Thank you, Baz. Thank you very much for this music doc.

When Baz Luhrmann was making “Elvis,” he intended to use unused footage from “Elvis: That’s the Way It Is” and “Elvis on Tour” for that film. The footage came without sound, until it was restored and synced to existing audio sources, including a 45 minute audio recording of Elvis Presley talking about his life story. And whatever existing unused content was used has been placed in Luhrmann’s follow-up “EPiC: Elvis Presley in Concert.”

This is neither a concert film nor a documentary, but rather an experience in which the audience can feel something through the restoration. You can see the sweet on Elvis’ face when he performs at concerts, and at the same time, you can feel bad that the last few years of his life has been rough. It regards his health and mental state, kudos to his manager Colonel Tom Parker. So, while I was enjoying the songs he was singing, and the editing that combines both recordings and performances, I was also acknowledging his hardships.

Thinking back to my experience watching “Elvis: That’s the Way It Is,” “Elvis” (2022), “Return of the King: The Rise and Fall of Elvis Presley,” and even “Priscilla,” I can’t help falling in love with the reminders on who the King was, what he symbolized, and how he was defined not just as a celebrity, but also as a human being.

Watching “EPiC” in IMAX, I was dazzled by the restoration of the unused footage. The colors that come in reds, pinks, blues, and yellows and so forth. It all looks and feels clear, and I’ve already mentioned the sweat on the King’s face. And periodically after each music segment, a person or two was clapping in the audience. At least that’s how I saw it at my screening. These clips and performances aren’t scrapped from the bottom of the barrel as an excuse to make this doc. They’re pieces required to allow fans to see different angles of his music life. And my favorite regards him singing “Oh Happy Day,” which holds some high spirits.

Luhrmann is a filmmaker who knows how to glamorize and tell a story, and yet with both Elvis movies, he never overexploits the singer nor his fans. He tells these films with energy, music, and consistency. Other than the titles of this doc and NEON logo (which is probably the studio’s best look), he doesn’t even overexploit himself a filmmaker. He just lets the restoration and editing (by his recent collaborator Jonathan Redmond) show us the Honka Honka Burning Love.

We could have used a little more narration as sometimes the colors can be distracting, but unlike the recent film version of “Wuthering Heights,” the look and feel never upstages the main character, who is somebody we all know, love, and miss. In fact, for a short while, I was thinking about “Amazing Grace,” which showed the late Aretha Franklin recording a live album with the Southern California Community Choir at the New Temple Missionary Baptist Church in Watts, Los Angeles in 1972. I think what both these films have in common, besides the restoration, are the spirits and heart that are placed in history. We can feel something through these late, great singers, and we know when the tap our feet.

Opens in IMAX This Weekend

Expands Next Week in Regular Formats