Elvis

UK Release Date: 24 June 2022

Certification: 12A

Director: Baz Luhrmann

Cast: Austin Butler, Olivia DeJonge, Tom Hanks, Kevin Harrison Jr, Kodi Smit-McPhee, Dacre Montgomery, Richard Roxburgh, Helen Thomson

Rating: 70%

Thank you, thank you very much. 

Review:

Elvis is the latest in line of biopics regarding famous rock and roll stars - Bohemian Rhapsody and Rocketman - and it entertains but could be seen as a disappointment due to its failure to live up to its clear Oscar winning potential. 

Austin Butler's performance is magically spectacular. He had to beat out the likes of Ansel Elgort, Harry Styles and Miles Teller in order to get the role. He embodies 'The King' that was Elvis Presley. He moves like Elvis, sounds like Elvis and even shares the same mannerisms as Elvis. Butler just plays every single scene to perfection. This is definitely his route into the Hollywood limelight. Tom Hanks is just as good as Colonel Tom Parker, even with an iffy accent. Playing cleverly against his type Hanks' villainous motives are apparent for all to see. The way he manipulates Elvis is at times heartbreaking, easily acting on his emotions. Yet, in the film's earlier stages their relationship is one of compassion and friendship and you can feel that alongside the eventual betrayal and exploitation. However, Elvis bizarrely chooses to centre a film called Elvis around two characters rather than solely on the 'King Of Rock 'n' Roll'. Instead the film favours Parker's story at multiple points, detracting from my personal movie experience. 

Baz Luhrmann's direction was somewhat jarring during early portions of the movie and it took me at least half an hour to acclimatise to his style due to not having seen one of his film's before. However, the quick cuts and colourful scenes really work well for the type of story Luhrmann is trying to tell once you get used. 

The music is of course an essential aspect of Elvis. Butler does perform a few renditions of some of Presley's famous songs ('Baby, Let's Play House', 'Hound Dog' and 'Trouble') but lip-syncing is quite often preferred. Every performance feels special and is captured with some beautiful camerawork. Whether its his first time on stage, performing at Russwood Park or every moment in Vegas especially the display of 'Suspicious Minds', both time and care is put in to create the stunning set-pieces. On the other hand, there were a few interjections of modern pop songs which felt like a weird choice in my opinion. 

Elvis doesn't warrant it's two and a half hour runtime. There are hefty periods without any singing or musical performances and that's the best feature of the film. At these points the movie drags on and in all honesty is a little boring. But following on from the TV special comeback everything about the film was spot on.