Elvis

Rating: 4/10

I watched Elvis last night and I am still in the foulest mood about it. Did I have high expectations? I was going to see a BAZ LUHRMANN film about ELVIS PRESLEY… Yeah, I had pretty high expectations.

My One Line synopsis

Tom Hanks tries to hold a weird accent for a long time, while Austin Butler is so committed, he’s still doing his accent.

The Good

At the beginning there were glimpses of classic Baz Luhrmann, and it was beautiful… But then it all just sort of went away.

The absolute stand out is Austin Butler as Elvis. His voice, his movements, his charm. Nailed it. Honestly, thank God for him because there wasn’t much else to like about the film.

The Odd

Ok, so, early in the film we hear Big Mama Thornton’s Hound Dog and then quite randomly, in comes Doja Cat. When it first started, I was so jarred by it I thought it had to be a mistake. Hated it. So out of place.

The Disappointing

I’ve got a bit to say. Get a snack and take a seat.

It went for way too long. I’ve said it once, I’ll say it again, I’m so sick of this 150minute run time movies think they need to hit nowadays. A tight 90 is better than a loosey goosey 120-150.

There was a lot of chat. Especially for a movie I thought would be heavy on the music. Really, I would have LOVED to have seen something similar to the end of Bohemian Rhapsody where we get 20mins of straight performance.

None of the supporting characters were anything special. The best was Alton Mason as Little Richard and we only got like 5 minutes of him.

All I wanted from this was to walk out of the cinema singing Elvis and to spend the next three weeks only listening to Elvis. Didn’t happen unfortunately.

This makes me so sad because I adore early Baz Luhrmann, but maybe he should avoid true stories.

The Award Goes to…

Best casting for whoever cast young Elvis. Looks spot on for a young Austin Butler.

Recommended Watching

If you liked the editing of the first half, watch Baz’s Red Curtain Trilogy.

If you want a music biopic with glitz and bangers, watch Rocketman.