which is better?
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Archived from the IMDb Discussion Forums — Elvis: That's the Way It Is
jkescander — 20 years ago(April 05, 2005 01:31 PM)
if u could only get one, which would u get - this one, or ELVIS ON TOUR, from 1972? i haven't seen them since they were in theatres way back then, and i can't remember which one i liked better.?? DOH
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keeponwithbrian — 20 years ago(April 30, 2005 11:17 AM)
If you're an Elvis completist, both would be good to own, but overall "That's the way it is" is the better of the two for several reasons. 1) In 1970, Elvis was in peak condition physically and vocally and that performance is thrilling. 2) "That's the way it is" is available on DVD now, while "ON TOUR" is not. Go with "That's the way" if you want to see Elvis in amazing form. Other essentials are the 68 comeback and the Aloha from Hawaii concert, both awesome.
- "It's such a fine line between stupid and clever." - Spinal Tap
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kohntarkosz — 16 years ago(January 10, 2010 07:43 PM)
I don't think I've ever seen the original version of That's The Way It Is, only the 2001 Special Edition. Both that and Elvis On Tour were on TCM a couple days ago, and I watched both.
I have to say I like both. That's The Way It Is is nice because it focuses on the music. At least, the version I saw did. My understanding is they cut a lot of non musical BS, which Parker had inserted into the original cut to hype Elvis' return to live performance.
But anyway, the film I saw was basically just about the music. The rehearsal footage was cool, particularly the Little Sister/Get Back segment. I always had the impression that Elvis hated The Beatles, so it was kinda neat to see him singing one of their songs (or at least part of one anyway).
The concert footage I think is great. There's some nice closeups of James Burton when he's playing guitar solos (contrasting against Elvis On Tour, where a lot of the concert footage is presented in a split screen format, with shots that look like the cameramen couldn't make up their mind if they should stay on Elvis or zoom in on James). I know, you're thinking "It's an Elvis film, not a James Burton film", but I'm a big guitar geek, and for that style of playing, James is one of the best. And he's got that cool looking Paisley Pink Telecaster, which is always nice to look at.
I think both films have a good selection of songs. That's The Way It Is seems to have more of his 50's era hits, but there's also songs like You Don't Have To Say You Love Me, In The Ghetto and You Lost That Loving Feeling.
Both films feature lots of ElvisI won't say he screws up songs, but there's a lot of times in both films where he seems like he's more interested in kissing the women and being silly than he is in singing. He sings a couple lines, then abandons the rest of the verse while he's kissing the girls. But that's alright. When he DOES sing, he sounds great.
And I also want to say that both films represent Elvis during what I think was the best part of his career. He'd left Hollywood, committed himself to singing full time again. And I don't know if it was because his singing voice actually improved, or if it's just that he had more confidence in his ability. He wasn't really singing rock n roll anymore (in my opinion, he hadn't for many many years). It was sort of a mix of country and gospel and sort of middle of the road pop. But I think the new songs he was singing were the best of his career. And I think this is where he really shined as a singer.
And no disrespect meant towards Bill Black, DJ Fontana and Scotty Moore, but I think the band he had with Burton, Scheff, Ron Tutt, etc was the best band he ever had.
So to sum up, I think both films offer awesome Elvis performances. If you can, check out both of them. -
Woodyanders — 1 year ago(April 24, 2024 12:04 AM)
I think this doc is a little better than Elvis on Tour because it gives the viewer a strong sense of Elvis as both a person and an entertainer. I especially love the rehearsal footage of Presley goofing around with his band.
You've seen Guy Standeven in something because the man was in everything.