story. That version is longer so of course can cover more material than a made-for-tv movie with a smaller budget. On second thought, just read the book again... and again.. and...

[–] Desertman84 14 years ago

The best version is the F.Scott Fitzgerald's novel.

[–] Bobby009 13 years ago

To me, Stephens will always be how I imagine Gatsby - I thought he was perfect. I'm beyond disappointed that they chose Leonardo DiCaprio for the 2012 remake, I can't see that working out at all.

-Cheerleaders are dancers who have gone retarded-

[–] GatorKati 13 years ago

"Your teachers should have had you watch the 1974 version. The screenplay is by Francis Ford Coppola and is much truer to the original story."

I'm sorry. HOW was the 1974 version truer to the original story? This one pretty much took it straight from the book! Yes there are scenes I know they cut out - the "beautiful shirts" line, Gatsby firing the servants because Daisy comes over. Yes there was a lot more sex in this one (course it is set in the 20s). But overall I thought this was a really close adaptation.

I loved Robert Redford as Gatsby. But for me I think Toby Stephens was slightly better. He made Gatsby REAL. I could picture myself being around this Gatsby. He asn't larger than life. But he was human. Plus, much as I love him, Robert Redford was Robert Redford. Same Redford he is in every movie.

[–] Desertman84 13 years ago

Both the 1974 movie and the 2000 TV movie aren't good adaptations of the novel.
With regards to the performance of Toby Stephen,I agree that he was wooden and lifeless.

[–] burblx 12 years ago

Frankly, I thought the novel was boring as hell. So was the 2000 adaptation, which made it seem...faithful. It's hard for me to find much entertainment value in that era of literature, though there is some (Hemingway >>> Fitzgerald). Postwar (as in WWII) stuff is much more digestible (Catch 22 is a favorite).

But on-topic, I thought Stephens was great; but it has been ~10 years since I saw this. As someone mentioned, his wooden, douchey demeanor kind of seemed to work well, even if it wasn't a result of being a great character actor. He played much the same person in that horrible Bond movie that came a little later.

DiCaprio should be able to do the part a lot more justice, as he is absurdly more versatile and multi-faceted. If I remember the book right, Gatsby is supposed to be outwardly a stereotypical pompous rich guy...but with hidden vulnerability.

They should've given Paul Rudd a pile of money to reprise Carraway, though...Mcguire might do well opposite 'Leo,' but he doesn't have Rudd's subtlety and realism. Or a voice for narration.

[–] Prismark10 12 years ago

He made a good Gatsby as he felt no need to ape Redford.

Its that man again!!

[–] jrhpax 11 years ago

All three of the leads were excellent.