Movies of the Roaring Twenties

Writer: Dzamira Dzafri

Even as it is now 2013 already, the 1920s are still considered as the Golden Age and it's apparent that Hollywood still looks at them for inspiration to create fashion, music, and even movies including the upcoming Baz Luhrmann's adaptation for F. Scott Fitzgerald's novel "The Great Gatsby".

Along with the anticipated epic, we look through the vault to list down movies set in the same era.

"The Great Gatsby" (2013)

Baz Luhrmann has always impressed with extravagantly bright films with dark and romantic themes like "Romeo + Juliet" and "Moulin Rouge", and now it looks like he will truly outdo himself with his adaptation of F. Scott Fitzgerald's most known literary work, "The Great Gatsby".

His film approach to the 1920s seems exactly like what you would expect Baz Luhrmann to create, with loud and bright colours and details seen in the trailers. Another factor about the film we should be excited about is the soundtrack, with rapper Jay Z composing and featuring artists like Lana Del Rey, Filter, Florence and the Machine and even Beyonce and Andre 3000 singing Amy Winehouse's "Back to Black". The music in the movie set in the 20s will definitely be a feature to wait for especially since its ingrained with such modern tunes.

Leonardo Dicaprio who has previously worked with Luhrmann as Romeo in "Romeo + Juliet" will join Tobey Maguire, Carey Mulligan and Isla Fisher in the film as the titular character, Gatsby. Fingers crossed for him to finally win an Oscar for this portrayal of his!

"The Artist" (2011)

Not only did this film gain massive appeal after its successful launch in Cannes, the silent black and white film is so well liked it earned itself five Academy Awards including Best Actor for Jean Dujardin and Best Picture of 2012!

Set in the 1920s, with no colour or voices to boot, this film tells the story of a successful silent movie star meeting a young dancer, but their careers go in opposite directions as Hollywood during the era introduces 'talking pictures' we know today.

"Midnight in Paris" (2011)

This film wasn't completely set in the 1920s, but the main character Gil, played by Owen Wilson spent time between his modern world while he was visiting Paris and the past where he met his heroes like Hemingway, Salvador Dali and even F. Scott Fitzgerald played by Tom Hiddleston.

This film was a big loud nod to the 20s in Paris, and Woody Allen made us feel strangely nostalgic as we watch the movie, even if most of us weren't even in existence during that time.

"The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" (2008)

David Fincher's film about a man ageing backwards was the talk on almost everyone's lips back in 2008. Brad Pitt was fantastic as Benjamin Button, and it was great to see him working with a director he had been working with a long time, David Fincher.

It may not be Fincher's best work to date, but with his wide list of flawless films this film is still an exciting addition to great films set in the 20s, with its beautiful cinematography and it's daring and creative concept.

"There Will Be Blood" (2008)

The movie that gave probably the best living actor his second Academy Award before his third in "Lincoln", Paul Thomas Anderson's "There Will Be Blood" not only gained an intense amount of critical praise, it also achieved cult status.

The film was about a turn-of-the-century prospector in his early days of business. The main theme it also followed was the theme of oil, a subject Americans have been obsessed with since the beginning.

"The Fall" (2006)

Tarsem Singh's surreal looking film can give Baz Luhrmann a run for his money. His vision was extraordinary and it showed in this masterpiece of a film. As surreal his film looked, Tarsem Singh has stated that he used no special effects and everything was shot in real locations all around the world in 28 countries, which is why the filming took four whole years!

Set in the 20s, an injured film stuntman, played by Lee Pace befriends a little girl in the same hospital and tells her a series of enchanting stories as we get transported into the girl's vivid imagination.

"Chicago" (2002)

Featuring the glitz and glamour of murder and betrayal in the 20s, this Broadway musical turned feature film was a hit in 2002 with Renee Zellweger as Roxie Hart and Catherine Zeta Jones as Velma Kelly.

This film perfectly portrays the dark side of Hollywood back in the day, as well as stories of women, understandably misunderstood as murderers of men. This was also a standout choice for top movies based on the 20s as it involved a lot of singing and dancing, which many people portrayed in the 20s seem to do so well.