Over the decades we have heard a thousand and one increasingly crazy theories that Elvis Presley is still alive, and the truth is that, theories aside, the movie ELVIS brings the iconic singer back to life.
The movie was released on June 24 and features ELVIS with Austin Butler‘s face and Baz Lurhman‘s rhythm. The film seems to continue with another of the most seen film trends in recent years, musical biopics around artists or musical groups. We have seen it before with Bohemian Rhapsody, which told the story of Freddie Mercury, and also with the Pistol series, about the Sex Pistols band, which premiered last May 31.
As we well know, for a biopic to work it is not enough to dig into the artist’s morbid past, it is telling a story, with its positive and negative parts and of course with some imagination that adds an attractive fiction to it. However, the key to biopics is the music, which has to be as legendary as the star being talked about, and the actor who brings it to life has to shine. And therein lies the success of ELVIS, in Austin Butler‘s performance.
The actor not only sings, speaks and dances like Elvis Presley, which is amazing enough and has all the merit in the world, but also his performance throughout the film makes the audience feel a very real Elvis but with a very different face. Even the facial gestures mimic to perfection many of the photos that are preserved today (and are all over the internet) of the late singer.
Of course, two other men who get great credit in the film are Baz Luhrman and Tom Hanks. Luhrman is also the director of other hits like Moulin Rouge and The Great Gatsby, films that if they share anything with ELVIS it is a great personality and this director’s personal brand. In addition, the narration of Tom Hanks who plays Colonel Parker, Elvis‘ quirky manager, narrates the film, with such credibility that the actor even imitates the Colonel‘s accent. Moreover, the facts of the film do not always match the narration, and this is because Parker was a liar and a con man.
The success of the film has been such that HBO Max has already announced that it will be available on its platform on Monday, August 8 of this year, although it is rumored that the date could change and be postponed a little, perhaps for the 16th, which is when Elvis died.
