EPiC: ELVIS PRESLEY IN CONCERT
Director: Baz Luhrmann
ADRIANO
Based on this and his 2022 biopic Elvis, it seems like Baz Luhrmann's interest in Elvis Presley is much more geared towards his impact on culture and less on his personal life. In EPiC: Elvis Presley in Concert, that's a little more forgiving. Aside from the tacked-on opening 20 minutes, this concert movie achieves what you'd hope it achieves: watching Presley perform with magnum electricity. In IMAX, you can really feel the seats move, and there are wonderful editing choices that blend simultaneous performances. That's all this movie really is, but that's all I really asked for.
QUENTIN
At this point, your feelings about Elvis Presley are probably set. Nothing I say is going to convince someone who doesn’t care about Elvis to watch EPiC: Elvis Presley in Concert, just like I’m not going to deter massive Elvis fans by saying it’s terrible. With that said, coming from this Elvis fan, EPiC is a must see. The concert footage is electric, providing the on-stage excitement most of us never experienced first-hand, while the off-stage footage goes to great lengths to show Elvis as an actual person and not just the monolithic icon. Like I said, though…you already know, going in both directions.
BODE
If you thought that director Baz Luhrmann said all that needed to be said about Elvis Presley with his 2022 biopic, you’d be mistaken. 159 minutes isn’t enough time for the Australian maximalist to dig into The King’s cultural impact. And after watching EPiC: Elvis Presley in Concert, I’d agree. With the use of previously unreleased footage, and editor Jonathan Redmond blending it all together, EPiC wonderfully captures the raw energy felt from his shows. It occasionally stumbles whenever it goes over previously explored information about his life, but as far as tributes go though, this is a viscerally swaggering one. See it in IMAX.
This film was reviewed by Adriano and Quentin as part of Bitesize Breakdown's coverage of the 2025 Toronto International Film Festival and the 2025 Zurich Film Festival, respectively.