Elvis (2022)
Director: Baz Luhrmann
Screenwriters: Baz Luhrmann, Sam Bromell, Craig Pearce, Jeremy Doner
Starring: Austin Butler, Tom Hanks, Olivia DeJonge, Helen Thomson, Richard Roxburgh, Kelvin Harrison Jr, Xavier Samuel, David Wenham, Kodi Smitt-McPhee
From the glittering studio logo that opens the film to its final, bombastic notes, Elvis is unmistakably a Baz Luhrmann production. The film is a sensory deluge—rapid editing, flamboyant visuals and theatrical flourishes—that suits Luhrmann’s energetic style and elevates the life of Elvis Presley into something operatic. This is cinema on a large scale: vivid, loud and designed to overwhelm the senses while tracing the contours of an American music legend.
The narrative frames Elvis’ career through the eyes of Colonel Tom Parker, the shrewd and often unscrupulous manager, portrayed by Tom Hanks. As Parker lies on his deathbed, he reflects on the career he engineered and the compromises he made to keep his star profitable. The story moves between moments of triumph and vulnerability, tracking Elvis’ meteoric rise, his transformation into a global icon, and the tensions that arose from Parker’s drive for control and commercial success.
Austin Butler’s performance as Elvis is the film’s emotional and physical center. From his first appearance he captures Elvis’ magnetism: the way he moves, the way he commands a stage, and the seductive immediacy that made audiences swoon. While Butler may not be a dead-ringer for Presley in still photographs, in motion he achieves an uncanny embodiment of the performer—his voice, his gestures and his stage presence coalesce into a convincing and compelling portrait.
Luhrmann stages musical sequences with kinetic camera work and fluid choreography that avoid the static presentation often seen in biopics. Cinematographer Mandy Walker follows Elvis closely, weaving through the performer’s legs, circling the stage and capturing the ecstatic responses of fans. These scenes are both performances and character studies, showing how Elvis used showmanship to change the shape of popular music.
A crucial element of the film is its acknowledgement of the African American musical traditions that shaped Elvis’ sound. Scenes set on Beale Street and encounters with figures representing artists like BB King, Little Richard and Sister Rosetta Tharpe emphasize the cross-cultural musical exchange at the heart of Presley’s development. The film presents Elvis as a product of a culturally rich environment, raised in poverty in the segregated South, and positioned as an artist who bridged musical communities even as he courted controversy for blurring racial boundaries.
Tom Hanks’ portrayal of Colonel Parker is complex to assess. Heavy prosthetics alter his appearance, and while his performance can be entertainingly sinister, the character sometimes reads as an exaggerated figure. As both antagonist and unreliable narrator, Parker’s presence drives the plot but occasionally undercuts the film’s more serious themes by leaning into cartoonish traits. Still, Hanks captures Parker’s mixture of charm and moral compromise, illustrating how the manager’s ambition shaped—and ultimately constrained—Elvis’ career.
The film juxtaposes Elvis at the height of his powers with Parker at his most conniving. One memorable sequence shows Elvis reaching a spiritual and professional summit while Parker signs dubious deals that prioritize short-term profit over artistic growth. This tension—between artistry and commerce, freedom and control—remains a central thread throughout the film. Scenes depicting Parker’s insistence on safe, lucrative projects such as movies and holiday specials make clear how business decisions hindered Elvis’ ability to explore his music fully.
Secondary characters, including Elvis’ parents and Priscilla, receive less screen time than their importance might warrant. These figures were integral to Presley’s life, and while actors like Helen Thomson, Richard Roxburgh and Olivia DeJonge give committed performances, the large-scale spectacle of the film sometimes leaves their emotional arcs underdeveloped. As the story progresses beyond Elvis’ early, rebellious years, it shifts closer to conventional biopic beats, losing a bit of the initial dreamlike freedom that marked the opening sequences.
Comparisons to Luhrmann’s previous work are inevitable. While Moulin Rouge! may remain his most beloved film, Elvis is arguably his most expansive exercise in style. The director turns everything up to eleven: the music, the visuals and the emotional volume. Fans of large-scale, sensory filmmaking will find much to admire, though those who prefer a restrained, strictly chronological biography may find the approach overwhelming. Ultimately, the film succeeds in conveying the revolutionary energy of Elvis Presley and presenting his music in grand, memorable performances that celebrate his lasting impact on popular culture.
Score: 19/24