I was dazzled.

Considering how much I knew or thought I knew about Elvis Presley, I
wasn't surprised so much by the facts of the story -- I just wasn't
expecting to be swept up by a force of nature, hadn't considered the possibility I'd begin to understand and appreciate the fervent fandom
that still surrounds him. But this movie made it all clear.

I've never been an Elvis fan myself. Sure, growing up here in Memphis I
became aware of him as soon as he began appearing on TV when I was a kid
about 8-9 years old, bought the Graceland mansion, and moved into our Whitehaven neighborhood. I knew he was a big star; everybody knew that.
Yeah, I'd see him around town as I was growing up, but by the time I was
a teen he was making the stupid Elvis movies and I liked the Beatles and
you know, come to think of it I've never owned an actual Elvis record.

Doesn't mean I don't admire him though. In recent years before I stopped touring Graceland with visiting relatives (I just drop them off now and
tell them to call when they're ready to escape) I always looked forward
to walking into his old handball court to see the thousands of
glistening gold records adorning the walls as high as I could crane my
neck. This guy did all that? Impressive. According to notes at the end
of the movie Elvis still holds the record for most recordings sold by a
single artist.

Before seeing the movie I'd heard the Baz Luhrmann touch was way over
the top, distracting, off-putting. Nothing could be further from the
truth for me. I sat there (on the front row because of a poor
ticket-buying decision) reclined back in one of those modern theater
La-Z-Boys with cupholders, grinning from ear to ear, letting it wash all
over me. It was an immersive experience and I was transported back to
the Memphis of my childhood. There's Beale Street when it still had
pawn shops, that segregationist senator is appearing at the Overton Park
Shell, that was Baptist Hospital before they imploded it, and look!
Russwood Park baseball field before the wooden stands burned in a
conflagration the city has never forgotten. And how did they recreate
the Lauderdale Courts housing project so perfectly? Was it CGI? Nope, I
just Googled and apparently they rebuilt in Australia along with that
perfect recreation of Graceland. The article I found explained that
covid prevented filming here -- and besides, they got a tax break in
Australia.

I can't overemphasize how much I admire the performance of Austin Butler
as Elvis. This young man I'd never heard of assimilated the persona of
Elvis Presley like a pod creature in Invasion of the Body Snatchers. I'm
a 75-year-old straight man and now I think I understand what all those screaming girls saw in Elvis Presley. I so hope Butler's not a one-shot
wonder. I so hope he can find other parts in which he can excel like
this. From the highs to the lows it is an incandescent performance all
the way.

And Tom Hanks turns in yet another brilliant performance as Presley's
lifelong manager Col. Tom Parker. I think I'm supposed to think of the
Colonel as the villain of the movie, but no, I don't. He was a promoter
who immediately sensed opportunity in the 50s, latched onto a star, and
milked Elvis for everything he was worth for decades. Good for him. He
made Elvis Elvis and we'd all be poorer without his contributions. Of
course a lesser Elvis might still be alive today, but we'll never know
about that.

Baz Luhrmann has made a terrific movie, a brilliant study of an
unparalleled chapter of pop culture. See it in a theater. Sit on the
front row. Really.

--
Bill Anderson

I am the Mighty Favog

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On 2022-07-25 00:19:03 +0000, Bill Anderson said:

I was dazzled.

Considering how much I knew or thought I knew about Elvis Presley, I
wasn't surprised so much by the facts of the story -- I just wasn't
expecting to be swept up by a force of nature, hadn't considered the possibility I'd begin to understand and appreciate the fervent fandom
that still surrounds him. But this movie made it all clear.

<snip>

As with any dramatisation, a lot of it has been fictionalised to
purposely make it more dramatic and interesting as a movie.

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On Sunday, July 24, 2022 at 8:19:12 PM UTC-4, Bill Anderson wrote:

I was dazzled.

Considering how much I knew or thought I knew about Elvis Presley, I
wasn't surprised so much by the facts of the story -- I just wasn't
expecting to be swept up by a force of nature, hadn't considered the possibility I'd begin to understand and appreciate the fervent fandom
that still surrounds him. But this movie made it all clear.

Funny how it uses the myths to demystify Presley. I hate the director and the opening credits seemed more about Liberace than Presley and I figured I'd last my proverbial 15 minutes. How wrong was I. Effing good film and, yeah, Tom Hanks.

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On 8/29/2022 10:07 PM, william ahearn wrote:

On Sunday, July 24, 2022 at 8:19:12 PM UTC-4, Bill Anderson wrote:

I was dazzled.

Considering how much I knew or thought I knew about Elvis Presley, I
wasn't surprised so much by the facts of the story -- I just wasn't
expecting to be swept up by a force of nature, hadn't considered the
possibility I'd begin to understand and appreciate the fervent fandom
that still surrounds him. But this movie made it all clear.

Funny how it uses the myths to demystify Presley. I hate the director and the opening credits seemed more about Liberace than Presley and I figured I'd last my proverbial 15 minutes. How wrong was I. Effing good film and, yeah, Tom Hanks.

Using The Colonel (Tom Hanks) as the narrator was a good idea. He made
the movie flow well.

Lynn

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On 8/29/2022 10:07 PM, william ahearn wrote:

On Sunday, July 24, 2022 at 8:19:12 PM UTC-4, Bill Anderson wrote:

I was dazzled.

