First, three quick caveats...
- This is DEFINITELY a Baz Luhrmann movie. The Great Gatsby. Australia. Moulin Rouge! Romeo + Juliet. For better and for worse, it falls right in line with his other entries; impeccable style/production design and some rousing highs... but also an overuse of CGI/green screen and a general, schizophrenic nature. To that last point, this movie is basically one, long montage. Sure, there are scenes, but it's a "scene" that then montages into the next "scene," that then montages into the next "scene," and on and on it goes. It never sits still or lets you revel in a poignant moment.
- This is also a looooong movie. Like, 2h 39m long. And when the entire thing feels like a never-ending montage, you can *really* feel the runtime at parts.
- Tom Hanks is basically playing a caricature. He looks like a caricature, talks like a caricature, and acts like caricature. You get used to it after a while, but for the first 20-30 min or so it's kind of ridiculous. He's also in the movie way too much, to the point where it's basically told from his point of view for some reason.
All that said, if you go in *knowing* it's a long ass Baz Luhrmann movie, in which an ever-present Tom Hanks is basically a cartoon villain, in all seriousness... it's pretty damn great. In particular, Austin Butler is ASTOUNDING as Elvis. Like, just-give-him-the-Oscar-now astounding. Very rarely do we get to witness an actor become a superstar right before our eyes, but that's exactly what happens here. The dude absolutely owns every last aspect of the role - no questions or complaints at all - and it's so incredible to watch, increasingly so throughout the movie.
He IS Elvis.
To that end, the musical performances are fantastic and easily the best parts. The energy, the vocals, the costuming, the attention to detail... it's all kind of mind-blowing. There are two on-stage moments, in particular, where Elvis "sticks it to the man" that are worth the price of admission alone. Easily my two favorite moments of the movie.
Overall, there were 13 of us in our group, and everyone seemed to genuinely enjoy it. Again, my friend ran the marketing campaign, invited a group of friends and family tonight, and I'd never met three of them, so I can't vouch for everyone. But the general vibe when we got out was basically "wow." Everyone agreed that it was probably too long, and a little too zany at times, but we all just kept going back to how amazing Butler was. Like, we couldn't shut up about him.
I have a feeling reactions are going to be all over the place, and understandably so, but one thing everyone will agree on is Butler. Between this and a big new role in Dune: Part Two, he really is a superstar in the making.
So curious to hear what some of you think this weekend...
- This is DEFINITELY a Baz Luhrmann movie. The Great Gatsby. Australia. Moulin Rouge! Romeo + Juliet. For better and for worse, it falls right in line with his other entries; impeccable style/production design and some rousing highs... but also an overuse of CGI/green screen and a general, schizophrenic nature. To that last point, this movie is basically one, long montage. Sure, there are scenes, but it's a "scene" that then montages into the next "scene," that then montages into the next "scene," and on and on it goes. It never sits still or lets you revel in a poignant moment.
- This is also a looooong movie. Like, 2h 39m long. And when the entire thing feels like a never-ending montage, you can *really* feel the runtime at parts.
- Tom Hanks is basically playing a caricature. He looks like a caricature, talks like a caricature, and acts like caricature. You get used to it after a while, but for the first 20-30 min or so it's kind of ridiculous. He's also in the movie way too much, to the point where it's basically told from his point of view for some reason.
All that said, if you go in *knowing* it's a long ass Baz Luhrmann movie, in which an ever-present Tom Hanks is basically a cartoon villain, in all seriousness... it's pretty damn great. In particular, Austin Butler is ASTOUNDING as Elvis. Like, just-give-him-the-Oscar-now astounding. Very rarely do we get to witness an actor become a superstar right before our eyes, but that's exactly what happens here. The dude absolutely owns every last aspect of the role - no questions or complaints at all - and it's so incredible to watch, increasingly so throughout the movie.
He IS Elvis.
To that end, the musical performances are fantastic and easily the best parts. The energy, the vocals, the costuming, the attention to detail... it's all kind of mind-blowing. There are two on-stage moments, in particular, where Elvis "sticks it to the man" that are worth the price of admission alone. Easily my two favorite moments of the movie.
Overall, there were 13 of us in our group, and everyone seemed to genuinely enjoy it. Again, my friend ran the marketing campaign, invited a group of friends and family tonight, and I'd never met three of them, so I can't vouch for everyone. But the general vibe when we got out was basically "wow." Everyone agreed that it was probably too long, and a little too zany at times, but we all just kept going back to how amazing Butler was. Like, we couldn't shut up about him.
I have a feeling reactions are going to be all over the place, and understandably so, but one thing everyone will agree on is Butler. Between this and a big new role in Dune: Part Two, he really is a superstar in the making.
So curious to hear what some of you think this weekend...
