EPiC: Elvis Presley in Concert: An Up Close and Personal Look at The King of Rock and Roll (4K/Blu-ray)

The Film:

There are very few entertainers in the history of music that have reached the level of superstardom that the great Elvis Presley achieved. With incredibly popular hits like "Love Me Tender," "Jailhouse Rock," and "Hound Dog," his songs (and renditions of others' songs) have delighted & entertained millions around the world for the past 70 years, and as we've recently seen, have captivated the mind of filmmaker Baz Luhrmann, who gave us a biopic of The King back in 2022.

Now he returns with a different look at the megastar in "EPiC: Elvis Presley in Concert," a fascinating glimpse at his 1970s residency at the International Hotel in Las Vegas & his 1972 North American tour, giving us an incredible look not only at the concerts, but an intimate look at the rehearsals that went into them. Despite rather middling reviews, his "Elvis" biopic was rather successful at the box office, on top of garnering several Oscar nominations during awards season, including Best Picture. Will he perhaps be able to find even more success with an up close & personal look at the actual man himself?

As mentioned, Luhrmann's latest is primarily a concert film devoted to giving the viewer a front row seat at his remarkable Las Vegas residency, the North American Tour (including Madison Square Garden), and the preparations that went into them, so just from that, you'll likely be able to tell if this is something you're going to enjoy or not. If you're an Elvis fan to any degree, getting to see these stunning shows, which include such classics as "Can't Help Falling in Love," "You've Lost That Lovin' Feeling," "I Can't Stop Loving You," and "Always On My Mind," will be quite the treat, especially with all of the footage & audio being beautifully cleaned up for the film.

Fans will also enjoy the looks behind the scenes at Presley and his band going over the plethora of songs for the performances, which are rather loose & informal, but which show their dedication to getting them right for those attending the show. This care is shown even more in the energy that Presley pours into each song he performs on stage, to the point where he almost seems ready to collapse by the end. When he says he wants to give his fans a great show, he truly means it, and, as we clearly see by the end of these 90 minutes, he does his best to do just that.

On top of all of that, we are also treated to intermittent sound bites from a recently-discovered audio recording and other sources that have Presley discussing his life & career, delving into areas that include his prolific filmography. Apparently he felt that many of his projects were far too similar, leading him to leave the movies behind to go back to performing, but also leaving a slight desire to return to make better films in the future. However, he sadly wouldn't be with us much longer after the conclusion of his 1972 tour, making his final scripted projects in 1969.

In the end, "EPiC: Elvis Presley in Concert" is a fine concert film in which Luhrmann goes beyond a standard approach to give you more than just one of the best entertainers of all time performing on stage. That may indeed be the meat of the project, but by allowing us to see the rehearsals and hear Presley intimately discuss his life as well, it gives us a much closer look at the man himself, and that's something that any fan will certainly be grateful for.

Video/Audio:

"EPiC: Elvis Presley in Concert" comes to 4K in a 2.35:1, 2160p Ultra High Definition transfer of incredible quality. The recently-recovered footage has been beautifully restored to give fans the best possible look throughout the entire 97-minute duration. However, as far as the 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio goes, unfortunately this is where a rather big mistake was made, that being that the sound mixing was done incorrectly. The music has been put on a very high volume, whereas dialogue is at regular volume, meaning that when you have it at normal levels, the music ends up blasting out of your speakers, but when you adjust it to normal, the dialogue ends up being too soft. It's a bit annoying, but you can adjust as you go, though it is rather unfortunate that they didn't get the levels right in the first place, especially for a music-filled documentary. Overall, while it does look fantastic, you can at least deal with its audio problems manually.

Special Features:

None.

Conclusion:

Baz Luhrmann's "EPiC: Elvis Presley in Concert" is a treat for any fan of The King of Rock and Roll, not only giving them a front row seat at his remarkable shows in Las Vegas & other spots around North America in the early '70s, but also an intimate peek behind the scenes at the rehearsals & portions that have the man himself discussing his life & career, ultimately making for a well-rounded look at one of the greatest entertainers of all time.

Score: 3.5/5

Available on 4K/Blu-ray starting today.

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