Baz Luhrmann Reveals Why He Decided to Tell the ‘Elvis’ Story From Col. Tom Parker’s Perspective [COLETIVA]

Elvis Presley is considered, to this day, one of the greatest icons in the music and entertainment industry. Nicknamed The King of Rock, Elvis has been known for several generations and, although not the favorite artist for young listeners, everyone has certainly heard some of his most famous songs – such as “Jailhouse Rock”, “Love Me Tender” and “I Can’t Help Falling In Love”. And now the iconic musician will earn a long-awaited biopic directed by Baz Luhrmann.

In the feature, Austin Butler plays the titular character and does a magnificent job of soaking up all of Presley’s antics, going through a long labor process and quickly becoming a favorite for the next awards season – and could land a statuette. coveted Oscar. for best actor.

Breaking away from the conventions of biopics, Luhrmann constructs a frenetic and colorful journey that explores the rise and fall of Elvis. The plot begins from the perspective of Colonel Tom Parker (played by none other than Tom Hanks), a musical entrepreneur who “discovered” the singer and helped him rise to meteoric fame that would culminate in his tragic and untimely death. . And, despite the slippages, the feature film is configured as a love letter to one of the greatest musical symbols on the planet and which extends its heritage to the present day.

Recently, CinePOP took part in a press conference with the names behind the project – and our Thiago Nolla brings you the main reveals and some behind-the-scenes curiosities as told by the team

At the press conference, Luhrmann opened the Q&A session when asked why he embraced such an ambitious production and how he would make it his own. After all, the filmmaker, considered one of the leading authors of the contemporary scene, etched his name with instantly recognizable works such as the musical ‘Moulin Rouge’ and the adaptation ‘The Great Gatsby’.

“I think it’s more than just a story about Elvis’ life,” he said. “But he has such an amazing life to explore, 1950s, 1960s and 1970s America. And, in addition to the relationship between Elvis and Colonel Tom Parker, [o filme] it’s about spectacle and business, about management, control and exploration – and also about creativity in solitude and in truth. I think all of this is happening in the world right now, and it was an amazing way to have a great life, great music, and explore great ideas.

In the case of a biographical dramatization, it is always a complicated task to select the events that will go into the film, especially since it is impossible to condense everything into a few hours (or, in this case, almost three hours ). So Luhrmann had to carefully and carefully select what would be part of the final edit.

“Well, there are things you can’t tell the story without, [como] not representing 1950s, 1960s and 1970s America and not being able to talk about someone who loves music without dealing with African American artists and music,” the filmmaker explains. “This journey that Elvis immersed himself in and the artists that he had a relationship with – these characters were America. And where are we now? Have we evolved, have we grown more? And along the way, we have this intimate experience of a guy named Elvis and a guy named Tom Parker. It’s the truth. I hope people [vejam o filme] and think, ‘well, we were there, but where are we now? Are we regressing?’ “.

As already mentioned in this brief article, ‘Elvis’ starts from a different perspective than projects of the genre, choosing to guide the main narrative through the eyes of Tom Parker. Luhrmann was also asked what led him to make this choice for the film.

“You could just say: Elvis was born, he does, he has an amazing story. But when we have to deal with the selling and the soul of the character that most people consider the villain. And in that story , he debates and argues, “I’m not the bad guy. It gives us an incredibly dramatic tension and allows us to go places and reveal things that we wouldn’t otherwise be able to reveal. I think that helps us to explore a larger idea: how Elvis came from very humble roots, poverty and the loss of his mother, and soared so high and then, like Icarus, tragically fell. Why did this happen? And he says, ‘Ah, you think it was me, the bad tycoon, who did this?’ But what he says in the film is ‘all I did was my job’”.

The filmmaker goes on to reveal one of the many events that weren’t included in the feature that reiterates the complexity of Tom Parker.

“There’s a story, which isn’t in the movie, where when Elvis dies and the colonel finds out, he picks up the phone and says, ‘make more records.’ And we thought, ‘wow, what a heartless man.’ But the colonel was like, ‘You wanted the files, didn’t you? I was just doing my job. Every time an icon dies, we run to listen.’ his music. So I was keeping it alive for you. And when you remember that he made money from it, you realize that it’s a complicated relationship, a relationship of heart and market. It’s one of America’s most memorable stories.”

Recalling that “Elvis” is released in Brazilian theaters on July 14.