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Preview Return To Tupelo

By ElvisNews.com/ Lex, August 03, 2008 | Video

This week we received a preview copy of the upcoming DVD documentary Return To Tupelo. The documentary is made by Michael Rose, who made over 200 shows that aired around the world.

I can’t say much on the artwork yet, since I have to do with a little image on the site for this product. The DVD opening and menu are very stylish, but the buttons appear strange. Hopefully that will be corrected in the final version. The pictures are often edited to create a kind of 3D feel, which is fun, but in my humble opinion it’s done just a little too often; but that is about the only minor I have found. A very big pro is that Rose managed to get hold of some pictures I have never seen before.

The documentary handles Elvis’ youth in Tupelo and Memphis, his rise to stardom until the 1956 Tupelo show, hence the name I guess. The story is narrated by Kris Kristofferson and a lot of known people are interviewed: DJ Fontana, Gordon Stoker, George Klein, but also childhood friends, historians, journalists and girlfriends like June Juanico and Dixie Locke. The filming of Elvis related spots has been done very professional and the editing is high class. Disregarding the fact the story doesn’t tell much new it is told in a way that makes you sit out the 90 minutes easily. It gives a perfect view on those days in the 30s, 40s and 50s and it really makes you understand where Elvis was coming from.

The extras are fun and some are a real good addition to the documentary itself (like “ ‘Washington Merry-Go-Round’ Elvis Controversy”), but some are out of place historically (like the army stuff and the marriage).

My only conclusion can be that this is one of the best documentaries on Elvis I have ever seen, if not the best. Go get it!

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Harvey Alexander wrote on August 19, 2008
I saw this on the Biography channel the other night. Only the last part is concerned with the 56 Tupelo shows and the only footage of that they use is the regular newsreel stuff. I thought the whole thing was too long.