Elvis Presley is being remembered following the release of "Elvis" - a new biopic from Baz Luhrmann which tells the story of the King's life.
Priscilla Presley is 'more comfortable' without Elvis Presley
Baz Luhrmann Talks “Elvis” As A Stage Musical
Forty two years ago, 20 years old, Buzz Luhrmann was employed by Dr Cope at the NSW Parliamentary Library as an library attendant.
“Thirty years ago my wife [Catherine Martin] and I made a little film called Strictly Ballroom,” Luhrmann explained, telling the audience that the one exhibitor who had given a cinema to screen the film on told him it was “the worst film [they had] ever seen”, and that he’d “ruined the career of Pat [Thomson]”.
“Anyway,” Luhrmann continued, “we went up the coast and I had very long hair. We were staying in a trailer park, and I was saying, ‘This film thing is never really going to work out,’ so I started shaving my hair off and I got a call on the telephone and it was a Frenchman.”
The person calling was, Luhrmann revealed, Pierre Rissient from the Cannes Film Festival, offering him a screening.
It was in the Palais Cinema at Cannes that Luhrmann found his audience.
“[We] were in this Palais,” Luhrmann recalled, “and at the end of the performance, I remember a security guard came over and said, ‘Monsieur, from this moment on, your life will never be the same again.’ And it wasn’t.”
There are few people in history with a name more recognisable than Elvis Presley. Known as the king of rock & roll Elvis’ revolutionised both music & the idea of modern celebrity during his lifetime. While his story is well known Baz Luhrmann’s new film, simply titled Elvis, looks to give Elvis’ story a new, creative & dazzling spin.
In typical Baz fashion this film moves at a breathtaking pace as it sweeps the audience through three decades of the life & career of Elvis. In somewhat unexpected fashion though Elvis doesn’t use the tried & true biopic formula of viewing the events through the eyes of the subject. Instead Baz explores Elvis’ story from the perspective of “the man who gave the world Elvis” Colonel Tom Parker (Tom Hanks), Elvis’ manager & promoter.
Viewing the life & career of Elvis in this fashion
On the screen he is best known for his "Red Curtain Trilogy", consisting of his romantic comedy film Strictly Ballroom (1992), and the romantic tragedies William Shakespeare's Romeo + Juliet (1996) and Moulin Rouge!(2001). Following the trilogy, projects included Australia (2008), The Great Gatsby (2013), Elvis (2022), and his television period drama The Get Down (2016) for Netflix. Additional projects include stage productions of Giacomo Puccini's La bohème for both the Australian Opera and Broadway and Strictly Ballroom the Musical (1992)
2 Hours 'Elvis' Secrets, Interviews, Premiere & Behind the Scenes | Austin Butler, Baz Luhrmann
After theatrical successes, including the original stage version of Strictly Ballroom, Luhrmann moved into film and has directed six so far:
- Strictly Ballroom (1992)
- Romeo + Juliet (1996)
- Moulin Rouge! (2001)
- Australia (2008)
- The Great Gatsby (2013)
- Elvis (2022)
Baz Luhrmann’s ‘Elvis’ Debuts to 10-Minute Standing Ovation at Cannes Film Festival
In a cinematic sphere currently filled with revisiting beloved movies from the film archives, it seems Hollywood has made a brief break from rebooting film classics and uncovered a way to play on our nostalgia-loving hearts with a tried, tested and true movie format: the biopic
Its latest offering? A biographical film which follows the decade-spanning career of the late ‘King of Rock and Roll’, Elvis Presley, helmed by Australian writer and director, Baz Luhrmann.
And, considering the director’s penchant for lavish productions, over-the-top and opulent set design and love of heightened reality—paired with his partnering with The Great Gatsby and Moulin Rouge’s Catherine Martin, who will serve as production and costume designer—the soon-to-be-released film is sure to be a life-to-screen adaptation for the ages.
With the film still in its early stages, having yet to receive a title other than the Untitled Elvis Presley Project, there is still much to learn about the biopic. But, here's what we know about Baz Luhrmann’s Elvis Presley biopic so far—including the plot, the cast and the release date.
What will Baz Luhrmann’s Elvis Presley biopic be about?
As detailed by The Hollywood Reporter, the plot has been described by the film’s production company, Warner Bros., as one that will “delve into the complex dynamic spanning over 20 years, from Presley's rise to fame to his unprecedented stardom, against the backdrop of the evolving cultural landscape and the loss of innocence in America.”
Everything we know about Baz Luhrmann’s Elvis Presley biopic so far
The production built a replica of Memphis’s legendary Beale Street in the Australian town of Arundel, complete with a circular drive so that cars would be able to believably cruise a circuit, and the filmmakers went to great lengths to recreate both Graceland and the legendary Club Handy, where the young Elvis saw immeasurably influential acts like Little Richard.
Shonka Dukureh, who played Big Mama Thornton in Baz Luhrmann's Elvis, found dead in Nashville home
