The Great Gatsby is a 2000 historical romantic drama television film based on the 1925 novel by F. Scott Fitzgerald. It was directed by Robert Markowitz, written by John J. McLaughlin, and stars Toby Stephens in the title role of Jay Gatsby, Mira Sorvino as Daisy Buchanan, Paul Rudd as Nick Carraway, Martin Donovan as Tom Buchanan, Francie Swift as Jordan Baker, Heather Goldenhersh as Myrtle Wilson, and Matt Malloy as Klipspringer. The film aired in the United Kingdom on BBC on March 29, 2000, and in the United States on A&E on January 14, 2001.
Hampered by a limited $5 million budget and hastily filmed in Montreal, Canada, to reduce costs, the A&E television adaptation suffered from low production values, and the critical response to its broadcast was overwhelmingly negative. The New York Times dismissed it as "flat-footed," The Guardian described it as "uninspired," and The Boston Globe savaged it as "mediocre". The performances of Toby Stephens as Jay Gatsby and Mira Sorvino as Daisy Buchanan were particularly ill-received by a number of critics, although Paul Rudd's performance as Nick Carraway garnered praise.
Nick Carraway is a young bond salesman who rents a cottage on Long Island, New York, near the mansion of the wealthy and reclusive Jay Gatsby. Nick gets to know Gatsby, who was a poor man named Gatz before he left to fight in World War I. Gatsby fell in love with a beautiful woman from a wealthy family, Daisy. When he returned, Gatz was determined to prove himself worthy to win her hand, even though Daisy had by this time married the socially prominent Tom Buchanan. Gatsby has yet to give up on his romantic dream and enlists Nick, who is distantly related to Daisy, in his plan.
Initially planned to be shot in Ottawa, the production ended up shooting in Montreal, Quebec, as Ottawa was not equipped to handle the production on short notice. The television film was shot in less than thirty days in September 1999 with a budget of $5 million. The film was made in collaboration by the A&E Cable Network in the United States, and Granada Productions in Great Britain. It was directed by Robert Markowitz from a teleplay by John J. McLaughlin. The music score was by Carl Davis and the cinematography by Guy Dufaux. The production was designed by Taavo Soodor.
A&E Network launched a widespread marketing campaign for their 2001 programming, with a major focus on The Great Gatsby. For Gatsby, they hosted national and local sweepstakes sponsored by US Airways and Waterford Crystal and tied them into high schools, colleges, and libraries. Displays were reportedly placed in 12,000 libraries nationwide, and A&E held acting contests at 23,000 high schools and colleges. An in-flight featurette, The Making of the Great Gatsby, played on US Airways during the holiday season.
The Great Gatsby television adaptation received negative reviews upon its broadcast debut. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds a 27% approval rating, and on IMDb it has a score of 5.7/10. The New York Times dismissed it as "flat-footed," The Guardian described it as "uninspired," and The Boston Globe savaged it as "mediocre". In his review in The Boston Globe, critic Matthew Gilbert described the film as a crass attempt by "television execs hoping to mine yet another literary classic for its built-in audience."
Caryn James of the New York Times praised Paul Rudd as "brilliant" in the role of Nick Carraway, but dismissed the film as disappointing and wrote the "film might have survived its pedestrian style, but it can't survive a leaden Gatsby." In her review, James criticized Toby Stephens' performance as "so rough around the edges, so patently an up-from-the-street poseur that no one could fall for his stories for a second" and his "blunt performance turns Gatsby's entrancing smile into a suspicious smirk".
Mira Sorvino's performance as Daisy Buchanan was roundly criticized. Natasha Joffe of The Guardian wrote that Sorvino was an abysmal Daisy "whose voice is supposed to be full of money, but is just moany. Why would Gatsby love her? She looks like a drowned goose and her hats are like they've been made out of old pants." Similarly, John Crook of The Fremont Tribune wrote that Sorvino was "seriously miscast as Daisy".