The Great Gatsby

The Great Gatsby

Year: 1926

Runtime: 80 mins

Language: English

Director: Herbert Brenon

Drama

Nick Carraway, a young Midwesterner now living on Long Island, becomes fascinated by the enigmatic neighbor Jay Gatsby, whose mysterious past and extravagant lifestyle epitomize the nouveau‑rich allure of the era. Drawn into Gatsby’s inner circle, Carraway bears witness to the obsessive passion and inevitable tragedy that surround Gatsby’s pursuit of his dream.

The Great Gatsby (1926) – Spoiler-Free Movie Summary & Plot Overview

Get a spoiler-free look at The Great Gatsby (1926) with a clear plot overview that covers the setting, main characters, and story premise—without revealing key twists or the ending. Perfect for deciding if this film is your next watch.

In the glittering summer of 1922, a quiet Midwestern graduate arrives on Long Island, renting a modest cottage beside an opulent shoreline that erupts nightly with music, champagne, and strangers in glittering gowns. The world he steps into is a tableau of excess, where the old‑guard of aristocratic “East Egg” watches the flamboyant newcomers of “West Egg” with a mixture of curiosity and disdain, and the air hums with the restless pulse of jazz and possibility.

Nick Carraway serves as the narrator‑observer, his Midwestern sensibility both a compass and a contrast to the decadent swirl around him. He finds himself drawn into the social whirl of his cousin’s household, where Tom Buchanan exerts a forceful, almost arrogant charm, and Daisy Buchanan glides with an ethereal, unattainable grace that seems to embody the very ideal of beauty and longing. Their circle also includes Jordan Baker, a cool‑headed golfer whose nonchalance hints at hidden depths beneath the polished surface.

Just beyond the manicured lawns lives the enigmatic figure of Jay Gatsby, a self‑made millionaire whose name is whispered in reverent and speculative tones. His mansion becomes the epicenter of the season’s most lavish parties, a dazzling display of wealth that conceals a private yearning. Though strangers flock to his doorstep, Gatsby remains a study in paradox—outwardly confident yet quietly haunted by a past he never fully reveals, and driven by a singular, elusive dream that seems both grand and fragile.

Against this backdrop of shining facades and whispered ambitions, the film paints a portrait of aspiration, identity, and the invisible lines that separate desire from reality. The tone is both sumptuous and introspective, inviting the audience to linger on the shimmer of the Jazz Age while feeling the undercurrent of unspoken longing that propels each character forward.

Last Updated: December 05, 2025 at 10:22

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Discover curated groups of movies connected by mood, themes, and story style. Browse collections built around emotion, atmosphere, and narrative focus to easily find films that match what you feel like watching right now.

Movies about tragic obsession like The Great Gatsby

Stories of passionate, doomed pursuits of unattainable ideals.If you were captivated by the doomed romantic pursuit in The Great Gatsby, explore these similar movies. This collection features intense dramas and tragic love stories where characters are destroyed by their own obsessive dreams, offering heavy emotional weight and melancholic endings.

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Narrative Summary

The narrative typically centers on a protagonist fixated on reclaiming a lost love or achieving an idealized version of the past. Their obsessive drive blinds them to reality, leading them to make grand, romantic gestures that ultimately result in their personal, financial, or emotional ruin. The story unfolds with a sense of impending tragedy, culminating in a sad or bleak ending that underscores the futility of their quest.

Why These Movies?

These films are grouped together because they share a core theme of self-destructive obsession, a melancholic and fatalistic tone, and a narrative structure that builds steadily towards a heavy, tragic conclusion. They explore the dark side of passion and the painful gap between dreams and reality.

Period dramas of decadent eras like The Great Gatsby

Lavish portraits of a glittering age masking profound emptiness and moral decay.For viewers who loved the opulent Jazz Age setting and themes of wealth in The Great Gatsby, this list features similar period dramas. Discover movies that explore the dark side of glamorous, decadent historical eras, where immense fortune leads to tragedy, loneliness, and moral collapse.

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Narrative Summary

Stories in this thread are often set during a golden age of prosperity, such as the Roaring Twenties or the Gilded Age. They use the setting not just as backdrop, but as a central character, exploring how extreme wealth and social climbing create an environment ripe for tragedy. The plot frequently involves characters who achieve great material success only to find it spiritually empty, leading to personal downfall and a critique of the era's central values.

Why These Movies?

These movies are connected by their focus on a specific, opulent historical setting as a catalyst for tragedy. They share a melancholic tone, a thematic exploration of class disparity and the corruption that accompanies wealth, and a visual style that emphasizes the stark contrast between glittering surfaces and bleak emotional realities.

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The Great Gatsby Summary

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The Great Gatsby Summary

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The Great Gatsby Timeline

Characters, Settings & Themes in The Great Gatsby

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Characters, Settings & Themes in The Great Gatsby

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