Elvis-2022

Director Baz Luhrmann

Starring Austin Butler, Tom Hanks

Scott’s Review #1,299

Reviewed September 16, 2022

Grade: B+

Once I knew that Australia’s own Baz Luhrmann was directing the new film Elvis (2022), I immediately formulated an expectation of what the film-watching experience would be like.

I anticipated a specific type of filmmaking, where an auteur artist merges fast-paced music videos with a dramatic biopic into a cohesive film.

Other Luhrmann offerings, such as Moulin Rouge (2001) and The Great Gatsby (2013), incorporate contemporary musical elements and are highly visual and stylistic. I knew what I was going to get and was prepared for it.

Elvis is no different, and Luhrmann’s style is an unconventional risk not for everybody.

I mostly enjoyed the film, but I didn’t quite love it either, seeing both the good and the not-so-good aspects.

At two hours and thirty-nine minutes, it goes on way too long.

Perhaps contradicting this point is that Elvis does improve as it progresses, initially feeling jarring, overwhelming, and disjointed due to rapid editing and rapid camera work.

A Dramamine is suggested until one is comfortable with the sudden bursts of turbulence. I semi-joke, but there is a period of sinking into Luhrmann’s style that is necessary, especially if you have never seen one of them.

The film explores the life and music of Elvis Presley (Austin Butler), and his complicated relationship with his opportunist manager, Colonel Tom Parker (Tom Hanks), and his wife, Priscilla (Oliva De Jonge).

The story delves into the singer’s rise to fame and the evolving cultural landscape in the United States during the 1950s and 1960s.

Like many films, the events start much later than the main story, in this case, 1997. Parker is on his deathbed, ruminating about how he first met Elvis and helped make him a legendary icon.

Much of the film takes place in glitzy Las Vegas, where Elvis had a long-term residency. However, it’s worth noting that the star’s working-class roots and impoverished upbringing in a predominantly black neighborhood had a tremendous influence on his music.

The Vegas setting applies a sparkling veneer, mixed with a sense of isolation, especially in scenes that show Elvis’s million-dollar penthouse view of Sin City. The star frequently pulls all the black curtains to reside in solitude.

Butler starts slow but ends up doing a fabulous job of portraying the iconic star, no easy feat. At first, I had difficulty buying the actor as Elvis, but as time went on, he became more immersed in the role.

The best scenes, hands down, occur during the performances. The sheer rawness of his act and the famous wiggle that left fans dizzy with eroticism are compelling and authentic, to say nothing of titillating.

The young actor exudes charisma just as the real-life star does, and this is most evident on stage. The dramatic scenes don’t work as well, and Luhrmann strangely skims over the controversial weight gain years, the 1970s, that Elvis experienced.

I expected Butler to don a fat suit, but there was none of this.

This miss can almost be forgiven when a heart-wrenching final performance of ‘Unchained Melody’ by the honest Elvis is showcased. The number is fraught with emotion and tenderness, leaving me feeling sympathy.

Hanks is good as the slimy and curmudgeonly manager, but I never felt sympathy for the character. If the film can be believed, he ruined Elvis as much as he brought him success, but Hanks never made me forgive the man. I also wasn’t interested in his backstory.

It will be hard-pressed ever to make me enjoy Hanks more than in his Oscar-winning back-to-back turns in Philadelphia (1993) and Forrest Gump (1994), his two best roles.

Elvis, the film, does better when it serves as a musical performance rather than a biography. Sure, the drug use and the disputes with family and manager are dramatic but it’s the performances of ‘All Shook Up, ‘Unchained Melody’, and ‘Can’t Help Falling Into Love’ that win me over.

In pure Luhrmann form, many of the familiar songs are done in different tempos and interpretations, but that’s part of the fun.

Comparisons to recent musical biographies, such as Bohemian Rhapsody (2018) and Rocketman (2019), are fair.

Elvis (2022) is not as good as those films, but it’s above average and succeeds when it entertains, showcasing how the star’s determination and grit prevailed despite outside influences.

Oscar Nominations: Best Picture, Best Actor-Austin Butler, Best Cinematography, Best Production Design, Best Film Editing, Best Sound, Best Costume Design, Best Makeup, and Hairstyling