Elvis

If you liked the great Gatsby you will love this. Austin butler puts his heart and soul into this movie. He simply becomes Elvis for the duration of it. Baz Luhrmann does an excellent job staying true to The kings story (unlike a certain Freddie mercury biopic of a few years prior) and the movie never drags. The ending sequence is simply moving and will bring tears to your eyes. The only downside I would say is the portrayal of Tom Parker, Tom hanks is an amazing actor but there is something about his performance that just feels off, it might just be the accent that he completely butchers however it still isn't enough to distract from the spectacle that is this movie. I cannot wait to watch it again.

Austin Butler is terrific, I want to say that immediately. But, I was waiting for the movie to start, and in the dizzying display of visual pyrotechnics I forgot this was a Buz Luhrmann movie, so it would probable never start. A long, beautifully made trailer that hints at a revolutionary bio-pic. But that's all it is, a hint. Tom Hanks's Colonel Parker is out of a Charles Dickens novel. Yes Fagan. But I must say Austin Butler kept me there. True that sometimes he doesn't look or feel real but neither did the real Elvis. Butler's physicality is astonishing and that's what I took with me and I thought, I would love to see the movie when it comes out,.

It's probably not the best biopic ever made but I personally loved this take on Elvis. I loved that it exposed The Colonel's abuse and gave some insight to just how much Elivs worked for the benefit of others. He took care of everyone.

I'm not gonna give a long review. I just wanted to share how good I thought it was. Austin Butler deserves an award for how brilliant he was in this role. I saw where some reviewers were complaining about him not looking closely enough like Elvis but I thought he was a nice fit. There was only one Elvis folks. We just have to work with what we have and as I mentioned, I believe Austin deserves an award. He put serious thought and effort into playing this role. He wasn't hard on the eyes either!! Great Job!!

Loved it!

Looks like Tom Hanks phoned in his role. His acting, if you can call it that was disgustingly terrible. Austin Butler was the perfect actor to play Elvis. I enjoyed the parts of the movie that he was in without Hanks hovering around trying to steal the scene. The writers needed to delve more into Elvis Presley's early life. Priscilla's character was just a footnote. It was if she was hardly in his life. I would actually watch this movie again if I could delete Tom Hanks from the film. Tom Hanks sucked the life out of the movie as much as Colonel Parker sucked the life out of Elvis Presley and his career.

There are certainly times in which Baz Luhrmann's "Elvis" is an engaging and entertaining biopic of rock-and-roll's biggest star. The performance numbers are often incredible and Austin Butler inhabits all aspects/ages of the lead role adeptly. Unfortunately, Luhrmann's let's say "unique" style of filmmaking can't quite get out of its way long enough (especially in the early goings) for this to be a top-notch flick.

For a very basic overview, "Elvis" tells the story of the titular character (played by Butler) from childhood all the way through his Vegas residency at the end of his career. The narrative frame comes from the voice of Colonel Parker (Tom Hanks), Presley's manager and quasi-abuser (largely in the financial department). Elvis's relationship to "black music", teen heartthrob fame, military service, and late-60s comeback are all given time here, including his marriage to Priscilla (Olivia DeJonge).

Perhaps the most notable thing to mention about "Elvis" is that the first 30-45 minutes are kind of a mess. Luhrmann is in peak wackadoodle form (granted, what else could be expected from the director of 1996's "Romeo + Juliet"), what with jarring time-cuts, crazy montages (one that turns the proceedings into a comic book!), and quite a bit of time spent on the bizarre Hanks Parker portrayal. There is also a far-too-on-the-nose scene in which a young Presley supposedly learns his later musical style via an R&B jam session and a revival ministry happening concurrently. I'd blame no one for thinking this was a total mess before the 1 hour mark.

Fortunately, in this case, there is still 2 hours left of "Elvis", and that's when it settles into being a pretty entertaining film. Basically, once all the crazy material is out of the way and audiences can just settle into Butler's portrayal, there is a lot to like. I was really impressed with Butler's ability to portray the young rebellious Elvis, as well as the fat, worn-down-by-life version. The staged musical numbers are every bit as good as those found in recent musical biopics like Rocketman or Bohemian Rhapsody. I'll certainly be revisiting some Presley tunes after seeing this.

Overall, I can't put "Elvis" in my top tier (Walk the Line, Love & Mercy, & Judy) of biopics because its director seems almost physically unable to "tell it straight" when this film and acting performances would have certainly been good enough for that grounded approach. But it was easily good enough to hold my interest and take me on an interesting journey through the iconic musician's entire career.