A test-screening for Baz Luhrmann’s upcoming Elvis biopic (06.03.22) occurred last night. As of now, I have no reactions to give you except for a few Letterboxd NDAs.
Of course, we all knew that “Bohemian Rhapsody” would just kick-start a whirlwind of Hollywood rock biopics. Newcomer Austin Butler plays Elvis Presley. Tom Hanks stars as his manager Colonel Tom Parker. The film has a script by “Fifty Shades of Grey” scribe Kelly Marcel.
Luhrmann hasn’t directed a feature-length film since 2013’s “The Great Gatsby.” Before that he had a time-capsule-worthy bomb titled “Australia”? Remember that one? Luhrmann’s claim to fame will always be 2001’s “Moulin Rouge” a frenetic and daring musical that took so many risks, but worked magnificently. Also, to Gen X-ers at least, 1996’s “Romeo & Juliet” is some kind of classic, and the first time Leonardo DiCaprio was noticed by the mainstream before being catapulted to fame the following year with “Titanic.”
The last we heard from Luhrmann is when he directed the two seasons from the 2016-2017 Netlfix series “The Get Down,” which was about the beginnings of disco.