My first memory of Elvis Presley was when I visited Memphis, Tennessee at the age of 6.
The gates of the Graceland Mansion are mesmerizing. The interior design of the home left me awestruck and the same can be said about the automobile museum and the plane the King named after his daughter, Lisa Marie.
Since that experience, Presley and his music have been a big part of my life.
On June 24, the long-awaited biopic of the King—Elvis—was released.
Directed by Baz Luhrmann, the film follows the complicated relationship Presley had with his money-hungry manager, Colonel Tom Parker (Tom Hanks) throughout the course of 20 years.
Elvis opens with Parker narrating the film while he is bedridden and struggling to speak.
You see flashbacks too late in Presley’s (Austin Butler) life when he collapses and is injected with fluids to get him on stage to perform.
The two-hour and 39-minute film also shows when a 20-year-old Elvis first meets Parker and is offered superstardom. It eventually progresses to later in their relationship when Parker deceives Elvis to profit off of him.
As an Elvis fan, the movie left me disappointed.
You’d think that a film that long could cover everything, but it omitted a lot of key details in the King’s life. It felt like a watered-down retelling.
Although we see mini clips throughout the movie of the King popping pills and his wife, Priscilla, being enraged, Elvis’ drug abuse is a minor part of the movie.
Another detail that threw me off was the way modern rap music was weaved into the film. The audience hears Doja Cat’s single, Vegas, being intertwined with Presley’s recording of Hound Dog.
That seems like a desperate attempt to get younger audiences to connect with the film.
Despite everything, I couldn’t keep my eyes off of Butler. His depiction of Elvis was amazing.
He captured the King’s onstage persona and mastered his mannerisms. Butler also did a phenomenal job with his vocals and nailing Presley’s southern accent.
It was also refreshing to see the film showcase Black artists that influenced Presley such as Chuck Berry and B.B. King.
Ultimately, Elvis’ story is a tragic one. He was self-destructive and the pressure of fame caught up to him when he left us on Aug. 16, 1977.
Yet, one thing is certain, the King will live on forever.
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