Review written by Christian Garcia
For my first review of the New Year, I wanted to start with a film that I had been anticipating for a long time and finally took the time to watch during my holiday break, Elvis.
Being a big fan of Elvis Presley’s music, I was excited and worried about how this film would turn out. A lot of biopics love to fudge facts or oversimplify events in favor of storytelling, and I of course was worried that would happen here. But when the film came out, I heard mostly positive things about it and was excited to check it out.
Does this film do the King justice? Is it a hunk a hunk of burning love? Or a hunk a hunk a junk?
Let’s take a look…
Background:
The film stars Austin Butler as Elvis Presley and Tom Hanks as his longtime manager, Colonel Tom Parker.
Hanks’ Parker serves as the story’s narrator and tells the audience the story of Elvis from his humble beginnings in Tupelo, Mississippi to becoming the King of Rock and Roll and one of the biggest icons in the music industry and pop culture.
The film highlights the influence that Parker had over Elvis and how that controlling influence eventually lead to Presley’s early demise, despite Parker’s efforts to convince the viewer otherwise.
The Film’s Pros:
Austin Butler as Elvis Presley
The most important part of an Elvis film is, of course, Elvis himself. As someone who is a big fan of Presley’s music, the biggest concern I had when this film was announced was how the lead actor would do in bringing the King to the big screen and I can say that Austin Butler’s performance as Elvis is an incredible and career making performance that does the King justice.
He perfectly captures the cadence and mannerisms of Elvis from his voice to how he tips his sunglasses. Butler has said in interviews that when he was given the role that he listened to Presley’s music nonstop for 2 years and even made playlists of gospel and blues songs that Presley loved to inspire emotions for scenes in the film. That level of dedication and character immersion is very admirable and is honestly Oscar worthy in my opinion.
Until I researched it, I figured that most of the singing portions of the film were just recycled clips of Presley. But I was surprised to learn that Butler actually sang most of the songs in the film until Presley’s later years which were then mixed with audio from Presley. The dedication that Butler gives to mimicking Elvis’ voice makes me appreciate his performance even more. Elvis always had a unique voice that many have mimicked and parodied, and I was always worried that a film adaptation would make his voice too funny that it couldn’t be taken seriously. Thankfully that was not the case of here as Butler does do right by the King and completely transforms into him by the film’s end.
I always know that an actor’s performance is great when I see the character and not the actor and I can happily say whole time I was watching this film, I didn’t see an actor playing a role, I saw Elvis.
The Music
Another big component of an Elvis Presley film is of course the music and the music in this film is a fantastic musical experience. The whole time my girlfriend and I were watching, our feet were tapping to the music and at times we were even dancing along to it. The film does a great job of blending Elvis’ music with some of the great artists of today like Kacey Musgraves and Doja Cat.
I will admit that hearing modern artists playing in a 1950’s setting caught me off guard and kind of rubbed me the wrong way. I have never been a fan of modern music being inserted into time pieces as it takes me out of the time period and at times can make a film feel too dated. The 2013 Great Gatsby film was guilty of this, and it severely hampered my enjoyment of the film (but it was miniscule compared to the other problems in that film.)
However, as the film progressed the inclusion of the likes of Doja Cat and others did not bother me and mixed well. I thought Doja Cat did a great job of blending her sound with Presley and even paid tribute to Big Mama Thorton’s original rendition of “Hound Dog.” I also loved Kacey Musgraves’ rendition of “Can't Help Falling in Love,” and its placement in the film was perfectly timed.
I mentioned earlier how Austin Butler’s singing was also a highlight for capturing Elvis’ sound perfectly. But not only was his singing on parr, but his performance when it came to portraying Elvis the performer. Elvis always had a magical energy that could illicit a reaction from an audience and Butler captures that perfectly as well. The two big highlights are his performance of “Trouble” and his rendition of “That’s Alright (Mama)” when Elvis takes the stage in Vegas for the first time. The film was not only a telling of Elvis’ story through narrative but also through music and it did a great job of using it’s blend of modern music with the Elvis classics to create a memorable and enthralling experience.
