The Rolling Stone Uncut podcast is joined this week by Oscar-winning Australian director, Baz Luhrmann!
Luhrmann came on the show while back home in Sydney to talk all about his brand new film, EPiC: Elvis Presley in Concert, out in Australian cinemas now. Following the 2022 biopic about the King of rock and roll, Luhrmann draws on newly unearthed footage of Presley’s legendary Las Vegas residency and US tour, blending cutting edge technology, a full orchestra and his unmistakable flair to capture Elvis at his best: raw, intimate and electric.
Watch or listen to the full podcast below.
Why he went on a mission to obtain rumoured unseen footage for his 2022 biopic
“It was really budget… we sent this guy out looking for it in actual salt mines where all MGM stuff is kept so that the negative doesn’t rot. I get the numbers wrong, but like 64 boxes, 57 hours of the Vegas concerts, which were shot over six nights.
“When we heard the audio, the thing with Elvis is any people who are always talking about him, are talking heads. I said, ‘What if there were no talking heads? What if Elvis just sort of came to you in a sort of dreamscape and spoke and sang his story to you in his own words?’ It took a while to convince people to give us some money to do it.”
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No one was built for this level of fame
“David Bowie was a great icon of mine. I worked with him, and then later in life, we became friends. Mick Jagger, I know as well. Bowie, early on, did this mime with Lindsay Kemp, the white mask. As a kid, you sort of put on the mask and you’re funny, and people go, ‘Isn’t he funny? He’s so hilarious.’ And then you get older… suddenly you put the mask on, and you’re really famous. And then you put the mask on again… you can’t get the mask off, and the Pierrot suffocates and dies. The metaphor of that is that both Mick and David Bowie understood that they played over a dozen characters. Elvis understood that, too. Once in his life, he said ‘I’m so tired of playing Elvis Presley.'”
Elvis avoided politics his entire career
“When he was young, he was very outspoken. He would say, ‘They shouldn’t say that about my fans, they’re just idiots.’ And he was taught to just back off. But in his songs, he expressed himself. The Colonel had nothing to do with that. So when he went to sing ‘In the Ghetto,’ everyone’s like, ‘Do not do that song.’ And it was his number one hit. I’m very proud when he does the song ‘Walk a Mile in my Shoes.’ There are people on reservation and out in the ghetto… but for the grace of God go you and I… before you abuse, criticise and accuse walk a mile in my shoes.’ That’s a song of empathy.”
