June 22
Director Baz Luhrmann throws his flashy style into every single aspect of the dazzling, captivating, and delicately sincere biopic of the King of Rock ‘n’ Roll, making for an exhilarating cautionary tale of Elvis Presley’s legendary life. Austin Butler had a tremendously tall order in being tasked with BEING Elvis instead of coming off as ACTING like an Elvis impersonation. I can say without a doubt that Butler exudes all the mannerisms, hip thrusts, and vocal talent of Elvis while never appearing like an exaggerated imitation. He deserves at least an Oscar nomination. Tom Hanks plays a very different role here than what we normally see him in and he’s truly fabulous as Elvis‘s manager, the manipulative greedy slime ball Colonel Tom Parker. The film does a great job of exploring the highs and lows of not just Elvis‘s rise to fame but also the unwieldy and finicky relationship between Elvis and Tom Parker. We really got a good look of the shady business that took place behind the scenes and how it impacted Elvis and the Presley family as a whole. The great thing about the movie being two hours and 39 minutes is that we really get the ups and downs of Elvis’s musical career, his Hollywood movie days, friendship with BB King and the black community during the segregation era, and eventual downfall with drug addiction. Luhrmann’s frenetically moving cameras, vivacious dance numbers, and visually eye popping concert montages completely fit the larger than life persona of Elvis. I do wish we stayed in certain time periods longer to really marinate with the details, but I’d say it covers the most important aspects of Elvis’s life. There are a few moments in the final half hour that made me choke up, and if you especially grew up listening to Elvis, you’ll get goosebumps. Overall, Baz Luhrmann’s “ELVIS” takes the ordinary musician biopic and injects a whole lot of extraordinary storytelling powered by a masterfully passionate performance from Austin Butler, Tom Hanks and crew that respects the cultural impact and powerful legacy of the great Elvis Presley.
GRADE: A-
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