Movies
Elvis: The Illustrious Life of The King
Baz Luhrmann’s Elvis is stylish, glamorous, ambitious and arresting. It is filled with bright colors and graphics, over-the-top characters and incredible use of music. Luhrmann’s distinct visual style is on full display, and his energetic direction fits particularly well with Austin Butler’s exuberance.
The rest of the technical credits are equally top-notch, covering vibrant cinematography, insane and fast-paced editing, and production design that captured the yesteryear era from the 1950s to the ’70s. Throughout all this Elvis never lost the fact that he was the epitome of a star, a showman and performer, and he dressed accordingly.
The story, however, is disappointingly a mixed bag. Luhrmann chose to play safe using the traditional biopic formula. It feels like a visual walkthrough of a Wikipedia page recounting the life of Elvis Presley, from his childhood to the rise and fall of his short-lived career before his tragic death at the age of 42.
What bothers me most is that the life of Elvis Presley is being told through the eyes of Colonel Tom Parker, an illegal Dutch immigrant who was Elvis’ manager by the mid-1950s, and took half of Presley’s earnings from that point forward. That infamous manager is played by Tom Hanks, one of the most loved and lauded actor of our time, who failed to nail the accent. His annoying accent is such a missed opportunity that failed to balance his sneaky and manipulative role as well as his complete physical transformation.
The early years show that Elvis had been living in the black community and picked up his love for soul and gospel music from that time. That’s where he found his real passion for music. I really appreciate the film for addressing how much of an influence black culture and music had on Elvis and his career. It is also nice to see some of black icons’ appearances, such as Big Mama Thornton, Mahalia Jackson, Little Richard, Arthur Crudup and many more. The film also highlights Elvis’ close friendship with B.B. King.
If I may present my personal view on Elvis, it is so unfair that Elvis took the credits off of black musicians. Hate me all you want but Elvis stole the black musicians’ swagger. It’s such an irony that both Elvis and Buddy Holly were mistaken for black musicians when people heard them on the radio for the first time back in the day, and they didn’t like it until they found out that both Elvis and Buddy were white. So much easier than when black artists were trying to get into bigger audiences.
I do have a say about Elvis’ relationship with Priscilla. Yes, I am well aware that they got married when she was 21. Still, Elvis first met Priscilla in 1959 while he was serving in the US Army in West Germany and started dating her after. She was 14 at that time and Elvis was 24. The film sadly romanticized them and their first kissing scene truly was gut-wrenching. You may like Elvis’ works but let us not forget that he was not a saint and was undeniably problematic.
Austin Butler did an INSANE job in this film. His physical resemblance to Elvis is both debatable and completely irrelevant. But more importantly Butler has channeled, rather than imitated, the persona of The King himself. He truly embodies Elvis Presley. He nails Elvis’ mannerisms, voice, charisma and even manages to nail his trademark velvety drawl, magnetic swagger and hip-swiveling moves. I’d love to see him get nominated for Best Actor in next year’s Academy Awards.
Elvis is an okay film. My enjoyment was severely limited because I just have no interest in another Elvis biopic. However, the film remains a wild ride, complemented by stunning music sequences and soundtrack, thanks largely to Baz Luhrmann and Austin Butler’s respective offscreen and onscreen contributions. If you liked Bohemian Rhapsody or Rocketman, this film might work for you.
