Elvis
After tackling a staple of American literature, it only makes sense for Australian director Baz Luhrmann to follow it up with a film about one of the most iconic American symbols.
If this was a film centered only on the Vegas years of Elvis’s lifetime then Baz would of course be the perfect person to helm this story. It is everything outside of that moment that falls flat for our favorite maximalist and hides the full potential Austin Butler could’ve been.
Bazmalism is unmatched by any other director, it is a highly individualized style full of musical moments, reckless camera techniques, and an ability to bring the audience into the story. The Moulin Rogue director attempts to balance his musical fantasy with a biography but ends up suffocating its best parts.
Instead of focusing on who Elvis was, this film centers on his relationship with his manager, Colonel Tom Parker. On paper, it seems like the perfect villain for a drama but Tom hanks give a traumatizing role that makes you want to avoid his filmography. Telling the story from Parker’s point of view is the biggest mistake here and sets up the rest of the story for failure. Parker is never interested in telling the story of music but in showmanship leaving a musical biopic to be mostly absent of the music part.
This decision to put Parker at the helm feels like it plays into the world’s idea of Presley as an idea instead of an actual person. Even though audiences are sitting through two hours of spinning with Presley there is never a moment to connect and identify with him until his very last breath at the end. It is more about his effect on people. Elvis’s love for music is never explored, only his ability to steal and make it his own. Butler is never given room to breathe as Lurhmann is speeding to the grand finale. No characters are developed from Parker’s point of view.
What is filling this two-hour time block? Replications of Elvis’s most iconic performances are edited together into a narrative deducing Butler’s role to be an impersonator at best. There are moments like MLK Jr’s death and race relations of the 60s but they are glazed over and seem to be added just for the sake of setting the period.
Overall, this might respire a love for Elvis and also solidify its place as one of the most tragic stories to be told.The film gets in its way but is a good start for Butler’s growing career.