MUMBAI: Baz Luhrmann‘s The Great Gatsby, an adaptation of F. Scott Fitzgerald‘s account of Roaring Twenties America, will open the 2013 Cannes Film Festival.

The film combines serious literary heritage and A-list star power with Leonardo DiCaprio in the lead role.

For the first time since 2007, DiCaprio will put in an appearance at the festival. The opening gala, preceded by a glitzy red carpet fashion parade and followed by parties along the palm-lined Riviera will also be attended by megastar Amitabh Bachchan and US rapper Jay-Z. The festival runs from 15 to 26 May.

"It is a great honour for all those who have worked on The Great Gatsby to open the Cannes film festival," Luhrmann said in a statement. “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 St. Raphael," he added.

DiCaprio plays Jay Gatsby in the 3D movie, Carey Mulligan is Daisy Buchanan and Tobey Maguire is Nick Carraway, the narrator. The film also has Amitabh Bachchan in a important role.