'Great Gatsby' to open Cannes Film Festival

Australian director Baz Luhrmann's 3D retelling of 'Great Gatsby', which has megastar Amitabh Bachchan in a cameo, will open the 66th Festival de Cannes.
The opening will also be graced "with the presence of Bollywood legend Amitabh Bachchan", as well as American rapper Jay-Z, a release said.
Bachchan plays the role of Meyer Wolfsheim in his debut Hollywood movie.
Starring Leonardo DiCaprio in the title role, the film is Luhrmann's interpretation of F Scott Fitzgerald famous classic and is set against the backdrop of roaring twenties in the US.
The out of competition film wil be screened in the Grand Theatre Lumiere of the Palais des Festivals on May 15.

The film revolves around the romantic and tragic figure of Jay Gatsby (DiCaprio), as narrated by his friend Nick Carraway (Tobey Maguire). Carey Mulligan is Daisy Buchanan, Gatsby's love and married to a rich man, played by Joel Edgerton.

"It is a great honor for all those who have worked on The Great Gatsby to open the Cannes Film Festival. We are thrilled to return to a country, place and festival that has always been so close to our hearts, not only because my first film 'Strictly Ballroom' was screened there 21 years ago, but also because F Scott Fitzgerald wrote some of the most poignant and beautiful passages of his extraordinary novel just a short distance away at a villa outside Saint-Rapha�l," Luhrmann said.

Produced by Warner Bros Pictures and Village Roadshow Pictures, the film was scripted by Luhrmann and his faithful co-screenwriter Graig Pearce, based on Fitzgerald's 1925 novel.
The opening film will be screened in 3D - for the second time during the history of the Festival, following Up by Pete Docter, in 2009.
Luhrmann has been to Cannes twice -- for 'Strictly Ballroom' (Un Certain Regard in 1992) and for 'Moulin Rouge!'.
It is the second time for DiCaprio on the Croisette. He previously presented a documentary 'The 11th Hour' in 2007.