Big Elvis - A 960 lb Elvis impersonator?? (Short Documentary Film)

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A 960-pound Elvis impersonator is convinced he is Elvis Presley's secret love child.

World Premiere 2018 Tribeca Film Festival
Vimeo Staff Pick
Short of the Week

Pete is an Elvis Presley impersonator in Las Vegas, but Pete is not like any Elvis impersonator you may have in mind. Pete is Big Elvis! At his peak, Pete tipped the scales as a 960-pound performer, but not only is Pete preternaturally talented (one fellow impersonator asserts that he has a better voice than The King himself), he also believes himself (with good reason!) to be Presley’s actual, living son.

In his new short documentary, director Paul Stone draws a riveting character portrait that is not only entertaining for its surface-level premise, but presents real pathos, showing that the man who dresses up in a famous performer’s costume every night is, in fact, an inspiring figure in his own right.

Pete Vallee, aka “Big Elvis”, is a delightful subject for a documentary subject. His story and nature draws you in—he is charistmatic, with a kind heart, and an out of the ordinary life. Inspired by his incredible voice, Stone selected Vallee as a subject for a short doc, and in doing so discovered an unexpected depth to his story that is rare in the overplayed portrait documentary genre. More than a fun snapshot of an oddball, Big Elvis sneakily becomes a very relatable narrative of a man struggling with his identity.