Elvis has left the building!

Elvis (Disney +; 2022)
Director: Baz Luhrmann

Elvis experts generally agree Baz Luhrmann's depiction is sprinkled generously with artistic licence and liberal truth-bending. It can be said that the movie was made to appease the woke generation and to rebrand Elvis to the newer generation who had not heard of the King of Rock and Roll. The message behind the movie was that Elvis Presley appropriated black music and the real heroes of rock and roll were the numerous black legends who never had their moments under the spotlight because of the bigoted attitude of the people then.

In reality, Elvis did sound like a black singer. Growing up in the deep south, he drew inspiration from the black gospel church and helped popularise rock and roll music.

The narration of the whole story is from the point of view of Elvis' notorious long-time manager, Colonel Tom Parker. Colonel Parker is a shady character who had allegedly illegally immigrated from Netherland and was not a colonel. He, however, had a short stint in the US Army. Apparently, one of the reasons he opposed Elvis' international tours was that Parker did not have or could not get a passport. He later went on to be convicted of defrauding the Presley estates.

Austin Butler plays the King.

The film went on to take artistic liberty to paint a rather cosy relationship between Elvis and some of the black singers of his time. In particular, it implies that BB King and the King (of Rock and Roll) had a first name kind of a relationship. In modern times, it would be akin to having him on his speed dial. Purists insist that the closest they came together was probably being caught in a photograph together.

The film tries to paint the idea that the public perception of black culture was that of decadence. That a white boy singing in the tune of a black voice was akin to promoting the black style of living amongst the whites. In reality, however, just 30 years previously, the nation was hailing the Harlem Renaissance. This New York City neighbourhood went on to become a Black Cultural mecca to showcase the golden age in African American culture, manifesting in music, stage performance and art.

Tom Hanks as Col. Tom Parker

Elvis' trademark of gyration of hips was viewed as a big crime and kicked a lot of dirt in his days. It was discussed extensively in the dailies. Somewhat erroneously, the movie seems to imply that Elvis volunteered to be enlisted in the US Army as pro quid quo against incarceration for lewd acts in public. It seems that Elvis was drafted, and Parker encouraged this to paint the image of Elvis as an all-American regular guy.

Life is never easy, even for the King of Rock and Roll. Coming from n underprivileged background, the stigma refuses to go away. His brand of music was referred to hillbilly music by a newspaper. Elvis' father, a truck driver with whom Elvis was not really close, had a criminal record and was perhaps easily manipulated by the Colonel for self-interest. Elvis' mother, with whom Elvis had a strong bond, died relatively early in his career. His stint in the Army, it seems, gravely depressed her. She feared losing him, just like how she had lost Elvis' twin at birth.

The stress of being in showbiz obviously had its toll on Elvis. The razzmatazz of fame added strain to his marriage. His philandering ways broke down his marriage. He had to resort to a cocktail of prescription drugs to keep up with the gruelling challenges. This combination of polypharmacy gave him bad constipation, and he succumbed to a myocardial infarct during straining at the toilet.

The Colonel was only interested in making money, it seems. Elvis rebelled by cutting deals with other new agents with new ideas and political statements, but the Colonel was having none of those. He had a stronghold on Elvis' affairs. His later stints at Vegas were apparently to offset Parker's gambling debts. Elvis' last years saw him a lonely man, barely alive, working hard to satiate the appetite of loyal fans.

The higher they rise, the harder they fall.