The Closing Number
One of Elvis’ greatest moments was his performance of Unchained Melody in 1977. It was his last on stage only a few weeks before his death and it is a powerful performance. It is also sad seeing him in such terrible shape and clearly mumbling in an incoherent state before he sits down to sing. At first glance, one would think it would result in a trainwreck but once that piano starts and Elvis begins to sing, you are reminded why he was the King. Even as his voice is giving out due to his health deteriorating, he was able to belt out "Unchained Melody" in such a beautiful way that will bring one to tears. I love showing this performace to people to see their reactions to just how incredible his voice sounded even at the end of his life.
When I anticipated this film’s release, part of me was hoping that they would end the film with this performance as I believe it to be a stalwart way to end the film and they did it. When my girlfriend and I watched the film, this final scene left her in tears. It was a cathartic moment that summed up the King perfectly and showed even in his dying days he still had that magic and that beautiful voice that made the world fall in love with him to begin with. As an Elvis fan, I loved every second of it and as a movie goer, I was happy for it to go out on this note.
While the film does do a great job of bringing this to performance to the big screen, I also must suggest that you go on YouTube (link attached to the picture below) and check out the performance for yourself. It is very moving and a wonderful swan song for the King.
The Film’s Cons:
Colonel Tom Parker as the Narrator
While Tom Hank’s performance as Colonel Tom Parker was great and the choice to have him as an unreliable narrator is a clever and creative way to get around the typical trope most biopic films have of fudging facts, I do believe that there is a missed opportunity by that choice. As someone who is a fan of Elvis and his music, there are some aspects of his life that I would have loved to have seen explored in film.
In 2018, HBO produced a documentary on Elvis titled Elvis Presley: The Searcher, which dove into his life story and his development as an artist. This film made me appreciate Elvis so much more as an artist learning of the music that influenced him, as well as his struggle to maintain his passion for music as Colonel Parker took more control of his career. Elvis became disconnected from the music that he loved during his time away in the army and only grew more disconnected from it as he transitioned away from live performances into his film career.
When he performed in the 68 Special, he had not performed in over 8 years and when he took the stage to perform, he rediscovered his connection to the music and regained his confidence in himself as a performer. Knowing this makes me appreciate the 68 Special so much more as you are literally watching a man rediscover his passion for performing as he is doing it. The film does acknowledge this in a well-done scene where Elvis and the producers of the 68 Special discuss doing what they want to do instead of what the Colonel wanted but had the film focused more on Elvis’ disconnection to music, it would have made the scene of Elvis performing in the special even more powerful.
Another aspect I would have loved to have seen more was also how the death of Elvis’ mother affected him the rest of his life. The film does do a great job showing their connection and the scene after her death with Elvis and the Colonel is well done but I would have loved to have seen the film dive even deeper. The loss of his mother was something that Elvis never recovered from, and it affected him and everything that he did. The bond between a mother and son is a special bond and one that can make for interesting storytelling in film and the loss of a mother and how it affects the son can be very interesting to explore. I think if the film had spent some time showing how Elvis became more lost after the loss of his mother, it would have made the character even stronger.
Now, I will admit that these are more nitpicks than flaws that severely hamper the film. The film still does a great job of telling Elvis’ story for people who didn’t know it and I take solace in that if this film made you an Elvis fan and made you want to learn more, there is a well made documentary on HBO to check out!!
Final Thoughts:
Elvis is a faithful biography that covers the important aspects of Presley’s life and highlights the negative influence that Colonel Tom Parker had over him and how that control eventually lead to his demise.
I enjoyed the films visuals, musical style, and the performances of Butler and Hanks. Austin Butler’s performance is to especially be commended and in my opinion is Oscar-worthy. Butler captures Elvis’ presence and mannerisms to such a degree that Elvis himself would be curling his lips in gratitude.
As an Elvis fan, I found it to be a wonderful musical experience fitting the style and persona of Elvis. While there are aspects of Elvis’ life I would have loved to have seen explored even further, the film covers the important moments of his life and tells his story faithfully and with the heart and passion that the King himself carried.
If you are a fan of Presley and his music, this film is absolutely worth checking out and pays tribute to the King in the best ways. If you’ve never heard Presley’s music before, this film is worth seeing and it may get you tapping your feet and even curling your lips as well.
To answer my question in the beginning, the film does deliver a hunk a hunk burning love and is a must see experience.
Comments