Even the rare revelatory gems – songs like “If I Can Dream,” “Separate Ways” or “My Way” – didn’t fully penetrate the veil shrouding the man.īinder’s philosophical inquiry, then, was not merely philosophical. His music could have been a window into his inner life, but since he wasn’t a songwriter, his material depended on the words of others. Over the years, he had submitted to numerous interviews and press conferences, but the quality of these exchanges was erratic, frequently characterized by superficial answers to even shallower questions. Once, when informed of a potential biography in the works, he expressed doubt that there was even a story to tell. In the trailer to Luhrmann’s biopic, a version of this back-and-forth plays out: Elvis, portrayed by Austin Butler, says to the camera, “I’ve got to get back to who I really am.” Two frames later, Dacre Montgomery, playing Binder, asks, “And who are you, Elvis?”Īs a scholar of southern history who has written a book about Elvis, I still find myself wondering the same thing. According to the director, their exchanges left the performer engrossed in deep soul-searching. (THE CONVERSATION) In Baz Luhrmann’s “Elvis,” there’s a scene based on actual conversations that took place between Elvis Presley and Steve Binder, the director of a 1968 NBC television special that signaled the singer’s return to live performing.īinder, an iconoclast unimpressed by Presley’s recent work, had pushed Elvis to reach back into his past to revitalize a career stalled by years of mediocre movies and soundtrack albums.
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