Product Details

• Actors: Kurt Russell, Shelly Winters, Season Hubley, Bing Russell, Pat Hingle
• Directors: John Carpenter
• Format: Color, NTSC, Widescreen
• Language: English
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.77:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rated: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
• Studio: Shout! Factory
• DVD Release Date: March 2, 2010
• Run Time: 170 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (103 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B0030ATZI0
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #15,971 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)
• Learn more about "Elvis" on IMDb

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Well it's one for the money (John Carpenter), two for the show (Kurt Russell), three to get ready (Ronnie McDowell's uncanny vocals), now go, cat, go! This legendary and elusive 1979 made-for-TV feature was the first Elvis biopic, and it remains the best. Presented for the first time on DVD complete and uncut (thankyouverymuch), Elvis was produced less than two years after Presley's death. The script hits all the career milestones. It treads lightly on Elvis's dark side (his disdain for his film career, his penchant for shooting out television sets), but don't look here for dirt, scandal, or sordid details of his bloated final years. This is a sincere and sympathetic treatment of the King's life, framed by his apprehension over his upcoming do-or-die 1969 Las Vegas concert. Elvis marked the first collaboration between Carpenter and Russell. From sneer to sideburns, the former Disney child star is a revelation in his Emmy-nominated performance. He is ably supported by Shelley Winters as Elvis's beloved mother, Bing Russell (Kurt's dad) as father Vernon, Pat Hingle as Colonel Tom Parker, and Season Hubley as Priscilla. Look for Joe Mantegna in one of his earliest roles as Joe Esposito, a member of Elvis's infamous entourage, the Memphis Mafia. This DVD rocks with a hunka hunka extra features, including an archival featurette about the production of the film, audio commentary by McDowell (who recorded all of the film's songs in one day), and Elvis-less tribute clips from American Bandstand. Well worth the wait, Elvis is highly recommended for fans who will ever love him tender. --Donald Liebenson

Product Description

Just two years after Elvis Presley passed away, Kurt Russell brought him back to life in the original biopic about the King of Rock n Roll. Released through ABC in 1979, Elvis marked the first time director John Carpenter and actor Kurt Russell would work together in what would become a legendary pairing in film history (Escape From New York, Big Trouble In Little China, The Thing and Escape From L.A.).

Tracing Presleys life from his impoverished childhood to his meteoric rise to stardom to his triumphant return to Las Vegas, Elvis features Shelley Winters (Gladys Presley), Season Hubley (Priscilla Presley), Bing Russell (Kurts real-life father as Vernon Presley), Pat Hingle (Colonel Tom Parker), Joe Mantegna (Memphis Mafia member Joe Esposito) and Ed Begley Jr. (drummer D.J. Fontana) in an all-star supporting cast for an effort that garnered numerous Emmy nominations including Outstanding Lead Actor for Russell. Restored From The Original Film Elements

Bonus Features

* Bringing A Legend To Life Featurette With Archival Interviews Of Kurt Russell And John Carpenter (1979)

* Commentary By The Voice Of Elvis Ronnie McDowell And Author Edie Hand

* Rare Clips From American Bandstand

* Photo Gallery

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

35 of 37 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Glad to see this is finally making it to DVD.... January 19, 2010

By Jeff Monroe

Format:DVD

This was an outstanding (one of the finest) movies about Elvis ever made, and its hard to believe that this movie was made just two years after his untimely death. The cast was great, and Kurt Russell puts in one of his best acting performances,in my humble opinion. I had previously only seen this on television, and on an old VHS copy, so the DVD transfer is most welcome and very well done! The quality of the transfer is excellent, and this version even features some footage that I'd never seen before. This is definately worth picking up, you won't be disappointed. If you are an Elvis fan, you will absolutely love this, and even if you aren't, this film might just make you one.

A bit of trivia here for you Elvis fans out there...this was actually the second (of 3) films that had some kind of Elvis reference to them that Kurt Russell was involved in. Kurt was originally in the Elvis film "It Happened At The World's Fair" (he played the kid who kicked Elvis in the shin in his first ever film appearance), then of course "Elvis The Movie", in which he played Elvis. He then played a thief who was briefly an Elvis impersonator in "3000 Miles To Graceland". The interesting thing is that in that movie (3000 Miles), there is a scene where someone asks his character to autograph an Elvis album in an elevator. The album he signs is the soundtrack to "It Happened At The World's Fair", which Russell was actually in. Pretty interesting stuff....

20 of 21 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Kurt is King May 17, 2004

By A Customer

Format:VHS Tape

I bought this recently and remember it well from it's many viewings on TV. Kurt Russell is very, very good as Elvis, no-one has ever really bettered this performance. However, it is his performance that has really made this a cult classic. The script seems to be just a collection of Elvis quotes made over the years and a lot of scenes are out of sequence to true events. Elvis's first girlfriend was not Bonnie, he didn't get up on stage and perform in Germany and so on, but I guess it had to be done for dramatic reasons. Season Hubley as Priscilla is terrible, wooden and stilted. Shelley Winters is excellent as Gladys Presley although poor old Vernon only gets about 2 lines in the whole movie. Charlie Hodge makes an appearance as himself and does a good job (how could he go wrong?!). Although Kurt Russell has made many movies since, he has never quite hit the highs promised with this performance.

It's worth buying if you're an Elvis fan, however beware as there are many lengths of the movie ranging from 120 min up to 200 min. It would be worth putting out on DVD as there are many fans out there and this the best of the Elvis bios. DVD would also clean up the picture and the sound would be better. I'm surprised it hasn't been done before now.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars A Review of "Elvis: The Movie" Starring Kurt Russell August 24, 2001

By "lore1"

Format:VHS Tape

Elvis has been played by many different actors since he found his way into the national consciousness as an icon of twentieth century culture, but none have handled the role with the skill that Kurt Russell displays in this 1979 ABC tv movie. While the story does take some artistic license by using composite characters and rearranging some of the chronology of Elvis' life, it still is full of accurate biographical about the singer. John Carpenter's (a frequent collaborator of Russell's) direction is amazing considering the typically limited budget of the average tv movie. Russell does an excellent recreation of Elvis' speaking voice, while country singer Ronnie McDowell provides the vocals on some of Elvis' biggest hits. McDowell sounds so much like Elvis when singing that it's absolutely indistinguishable from the real thing. This movie is the best of the Elvis biographies. If you're an Elvis fan, order ir now. If you're not, well, get it anyway. At the very least, you'll become a Kurt Russell fan.