Baz Luhrmann's 'The Great Gatsby' Finally Settles On A Release Date

When it was announced a few weeks ago that Baz Luhrmann's hotly anticipated adaptation The Great Gatsby would have it's release date pushed back, many were left wondering if the decision was entirely correct.  In the past, early summer releases from Warner Brothers weren't always the best foot forward for the studio.  Speed Racer and House of Wax, to be absolutely clear.  Regardless, the new release date for The Great Gatsby is now set to be May 10, 2013.

This shift of the release date is a sharp departure from the holiday season release that the film was previously set for.  There are certainly two different types of audiences that are gathered during the winter and during the early summer, though it's not clear which audience the film can cater to; in looser terms, a warm audience or a cool audience.  It must also be noted that an early May release can get a running start on some of the summer blockbusters that would be released earlier in the season.  The shift of the release was definitely a wide one, but Warner Bros. may have some tricks up their sleeve with this one.

The literary adaptation, which stars Leonardo Dicaprio, Carey Mulligan, and Tobey Maguire, is a thrilling tale of romance and deception in the upper class of 1920's New York.  In my opinion as someone who has appreciated the book, the overarching tone of high class intrigue is one that fits rather well with the warming and cooling of May weather.  It could also have made a fantastic Christmas-time film, as many Luhrmann films can be, but Warner Brothers didn't sabotage the picture by moving the date back.  And it should also be noted that wearing a flapper dress in December is a terrible idea, so we dodged a bullet on that one.

Comments

[J.BradleyBradley]

They know what they're doing but this looks more like an "Oscar season" movie to me.