Baz Luhrmann does not murder F. Scott Fitzgerald’s landmark novel about a mysterious rich man in the Roaring Twenties. Rather, he lets it die a lingering death while going about his usual business – hyperactive visuals (Luhrmann’s gaudiest yet, with remarkably effective 3D), superficial characterization, and large crowds of real live extras. Leonardo DiCaprio channels Orson Welles’ Citizen Kane (plus a Sunset Boulevard coda) as lonely playboy Jay Gatsby, but Carey Mulligan is a bit overpowered as reluctant femme fatale Daisy Buchanan. That leaves Tobey Maguire, as narrator/tour guide Nick Carraway, to carry the load, with some style. Aside from DiCaprio and Maguire, the only actors to rise above the fray are in the smaller roles: Elizabeth Debicki as flapper Jordan Baker, Adelaide Clemens as a floozy, and creepy-eyed Jason Clarke as wronged prole George Wilson – Australians all. The net result is visually expressive but emotionally suffocated. But anyone who has seen Australia could have predicted that. Screenplay adaptation by Luhrmann and Craig Pearce. (142 min.) By Kelly Vance