'The King' Trailer: Eugene Jarecki Takes Elvis On A Musical Roadtrip

“If Elvis is your metaphor for America, we’re about to OD.” The chilling closing line of the trailer for “The King” – the newest documentary from Eugene Jarecki – perfectly captures what the film explores: Elvis Presley’s life and career framed as a metaphor to the modern history of America. Known from his direction on documentaries “The Trials of Henry Kissinger,” “Why We Fight,” and “Reagan” Jarecki is no stranger to sprawling narrative documentaries – and “The King” is no exception.

The film initially premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in 2017, nearly one year ago, and received high praise. Following director Eugene Jarecki in Presley’s previously owned 1963 Rolls Royce in what’s best described as a “musical road trip” across America, “THE King” examines the life of the renowned rock-and-roll legend juxtaposed against the regressing culture of America. The trailer boasts immaculate cinematography, depicting the cities and countryside of America, while a choral “My Country, ‘Tis of Thee” plays over the footage – suggesting a rich, but flawed, history.

Here’s the official synopsis:

Forty years after the death of Elvis Presley, the new film from two-time Sundance Film Festival Grand Jury Prize winner Eugene Jarecki takes the King’s 1963 Rolls-Royce on a musical road trip across the country Presley left behind. Over thousands of miles, from the Deep South to New York, Las Vegas and countless points between, a wide spectrum of Americans – some luminary, others unknown – join the journey, expressing themselves in word and song. What emerges is a penetrating portrait of a nation in crisis and a metaphoric connection between Elvis and America.  For just as a country boy lost his authenticity and became a king, so too his country lost her democracy and became an empire.  One died on the toilet; the other now faces an uncertain future under the closest thing she’s ever had to a monarch.

From executive producers Steven Soderbergh, Errol Morris, and Rosanne Cash, and featuring contributions from familiar faces Alec Baldwin, Chuck D, Ethan Hawke, Ashton Kutcher, and Emmylou Harris, “The King” is slated for a June 22nd release, courtesy of Oscilloscope Laboratories.