I can't let my appreciation of Elvis Presley's music and career get in the way of this review. The first twenty five minutes or so of rehearsals, fooling around and Elvis falling off his chair a few times seemed a frivolous waste of time. You couldn't even call the rehearsals anything serious because what was shown didn't have Elvis deliver anything in it's entirety, except perhaps his dual rendition of 'Little Sister' riffing into a refrain of the Beatles' 'Get Back'. When the documentary finally got to the actual concert things picked up considerably, but maybe for all the wrong reasons. Looking tanned, healthy and fit, and clad in his signature white jumpsuit, Presley was energized beyond the requirements of his considerable song list, with rushed arrangements of classics like "Hound Dog' and 'Heartbreak Hotel', with his martial art persona very much in evidence and striking an almost embarrassing posture for much of the latter portion of the film. Granted, the concert footage consists of six separate performances over a three day span, so I'm thinking that actually being there one might have experienced a more natural delivery from The King; on screen it just looks like the adrenaline kicked in and Presley had to work off his considerable energy. What was definitely cool was catching some celebrity faces in Las Vegas on hand to catch the opening show, names like Joey Bishop, Cary Grant, Sammy Davis Jr., Juliet Prowse and Norm Crosby. The after show credits showed Elvis greeting some of them and for anyone in attendance I'm sure it had to feel special. But of all the Elvis Presley specials, documentaries and concert films out there, this one doesn't qualify as the definitive one.

That low rating is not so much a comment on the quality of the documentary, but how depressed the whole movie makes me feel after watching it. Just two years after his triumphant leather-clad Comeback, here is Elvis at the beginning of his fossilisation into the white-suited self-parody he became during the 1970s. The superior 2001 re-edit makes the horror even keener, when at first Elvis and the band are seen at length rehearsing in an charmingly informal atmosphere (musically the movie peaks with the excellent "Little Sister"/"Get Back" medley). Next come the seven (!) backing singers, the middle-aged, middle class audience and the tacky Vegas ambiance, and by the end Elvis is slamming through a set which dispatches his 1950s hits with obscene haste in order to concentrate on the schmaltzy ballads and overblown bombast. He was dead just seven years later. If only he'd done the '68 Special and then fired Colonel Tom, booted the freeloading Memphis Mafia to the kerb and hired a hotshot young manager with some good ideas. There was a big rock'n'roll revival just around the corner and Europe (especially the UK) would have been Elvis' for the taking. Imagine if he'd survived to receive the same sort of multi-generational accord Johnny Cash did during the 1990s. Ah, if only. The 30-something Elvis of 1970's "That's The Way It Is" was a little wider in the face but still lean and vital and capable of so much more. Watching this movie is like seeing Elvis shrug, smile and wave goodbye as he turns to walk down a long, dark tunnel...

Excellent movie for True Elvis fans. there are some rare scenes. But the songs were good. I'd highly recommend that fans as well as people that didn't like his music watch this movie. Every time i watch Elvis That's The Way It Is I think about why the chose the name. The reason at least in my mind is because it show Elvis as fans didn't see him when he was alive and well. The song choices were very good. My best memory of this one was him sinning in Vegas. The reason I'd recommend this movie it showcases the King at his best. It show's Elvis before all the jumpsuits came out. He sound's just as good as he did on stage. God bless Elvis and his band.

Documentary on Elvis Presley the singer, directed by Denis Sanders and chronicling the King's '69 comeback as he prepares for a big show in Las Vegas. Either you're entranced by Presley's megalomaniacal antics or you're not--he certainly is!--while the camera continues to trail right behind E.P. as if were the two were somehow attached. Veteran cinematographer Lucien Ballard's participation in this film is rather bizarre, but his solid work puts the whole thing over, even more so than the music. Capturing every star-twitch and running bead of sweat, the documentary does become a fascinating look at one person's stardom, his ritual. Director Sanders keeps the pacing lively, and keeps the songs coming, though most of the soundtrack is made up of cover tunes. Questions such as why Elvis felt the need to sing music already made popular by other artists never get addressed nor answered, which is why the film is mainly for devotees. The on-screen fans are quirky and interesting, probably more so than the star himself, while the movie provides some brief razzle-dazzle and tacky backstage glamour. **1/2 from ****