The King of Rock ’n’ Roll reigns supreme in Baz Luhrmann’s “EPiC: Elvis Presley in Concert,” playing at the Martha’s Vineyard Film Center beginning March 27. “EPiC,” which is part documentary, part concert film, proves that Elvis was clearly a man with a passion for music who threw his all into every song he sang, whether during rehearsal or onstage in front of thousands.
Elvis starts off, saying, “I’d like to talk to you ladies and gentlemen about how I got into this business. There’s been a lot written and a lot said, but never from my side of the story.” The words we hear throughout are those of Elvis. There are no talking heads, and even interview footage focuses on the man himself answering the questions. There are delightful comments as Elvis speaks about, for instance, his early career: “I guess the first thing people want to know is why I can’t stand still while I’m singing. Some people tap their feet. Some people snap their fingers, and some people just sway back and forth. I just started doing it all together, I guess … I can’t help but move to rock ’n’ roll music.”
Elvis realized he could sing at 2 years old. And at 8, he entered a talent show, winning fifth place: “People were amazed I could sing. I became popular in school after that.” His father offered Elvis a choice of a bike or a guitar at 10 years of age. “I took the guitar and learned to play by watching people,” he recounts. Yet Elvis adds that his father later told him, “I never saw a guitar player who was worth a damn.”
Elvis, of course, proved him wrong. The first part of the film focuses on the young, slim, sinuous Elvis, breaking hearts and sending the female audience members into wild fits as he commands the stage. He briefly refers to his two-year stint in the Army, from 1958 to 1960, when he served as a regular soldier and tank driver in the 3rd Armored Division in Friedberg, Germany, rather than joining Special Services as an entertainer. Afterward, we see film clip after film clip of his campy Hollywood films, which Elvis speaks derisively about, and witness his decision to return to performing live.
The rest of the film focuses almost exclusively on Elvis onstage during a series of concerts in the 1970s, and on rehearsals and studio sessions with his band and an extensive array of backup singers. He appears easygoing and generous of heart to those with whom he works, and with his audience as well. At one point, Elvis explains his dedication to a concert series: “We did two shows a night for five weeks. We never let it get old. It’s like we do each song for the first time. That’s one of the secrets.”
Elvis had eclectic influences, including country music, gospel, and rhythm and blues. There is fascinating footage of him singing the Beatles’ “Yesterday,” the gospel favorite “Oh Happy Day,” and Bob Dylan’s “I Shall Be Released,” along with showstopping renditions of “Can’t Help Falling in Love” and his first-ever live performance of “Burning Love.”
In a July 2025 interview in Variety Magazine, Luhrmann describes how he came upon the footage for “EPiC” while making his earlier biopic, “Elvis.” “We went on a search for rumored unseen footage from the iconic 1970s concert films ‘Elvis: That’s the Way It Is’ and ‘Elvis on Tour.’ My initial thought was that we may be able to restore the unused footage (if we could find it) and use it in our ‘Elvis’ feature … I had researchers go into the Warner Bros. film vaults buried in underground salt mines, and to the astonishment of all, we uncovered 68 boxes of film negative, as well as unseen 8mm footage. It has taken two years to restore the footage to a quality that it has never been projected at previously, while the team had to meticulously claw back sound from the many unconventional sources that were also unearthed. One of the great finds has been unheard recordings of Elvis talking about his life and his music. It was this that gave the inspiration for ‘EPiC: Elvis Presley in Concert.’”
Fascinatingly, many of the reels were silent, and it took two years to sync up the original audio with the footage. Luhrmann says, “And so began a search for the sound. I sent guys to meet with gangsters in car parks and buy it off the black market. I wish I was pretending — but actually, one of my guys was like, ‘I was scared, man. I thought, They’re gonna bump me off, you know?’ It was that crazy.”
The film had its first advance U.S. screenings at Graceland on Jan. 8, on what would have been Elvis’s 91st birthday. But watching “EPiC,” it feels like the young King lives on with us today.
“EPiC: Elvis Presley in Concert” is playing at the M.V. Film Center beginning March 27. For tickets and information, visit mvfilmsociety.com.