JOANNE Watkinson
Movies rarely surprise me, due to my terrible proclivity for searching spoilers online before hand.
It started because I don’t like sad endings or lots of anticipation but now it’s just a bad habit. This week, however, an impromptu trip to the cinema didn’t leave me any time for research.
So I blindly went in to be treated to a whirlwind of rock ‘n’ roll courtesy of Baz Luhrmann’s musical drama, Elvis.
I will leave the reviews to the experts, but the movie is a feast for the eyes.
Costume designer Catherine Martin was assisted by Elvis’ longtime collaborator Bill Belew, who helped create some of the 90 looks worn throughout the two-hour biopic. Some are replicas of looks the singer wore – such as the pink suit – others are fictitious pieces designed to set the scene.
The attention to wardrobe detail throughout the movie is stunning. Touches like the fact Elvis only ever fastened the bottom button on his suit jackets – so his famous shoulder rolling and hip jiggling wasn’t restricted – a detail that would only be known by someone who lived through the phenomenon like Belew did.
What amazed me most was that Elvis’ look was created by Presley himself. The lace shirts and eyeliner weren’t suggested by a record company. The Memphisborn star was self styled.
Elvis’ early look, with feminine influences, made me think of pop star
Harry Styles who is often photographed in clothes you might associate with a female wardrobe.
It turns out Styles auditioned for the part of Elvis. With his musical talent, he would have been a good fit, but the actor who won the role, Austin Butler looks like he has been grown specially to play the
King.
If you like Elvis, it’s a striking and sympathetic depiction of his life. The movie is expected to be up for Best Picture at the 2023 Academy Awards, and surely an honour or two is in the bag for the costumes.
Unlike some portrayals of the 1960s, it doesn’t come off as fancy dress. Apart from Elvis’ stage outfits – which are as flamboyant as you would expect, the rest is subtle and authentic-looking.
If you don’t leave the cinema wanting to look and dress like Priscilla Presley, we can’t go on together…