Considering how much I knew or thought I knew about Elvis Presley, I
wasn't surprised so much by the facts of the story -- I just wasn't
expecting to be swept up by a force of nature, hadn't considered the
possibility I'd begin to understand and appreciate the fervent fandom
that still surrounds him. But this movie made it all clear.

Funny how it uses the myths to demystify Presley. I hate the director and the opening credits seemed more about Liberace than Presley and I figured I'd last my proverbial 15 minutes. How wrong was I. Effing good film and, yeah, Tom Hanks.

Well, I saw a commercial saying it was on HBO Max, which I was just
about to cancel because I almost never watch it, and then ahearn said
it's good. I don't trust him that much, but enough to push me into
giving the movie a shot. Thanks weasel!

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On 9/5/2022 8:06 AM, trotsky wrote:

On 8/29/2022 10:07 PM, william ahearn wrote:

On Sunday, July 24, 2022 at 8:19:12 PM UTC-4, Bill Anderson wrote:

I was dazzled.

Considering how much I knew or thought I knew about Elvis Presley, I
wasn't surprised so much by the facts of the story -- I just wasn't
expecting to be swept up by a force of nature, hadn't considered the
possibility I'd begin to understand and appreciate the fervent fandom
that still surrounds him. But this movie made it all clear.

Funny how it uses the myths to demystify Presley. I hate the director
and the opening credits seemed more about Liberace than Presley and I
figured I'd last my proverbial 15 minutes. How wrong was I. Effing
good film and, yeah, Tom Hanks.

Well, I saw a commercial saying it was on HBO Max, which I was just
about to cancel because I almost never watch it, and then ahearn said
it's good.  I don't trust him that much, but enough to push me into
giving the movie a shot.  Thanks weasel!

Postscript: "Elvis" was even better than I expected. Oscar caliber.
Probably the best edited movie I've ever seen, and then there's ever
other factor.

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Bill Anderson wrote:
I was dazzled.

Considering how much I knew or thought I knew about Elvis Presley,

I

wasn't surprised so much by the facts of the story -- I just wasn't

expecting to be swept up by a force of nature, hadn't considered

the

possibility I'd begin to understand and appreciate the fervent

fandom

that still surrounds him. But this movie made it all clear.

I've never been an Elvis fan myself. Sure, growing up here in

Memphis I

became aware of him as soon as he began appearing on TV when I was

a kid

about 8-9 years old, bought the Graceland mansion, and moved into

our

Whitehaven neighborhood. I knew he was a big star; everybody knew

that.

Yeah, I'd see him around town as I was growing up, but by the time

I was

a teen he was making the stupid Elvis movies and I liked the

Beatles and

you know, come to think of it I've never owned an actual Elvis

record.

Doesn't mean I don't admire him though. In recent years before I

stopped

touring Graceland with visiting relatives (I just drop them off now

and

tell them to call when they're ready to escape) I always looked

forward

to walking into his old handball court to see the thousands of
glistening gold records adorning the walls as high as I could crane

my

neck. This guy did all that? Impressive. According to notes at

the end

of the movie Elvis still holds the record for most recordings sold

by a

single artist.

Before seeing the movie I'd heard the Baz Luhrmann touch was way

over

the top, distracting, off-putting. Nothing could be further from

the

truth for me. I sat there (on the front row because of a poor
ticket-buying decision) reclined back in one of those modern

theater

La-Z-Boys with cupholders, grinning from ear to ear, letting it

wash all

over me. It was an immersive experience and I was transported back

to

the Memphis of my childhood. There's Beale Street when it still

had

pawn shops, that segregationist senator is appearing at the Overton

Park

Shell, that was Baptist Hospital before they imploded it, and look!

Russwood Park baseball field before the wooden stands burned in a conflagration the city has never forgotten. And how did they

recreate

the Lauderdale Courts housing project so perfectly? Was it CGI?

Nope, I

just Googled and apparently they rebuilt in Australia along with

that

perfect recreation of Graceland. The article I found explained that

covid prevented filming here -- and besides, they got a tax break

in

Australia.

I can't overemphasize how much I admire the performance of Austin

Butler

as Elvis. This young man I'd never heard of assimilated the persona

of

Elvis Presley like a pod creature in Invasion of the Body

Snatchers. I'm

a 75-year-old straight man and now I think I understand what all

those

screaming girls saw in Elvis Presley. I so hope Butler's not a

one-shot

wonder. I so hope he can find other parts in which he can excel

like

this. From the highs to the lows it is an incandescent performance

all

the way.

And Tom Hanks turns in yet another brilliant performance as

Presley's

lifelong manager Col. Tom Parker. I think I'm supposed to think of

the

Colonel as the villain of the movie, but no, I don't. He was a

promoter

who immediately sensed opportunity in the 50s, latched onto a star,

and

milked Elvis for everything he was worth for decades. Good for him.

He

made Elvis Elvis and we'd all be poorer without his contributions.

Of

course a lesser Elvis might still be alive today, but we'll never

know

about that.

Baz Luhrmann has made a terrific movie, a brilliant study of an
unparalleled chapter of pop culture. See it in a theater. Sit on

the

front row. Really.

--
Bill Anderson

I am the Mighty Favog

One of my friends who saw Elvis
constantly in Vegas during the 70's said they found the movie to be a
bit too jumbled and confusing.


This is a response to the post seen at: http://www.jlaforums.com/viewtopic.php?p=633585122#633585122

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