Deanna
There are moments in this movie where the great movie it could've been peek out... They're fleeting, here, but they're worth savoring, and they happen often enough to make it worth your while.
MJShep87
Elvis was a fascinating figure and remains so today. He basically invented Rock and Roll and was in my opinion the first true rock star. This movie does him a great credit. The actor who plays him looks and sounds very close to the way the real Elvis did. The use of actual songs sung by the real Elvis makes the movie all the better. This movie truly shows the pressures and troubles Elvis faced in his life. All in all it presents as a generous and good person, which he really was as sources say. Despite the drug dependency, Elvis was a great person who revolutionized music and set the stage for all performers to come. This movie is captivating and moving.
blanche-2
It was wonderful to hear Elvis' actual voice and music coming out of the mouth of Jonathan Rhys-Meyers. Frankly, I could have used even more of Presley's magnificent voice throughout.One of the previous posters mentioned that Marty Lacker commented on this film. I was in touch with Marty during my time on the Elvis message board and always enjoyed his comments. I regret that I couldn't find his comments on the film here. I don't imagine he liked it much. There was only one Elvis, and while you may be able to approximate him, you will never find anyone who will ultimately satisfy as Elvis. Kurt Russell probably came the closest, but I haven't seen everyone.All that being said, I enjoyed Part I of this miniseries more than Part II, and I did like Jonathan Rhys-Meyers, especially in Part I. I read some of the posts which mentioned he did not have Elvis' stature. Elvis Presley was one of the most gorgeous men who ever lived. He had it ALL. And that includes height. If you're asking to see an Elvis clone portraying Elvis, if it were possible, Elvis wouldn't have been the unique individual he was. The role of Elvis in this bio did not call for an Elvis impersonator, it called for an actor, and Rhys-Meyers is definitely that.The purpose of this film, and the purpose of the Elvis by the Presleys documentary, was to introduce Presley to a new audience. For this they chose a handsome, up-and-coming actor, in order to bring in the youth market. He's Irish. He played a man he didn't know personally and a man he didn't know very much about. He also had to play the script he was given. With those caveats, he was excellent, and, having seen Presley in some of the performances recreated in this film, he had obviously studied Elvis' movements.Though the miniseries captured many of the details we know of Elvis' story, in the end, it didn't capture Elvis himself - and may I say AGAIN, if that were an easy or even POSSIBLE thing to do, well, Elvis wouldn't be the legend he is today. The script I do not believe demonstrated Elvis' tremendous charm and charisma, nor his sense of humor. That was a problem in the script. It's very possible that given the opportunity Rhys-Meyers would have been up to the task.What the script did show is the conflict between Colonel Parker, well played by Randy Quaid, and Presley, giving us a hint of what was a very complicated relationship. Parker was about money; Elvis was about creativity. But it was more than that - Parker had absolutely no understanding of Elvis the artist, and in a sense, he dismissed that side of him. Parker did a great many good things for Elvis but in the end, he held him back tremendously. I knew that Elvis wanted to do the remake of A Star is Born, but I had not known (and I assume it's true) that Elvis wanted to do West Side Story. Since Tony is usually played by a very romantic type whom one cannot believe is affiliated with a gang, Presley would have been inspired casting. Not making better movies is one of the great tragedies of his career, along with never touring the world. I really have no use for Colonel Parker for a variety of reasons, which I won't go into here. And it wasn't all the Colonel - some of the problems had to do with Elvis' inability to let go.The film ends in a strange place - the '68 Comeback Special, and it is there the failing of Rhys-Meyers' physical appearance as Elvis really shows up. Elvis was beyond gorgeous on that special, and Rhys-Meyers just did not demonstrate those shocking good looks. And why end it there? Elvis became a smash hit in Vegas, and he had several successful years on tour before his lifestyle caught up with him.With the exception of Rhys-Meyers, Quaid, and Camryn Manheim as Gladys, there doesn't seem to have been much attention paid to the casting. Rose McGowan did not approximate the luscious Ann-Margret, and Antonia Bernath was not Priscilla.However, I think the miniseries did its job. We got to hear that glorious voice and see something of one of the most fascinating rags to riches story ever told. If the man was missing, I can't blame anyone but the man himself. He was one of a kind.
Robert W.
I am still to this day surprised we haven't seen a multi million dollar Oliver Stonesque biopic of The King of Rock and Roll. He still to this day is one of the most popular historical figures of all time and his life is still masked in much mystery and such a great story. Nonetheless TV director and writer James Steven Sadwith does his utmost in this better than average Television film."Elvis" gives us a look at The King just prior to his fame, and his reshaping of music history. The film really focus's in on his personality, loves, family, money, career, fears and his love of music. The film touches on some of his bigger moments, such as his film career which he desperately wanted and his relationship with the man who helped him get where he was, The Colonel. Elvis continues on through Elvis joining the army and then his triumphant rise back to fame after getting out.Jonathan Rhys-Meyers does a great job as Elvis. There are probably more impersonators for this character than anyone else in the world so it's not a tough gig but it's tough to pull off a really good character performance of Elvis and Rhys-Meyers is just amazing. The film really does focus in on his own personal demons and life and feelings so it really magnifies his performance but he pulls it off with the exception of one MAJOR thing in my opinion...the singing. I don't blame him in this case because his lip syncing is dead on...but the music itself is so off balance, often sounding scratchy and old and NOT live the way it is supposed to be. It never seems believable and that's a major fault for the whole film. The rest of the cast is also remarkable in their roles. One of the best in the film is Camryn Manheim as Gladys Presley. She is the most emotional of the characters and so believable and heartfelt, she MUST get an Emmy for this role. Her relationship with Elvis is so clearly created that it's touching and important to everything. Their charisma together is wonderful. Randy Quaid who is lacking a good performance since...well a LONNNNNG time does a great job as the greedy, and powerful 'Colonel' Tom Parker. He is riveting!! The only second downside to this film is it doesn't quite take it far enough...it has you just riveted to your seat ready to go on with these characters till the end but they chose to end the film with Elvis' comeback special which really leaves out so much of Elvis and his downward spiral. Nonetheless no Elvis fan will be disappointed and it's worth seeing absolutely!! It's just not as good as it could have been. 8/10
