In
"Elvis," Jonathan
Rhys Meyers does for Elvis Presley what Jamie Foxx did for Ray Charles
in "Ray."
He becomes the rock icon.
Rhys Meyers, best known from
2002's feel-good hit "Bend It Like Beckham," plays Elvis from 18 to 33,
when the King made his now-fabled "'68 Comeback Special" television
appearance. It's an Elvis portrayal that will have people buzzing.
Elvis, who would have turned
70 in January, was inimitable yet incessantly imitated. Rhys Meyers has
the brooding beauty and electrically charged moves of the young Elvis
down cold, and the 27-year-old Irish actor nails the rhythms and
inflections of Elvis's distinctive Southern drawl. The singing voice was
not a challenge -- "Elvis" is the first biopic that the Presley estate
has allowed to use Elvis master recordings -- but Rhys Meyers seems
particularly inspired in his lip- and hip-syncing.
Not especially Elvis-savvy
before the film -- he was 21 days old when Elvis died on Aug. 16, 1977
-- Rhys Meyers researched the role by watching Elvis documentaries,
films and early TV appearances. According to director James Sadwith, "Jonny
looked at all the interview footage that we had, he had a dialect coach
from New Orleans, and he just put it all together and really took it
home."
Yet Rhys Meyers insists he
"didn't try to over-research."
"I tried to take the things
that I was closest to in Elvis Presley and use those, make it as organic
as possible to my own experiences," Rhys Meyers said. "He was a poor boy
from Tupelo, Mississippi; I'm a poor boy from County Cork, Ireland. He
bought his mama a house with the first big amount of money that he got,
and so did I. He had a lot of insecurities, wasn't liked in school, felt
uncomfortable, was a daydreamer -- and I had all these things."
All of the similarities may
explain Rhys Meyers's remarkably empathetic performance, one that avoids
lapsing into parody or mere impersonation while capturing both the
sweetness and sex appeal of its central character.
In the four-hour miniseries,
Rhys Meyers masters the inner Elvis, making palpable the humanity of the
icon-in-the-making -- from the grinding poverty of his youth and the
constant battles between his ambition and insecurity, to the complex
relationships with the key people in his life. Those essential figures
include father Vernon (Robert Patrick); the overprotective mother he
adored, Gladys (Camryn Manheim); his domineering manager, Col. Tom
Parker (Randy Quaid); and the young love of his life, Priscilla Beaulieu
(Antonia Bernath).
There's plenty of music, of
course, from the seminal Sun Records sessions in 1954 to the 1968
special, which ends with a powerhouse re-creation of "If I Can Dream."
Part 1 follows Elvis from
his truck-driving days to his early recordings and concerts, his first
encounters with his manager and escalating stardom, and it ends with
Elvis being drafted into the Army. Part 2 centres on his service in
Germany, his romance with Priscilla, his flop films and his stumbling
career, which was revived by the '68 show.
Director Sadwith and writer
Patrick Sheane Duncan are clearly after something beyond idol worship.
"Elvis" was made with the
full cooperation of the Elvis Presley Estate, but it's hardly
sugar-coated. It addresses the singer's abuse of prescription drugs
(which began during his Army service, when soldiers were given
amphetamines to keep them awake on long manoeuvres); his casual
womanizing, even after he wed the teenage Priscilla (Rose McGowan cameos
as "Viva Las Vegas"-era fling Ann-Margret); and his ultimately corrosive
acquiescence to Parker (wonderfully realized by Quaid).
During eight weeks of
filming in New Orleans -- along with several days in Memphis for some
exterior scenes with Presley's Graceland estate as a backdrop -- Rhys
Meyers stayed in character, wearing Elvis's favourite aftershave and
listening to Elvis songs on his iPod before each scene. Rhys Meyers even
picked up some authentic Elvis garb at Lansky's clothing store at the
Peabody Hotel -- Bernard Lansky being the career-long "Clothier to the
King."
The makeover was so complete
it bordered on uncanny. Yet like many people his age, Rhys Meyers's
initial impression of Elvis was that of the overweight, jump-suited Las
Vegas act who died at age 42.
"Now, of course, I have a
huge appreciation," Rhys Meyers said. "There's lots of Elvis fanatics
and Elvis fans who know everything about Elvis, but I know what it's
like to be Elvis -- even for just that short period of time."