"how his phenomenal success owed so much to the R&B, gospel and rock he grew up around and the racist institutions that put him on a pedestal while holding down the Black artists that birthed and gave that music its soul. The movie also painted Elvis as a bleeding heart for the Black community, projecting so much torment on the crooner over the injustices he witnessed, despite his refusal to say anything publicly for the community he benefitted from during the civil rights era."
"It was all the craven and exploitative Colonel Tom Parker's fault, according to Luhrmann's Elvis, depicting the leery and controlling manager (played by Tom Hanks) as the reason for the singer's strict silence, and the root of so many sins. That same crafty apologia continues in EPiC, which features a moment when a journalist questions Elvis on his thoughts as the Vietnam war was raging. I'm just an entertainer, Elvis responds, with Luhrmann carefully pointing out that Tom Parker is always lurking nearby."
"When pressed further about expressing his feelings, Elvis continues, I can't even say that. Luhrmann emphasizes the I can't, replaying those words like a haunting echo to fill the silence, as if drilling down on the idea that Elvis was a victim of his own circumstance. Luhrmann even interjects that moment over footage of Elvis performing the bleeding-heart ballad about a child raised in hardship, In The Ghetto, as if"
Baz Luhrmann has created two Elvis films that prioritize spectacle and showmanship while largely avoiding holding Elvis accountable for racial and ethical issues. The 2022 biopic acknowledged Elvis's cultural appropriation and the role of racist institutions in elevating him over Black artists, yet framed Elvis as a tormented, sympathetic figure who remained publicly silent during the civil rights era. Both films cast Colonel Tom Parker as the controlling, exploitative force responsible for Elvis's silence. EPiC remixes archival and never-before-seen Las Vegas footage, reiterating that apologia through scenes where Elvis claims "I'm just an entertainer" and insists "I can't," even over performances of In The Ghetto.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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