
And the first assistant director comes over and says, “I think Tom has that flu thing.” No one had ever heard of it, really.įEDI: The beginning-beginning, I remember. ” There I was rehearsing a scene: Tom Hanks as Colonel Tom Parker, Elvis’s manager, is guiding Elvis through the showroom and hundreds of girls are kissing him. I was talking about this to someone last night, saying, “Right when the pandemic started, I was ready to shoot Elvis.

And while most of it has been difficulty and pain, there have been some, for want of a better expression, silver linings. The pandemic was just the trigger point to remind everybody that no matter who you are, where you are, what country, what power, there’s always something bigger than the human being that can bring us all to the ground. LUHRMANN: With the pandemic and the tectonic historic plates that are smashing together right now, including the war in Europe, let’s recognize that every hundred years or so, the human journey comes up against historic pressures. I was wondering how different it was for you to create the film during the pandemic, especially since it’s such an American story and you had to do it all in Australia. I’m literally going to go past that “Welcome to Las Vegas” sign that opens the movie.įEDI: I love that. So did you see the Elvis reel? It’s so funny that I’m talking about Elvis with you and I’m on the road to Vegas. LUHRMANN: It works both ways, because every time I talk to you I learn something new, too. You’re my teacher and I’ve got homework to do. So I write it down in my notes like I’m in school again. You should never stop doing that.įEDI: I feel like every time we talk, I learn something new. LUHRMANN: I love that about you, you actually write stuff down. It’s magical.įEDI: I remember the first time we hung out, you told me about some hotel in Tokyo.įEDI: Yeah! And it’s in my notes to go to that hotel. LUHRMANN: Well, add Tokyo in there as well. I like to say, “Dream in Paris, have fun in London, get lost in Shanghai, dance in Brazil, work in L.A., and live in New York.”įEDI: I haven’t been to some of those places, but I can’t wait to go. How about we don’t do the interview and work on a song instead? LUHRMANN: I’m in the back of a car on the way to Vegas. CHARLES BRAMESCOīAZ LUHRMANN: Young legend! I knew you’d be with your guitar! His tendency to remix the classics brings him to the life and times of Elvis Aaron Presley Jr., as played by a revelatory Austin Butler, and to a conversation with another musical wunderkind, the producer and songwriter Omer Fedi.

Scott Fitzgerald’s prose in The Great Gatsby, Moulin Rouge! ’s playlist of 20th century chart-toppers-through his singular brand of maximalism. Famously hands-on with everything from set design to musical soundtracking, the 59-year-old Australian refreshes well-known iconography-the Shakespearean verse of Romeo + Juliet, F. That’s not very prolific, but work takes time when you treat each production like a grand edifice to be constructed from the ground up. All Clothing and Accessories (Worn Throughout) Baz’s Own.Įlvis, Baz Luhrmann’s extravagant new monument to the King of Rock and Roll, marks the director’s sixth feature film in 30 years.
