This was a made for TV movie for the ABC network in the US. Coming only a couple of years after Elvis' death it was one of the first attempts at his lifestory and was something of a milestone in TV movie history. It was the most successful (highest ratings) TV movie of all time when it was first aired, and is still the most successful TV movie in ABC's history.
This did seem like a strange project at the time, John Carpenter, autere behind Assault On Precinct 13 and Halloween, to direct the biopic of the King of Rock'n'Roll. But it was not as strange as it seemed. JC had experience of TV with the successful Someone's Watching Me, a spin on Hitchcocks Rear Window. Furthermore he was a huge Elvis fan with the passion needed to bring this story to the screen.
So, eyebrows were raised and critics were at the ready for this one, even more so when the casting of Elvis was revealed. Kurt Russel, star of numerous Disney child movies was making his move for adult stardom, playing the pretty recently deceased King, easily one of the most famous men ever seen on this planet. (Interesting aside, Russel made is acting debut as a young kid in the Elvis vehicle It Happened At The World Fair, he played a little boy who kicks Elvis in the shins).
The critics were unanimous in the praise for the movie and in particular for Russel's performance, which is fantastic. He does not descend into the hopeless parody of the countless Elvis impersonators, but manages to capture his essence with some dignity. The transformation from young wide-eyed hopeful to a worried middle aged man is fantastic. This film successfully cemented Russel's move from teen movies and was the start of a long and successful partnership with John Carpenter (They made Escape From New York, The Thing, Big Trouble In Little China and Escape From LA together).
Carpenter's love for his subject is obvious, but he does not flinch from showing some of the more unappealing sides of Elvis character. The plot can seem a little light at times with the benefit of hindsight and the numerous stories that have been unearthed since '79, but it is an engrossing film. And it needs to be, clocking in at just under 3 hours, but you get so lost in the movie you do not realise how long it is.
The supporting characters are just that, support. This bopic is tackled entirely from Elvis point of view, how he dealt with things and how they affected him. External information is kept at a minimum, we never really see much of Priscilla Presley (Season Hubley, who Russel went on to marry, she played the girl in Chock Full O'Nuts in Escape From New York) and Colonel Tom Parker, who many people blame for Elvis decline into Las Vegas hell. Because of this Russel holds the picture together superbly, he is in nearly every scene and the film does not suffer for it.
Elvis is a fantastic biography of one of the most dynamic figures of the 20th century, as one character puts it "he revolutionised the entire music industry". Enough said. Watch it and you are watching our history and our heritage. Fantastic.
Note: The film is done in a backflash fashion, we start off with Elvis waiting to go on stage for his 1970 comeback in Vegas (No, don't do it Elvis, you're too good for them....), anyway, in the scene where Elvis is walking through the hotel's casino, past the slot machines, there he is standing there. No, not Elvis, John Carpenter, absently playing a slot machine.