Elvis: That's the Way It Is (1970)
I don’t know about anyone else, but I’m liking that HBO Max is streaming so much Elvis stuff right now. It’s a gold mine, it really is, and the timing is fortuitous because I’m going to go see the new Baz Luhrmann movie for the second time on Tuesday. So it’s research. ;-)
Anyway, 1970’s Elvis: That’s the Way It Is is an excellent snapshot of the King as he got ready to start his Vegas gig at the International Hotel. It begins at MGM’s recording studio in Culver City, where Elvis rehearsed and recorded for three days with his band and ends with a big excerpt of his concert that was filmed over a six-day period and included such celebrities in the audience as Xavier Cugat, Cary Grant, and Sammy Davis, Jr.
The movie inhabits that all too brief period after Elvis’s 1968 comeback special but before his health started to fail, when he was allowed almost full carte blanche as an artist. MGM was a good studio to present a film like this because they knew how to handle a star of Elvis’s stature: Let them be who they are and get out of the way.
The thing that’s so hard to communicate in films like this is how long it takes to get ready for a show. It’s a lot of work, even for professional musicians, and films reduce this process to a montage or a song or two. Granted, there’s no way to show everything, but it’s really tempting to get an unrealistic idea about the process.
In this case, the musicians, including Elvis, are obviously tired. They’ve been rehearsing for hours and the show is looming. Then something happens that’s so common in performance that it’s almost normal: Elvis’s mic falls out of the stand. Nobody misses a beat of “That’s All Right, Mama,” but as soon as they get the chance everyone breaks up laughing.
(On a personal note, something similar happened to me once when I was on tour with the Continentals. I got up to my spot on a riser for a song and didn’t know until I got there that the mic was on the floor. There was nothing to do but smile and pretend everything was peachy. The show must go on, after all)
Getting back to Elvis, he seemed to be enjoying himself hugely. It must have been incredible to work with him, not just because he was Elvis, but because he knew how to have fun. He got everyone laughing during the rehearsals and kept everything moving, sometimes literally—there’s one bit when Elvis and his assistant, Joe Esposito take off on a tandem bike and go pedaling around MGM Studios.
Not only that, but the guy couldn’t help but perform when he sang. I don’t know if that was because there was a camera on, but it’s definitely not a bad thing or anything. Elvis was fun to watch, even in rehearsal.
The one thing I would say about That’s The Way It Is is that the color saturation is a little wobbly. There are some scenes that look natural or highly saturated, and other scenes that look dusty and washed out. It doesn’t detract from what’s happening, but it is noticeable. I don’t know if it’s because the film has degraded or this was a deliberate style choice, but it’s there.
Overall, That’s the Way It is is just what we’d expect from a film about Elvis. He gives amazing performances, women fall all over themselves to get close to him, and he says, “Thank you very much.” For those who may be more familiar with Elvis kitsch than the real person, it’s quite an eye-opener. Artists today would kill to be able to perform the way Elvis did, but all they can do is follow in his wake. I doubt this will ever change and I’m really glad about it.
Elvis: That’s the Way It Is is currently streaming on HBO Max. Rating: PG.
My grade: A
Directed by Denis Sanders