Elvis(2021)
A biopic about Elvis Presley, with focus on his early years.
A biopic about Elvis Presley, with focus on his early years.
I was lucky enough to see Elvis Presley’s final concert at Madison Square Garden in June 1972. Usually, you are not allowed to bring a camera to a concert. But the audience and the entire event were so wild that no one paid any attention to me. Over the years I watched the footage again and again. Then the Viennale called and I immediately thought of my Elvis material. The only problem was that I didn’t know what kind of musical soundtrack to use. I tried everything and was close to giving up when I happened to hear a Viennese waltz on the radio. That was it! What could be better – or funnier – than Elvis and Strauss? (Jonas Mekas)
A man on the run takes refuge in the ruins of a besieged city. Helped by a group of children, he finds refuge in an empty room. The inhabitants of the building come to question him about his identity. He gives evasive answers and says his name is Elvis. Thanks to the help of Maya, a young girl who falls in love with him, the stranger's reprieve is prolonged until it is discovered that he is not who he says he is.
Die Biographie beginnt mit dem berühmten Konzert in Las Vegas, mit dem Elvis 1969 sein Comeback feierte. Danach wird von seiner von Armut geprägten Kindheit erzählt. Es wird berichtet von Elvis' Beziehungen zu Col. Tom Parker, seinen Eltern und von der Beerdigung seiner Mutter nach ihrer schweren Krankheit. Erzählt wird auch von Elvis' Besuch in Deutschland, wie er Priscilla kennenlernt und sie darauf mit seinem Porsche über die deutschen Straßen rasen, um in einem bayrischen Bierhaus anzukommen, wo Elvis mit den Bayern abrockte. Den Höhepunkt des Films bildet 1967 die Hochzeit der beiden. Am Zenit angekommen, bezieht Elvis seine Villa "Graceland" in Memphis, wo sich dann erste Anzeichen des Verfalls zeigen. Mit Elvis' Comeback schließt der Film.