The best films with Elvis Presley. What to watch?

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25

Every year on August 16 in Memphis (USA) there is a festive day of remembrance dedicated to the famous Elvis Presley. Despite the fact that the king of rock and roll is no longer alive, he still has loyal fans around the world. Celebrate Presley's memorial day and fans in Russia. Someone decides to devote their time to listening to the singer's favorite music, while someone returns to his filmography again and again. The latter deserves no less attention, since it is cinema, whether documentary or fiction, that provides an opportunity to get even more information about the idol and his legacy. In the case of Elvis, about 45 films were made. In addition to fiction (the largest number, 31) and documentaries, his filmography also includes various television shows, collections of concert performances and biopics (biographical films) released after the death of the artist.

What is worth seeing on Elvis Presley Memorial Day? In which films are the details of his biography and career most clearly revealed? In search of answers to these questions, we have compiled a list of some of the best films about the king of rock androll.

"Love Me Tender" (Love Me Tender, 1956)

Robert Webb's immortal black-and-white art work and Elvis' first film debut rolled into one - what could be better? The film was made in the Western genre and took its name from the ballad Love Me Tender of the same name, which was performed by Presley himself. "Love Me Tender" tells the story of the Reno family, focusing on the relationship between two brothers, Clint and Vance. The film has a lot of family drama, love affairs and dangerous shootouts. By the way, for Presley's filmography, this picture is unique not only because of his debut, but also because of the ending. There are some interesting biographical facts from the artist's life connected with the finale, but we, of course, will try not to spoil it!

Loving You (1957)

Let's not go far and pay attention to another film starring Elvis Presley, which was released just a year after his official film debut. Loving You is a fictional semi-autobiographical film directed by Hal Hunter. A kind of partial biopic about the early life of Elvis Presley, played by Presley himself. Of course, being a feature film, "Loving You" tells the story of a fictional character named Dick Rivers - the development of his career has much in common with how Elvis himself began. And yes, the King himself plays Dick, which is why the film has a semi-autobiographical tone.

Sounds a bitconfused? In fact, everything is quite simple. We advise all Elvis fans to watch "Loving You" and see for themselves!

"Elvis" (Elvis, 1979)

The next film with Elvis Presley, which will be discussed today, can be attributed to the genre of musical biopic. Maestro John Carpenter was in the director's chair, and the main role went to the young Kurt Russell. Note that the actor really managed to convey the image of the late Elvis well in this film, moreover, thanks to good makeup, sometimes it seems that the king himself is really on the screen.

The picture came out at a time when fans still could not recover from the loss of their idol. Many were worried that the release of the biopic would be met with skepticism. Fortunately, this did not happen. The director decided to focus the film on the early years of Elvis' life and work and show how his career blossomed.

"Elvis. The Early Years" (Elvis, 2005)

Another feature documentary about Elvis Presley, created by American director James Steven Sadwidge. In this three-hour biography of the king of rock and roll, there was a place for all the key aspects of the artist's life and work: from cult concert recordings to easily recognizable music and signature dances. The main role is played by the talented Irish actor Jonathan Rhys Meyers, best known to the modern public on the TV series The Tudors.

Many consider this filmambiguous and note some criticality in the director's view of the events depicted by him. Despite this, we recommend watching "The Early Years" at least once in order to get acquainted with the history of Elvis' life and work without much embellishment. For an artistic documentary, and even for such a famous person, this is a real rarity!

Elvis: The Last 24 Hours (2005)

One of the last Elvis Presley documentaries by British director Mike Parkinson. We decided to talk about this film at the very end of the article for the simple reason that it describes the last days of Elvis' life and work. At the same time, the picture is considered quite heavy and ruthlessly realistic. It's safe to say that this story is not for everyone. It is for those who consider themselves an in-depth fan of Elvis and want to know everything that happened to the idol until his death. After hushing up many details and, as a result, the appearance of various legends, "The Last Day" tried to tear off the masking cover and expose the whole known truth about the king of rock and roll.