I could not get tickets fast enough when I heard about the new Elvis movie coming out starring Austin Butler. My anticipation for the movie 100% paid off. This movie is the epitome of greatness.

The storytelling, including the visually stunning cinematography, is all done so beautifully. Director, Baz Luhrmann definitely had a story to tell and he did so with grace. I loved the stylistic choices that were made throughout the movie. They put a lot of emphasis on Elvis’s moves on stage and how it made the audience feel.

It did bother me that they told the story of Elvis’s life through his abuser Colonel Tom Parker who abused Elvis financially, mentally, and emotionally. It made me upset that someone who controlled Elvis on this level when he was alive still continues to speak for him in essence. There was so much more that they could have used from Elvis’s story and Austin Butler’s performance. Instead the focus was on his career and how his manager took advantage of him. At the same time I am glad they shed light on how horribly Tom Parker treated Elvis.

This movie has sparked a lot of controversy from movie critics and audience members. This is without question a breakthrough for Austin Butler. His performance in this movie is the best of his from this year so far and it really felt like I was watching the real Elvis on screen. Austin Butler has gone full on method acting with his Elvis role. Method acting is a technique or type of acting in which an actor aspires to encourage sincere and emotionally expressive performances by fully inhabiting the role of the character.This has been a very controversial topic. Some believe that he is so consumed as Elvis that it is now his personality trait. From interviews, to his style- he has been so consumed in the role that he has become that person. After finishing the film, he has been having an identity crisis while trying to get back to his normal self.

While I do believe that method acting has serious consequences I think that an accent should be the least of everyone’s worries when it comes to method actors. A lot of people are refusing to see the movie for various reasons. Some people just do not like Elvis and things he has done which I can respect. What I do not understand is why people would miss out on this amazing movie because of his accent. His job as an actor is to portray this character to the best of his ability. I think that it is a respectable way of acting. Many actors have done it such as Lady Gaga, Leonardo DiCaprio, and many more. There can be dangers to this method as seen with Heath Ledger, who went to extreme measures like intense drug use which ultimately led to his death. Mannerism and accents should not be this big of a deal.

Personally, I cannot wrap my head around how amazing this movie was. The ending was sad, but it had everything I could have wanted in an Elvis movie. Austin Butler is going for that Oscar and he definitely deserves it.