How to Start Watching: Elvis Movies

How To Start Watching:
Elvis Movies

By “Doc” Hunter Bush, Podcast Czar

The thing about these How To articles is, there really isn’t a  *wrong*  way, as long as you achieve what you set out to do: get into watching “Elvis Movies”. So I guess the important question is: What do YOU mean by “Elvis Movies”? Because there’s Elvis the man, and then there’s Elvis the icon, and those are two very different milieus of cinema.

If you’re looking to get into Elvis the man, the performer, actor, singer; just know that the movies won’t have a hugely obvious variety, though the more you look the greater a breadth you’ll find. Elvis Presley, the young man from Memphis by way of Tupelo, Mississippi will have that same endearingly mushy accent no matter who or what he’s portraying on screen. He’ll be named Rusty, or Clint, Lucky, Deke, Mike twice, Johnny twice, even Tulsa, and he’ll be playing a lot of young men returning from war, or working men with a side job as a musician and a dream of stardom. He’ll be soft spoken, charming, respectful, romantic, and have a personal code. He’ll stand up for himself, and his lady, and whatever’s right. And most importantly, he’ll sing.

If you’re more interested in Elvis the icon; in how he has continued to be represented; in the shadow he has cast across not just pop culture but culture period, you’re gonna get a lot of… for lack of a better term: goofy shit. Straight-up Goof Troop stuff. It’s easy to make fun of the King: he was, for a variety of reasons, a caricature of himself at times. A mama’s boy, a karate enthusiast, an emotional eater, a man with a drug problem exacerbated by those around him and the pressure to continue being The King of Rock and Roll.

You’re also gonna get a lot of aliens. Thanks to the Weekly World News (think FOX News by way of The Onion), the concept that Elvis had faked his death to live a quiet life away from the public got all mixed up with their other frequent cover story fodder: UFOs, resulting in a lot of “Elvis is an alien”/“Elvis is living with the aliens” gags.

He also inspired an entire culture of parody (or, the argument could be made, homage) in the form of Elvis impersonators. There are annual competitions to crown the best Elvis impersonator. Japan had gangs of Elvii, who would hang out and just be Elvis; no trouble, no nonsense, just a buncha folks doing a group hang dressed as various iterations of Elvis. That’s legacy, baby.

Elvis the performer:

I’d start at not quite the beginning, but damn close: Elvis’ third film, 1957’s Jailhouse Rock. The first Elvis song I knew, the earliest “music video” I could remember, those iconic images of E in the striped shirt on the avant garde jail set rocking out all come from this flick. Elvis plays Vince Everett, a young man convicted of manslaughter who makes friends with his cellmate Hunk (Mickey Shaughnessy) and once they’ve both served their time, sets off to start a music career. He meets Peggy (Judy Tyler) and the two eventually start a record label after Vince has a hit song stolen by a music industry bigwig. Vince and Peggy keep not quite hitting it off, and have a falling out as Vince’s celebrity and ego grow in equal measure. Though the film culminates in a happy ending, the fact that there is actually a lot of story meat on that bone always pleases me.

Further Recommendation: If you dig bad boy Elvis, try Roustabout (1964)

Flaming Star (1960) sees Elvis giving what I believe is still his most critically praised performance playing Pacer Burton, a mixed race Texan rancher caught between two worlds when the local Kiowa tribe, his mother’s people, attacks his town. Elvis still performs songs, but they’re less of a focus, allowing Elvis to really act in a much more layered way than usual. It’s a little slower and more serious, but is a genuinely good movie and watching it, you can easily see a different world where Elvis made a life for himself as a genre actor. Also - and this crosses over into Elvis as icon - an image from Flaming Star was used by Andy Warhol to produce several pieces including Eight Elvises.

Further Recommendation: If you dig cowboy Elvis, try Charro! (1969)

For my money, you could do worse than 1962’s Girls! Girls! Girls! which is just as fun as it sounds while actually being not nearly as shallow as it sounds. Elvis plays Ross Carpenter, a day trip sailor (who moonlights as a singer, natch) who learns that his boss is retiring and decides to try to muster the funds to buy the boat he sails on and make his fortune. He’s also caught between two women played by Robin Ganter and Laurel Dodge respectively, one who keeps him at arm’s length and the other who is wholly gaga over him. This one is silly, funny and showcases Elvis the ladies’ man - which is an undeniable part of his life and legacy.

Further Recommendation: If you dig loverboy Elvis, try Live a Little, Love a Little (1968)

Elvis the icon:

If you’re interested in the lasting cultural footprint of Elvis Presley, what better place to start than a biopic? How about a damn good one: 1979’s John Carpenter-directed Elvis, starring Kurt Russell as the titular man, and featuring the great Shelley Winters as his momma, and Pat Hingle as manager Col. Tom Parker. It’s a nice bit of sensationalism anchored by solid performances and great filmmaking. The only hurdle with it for me was the made-for-TV, commercial break pacing but that’s not insurmountable. Who doesn’t love a built-in pee break?

Further Recommendation: if you like the biopic approach, try Rock-a-Doodle (1991)

Don Coscarelli’s 2002 horror comedy Bubba Ho-Tep latches onto those Weekly World News headlines and imagines an aging Elvis Presley masquerading as an Elvis impersonator named Sebastian Haff (Bruce Campbell) in a retirement community fighting against a redneck mummy alongside a still alive JFK in the body of a black man (Ossie Davis). It’s absolutely bashit bananas (batnanas, if you will ) in all the right ways and, as an artifact of Elvis’ cultural significance, represents the common fans’ inability to accept the death of the King.

Further Recommendation: if you like the silly approach, try Heartbreak Hotel (1988)

Last but not least is the posthumous phenomenon of Elvis impersonators. With the possible exception of Michael Jackson, has anyone else inspired such a passionate niche group? There are Elvis impersonator competitions all around the world, and 2001’s 3000 Miles to Graceland aims to cash in on that subculture. Now, this movie isn’t what you might call “good” but it might scratch a certain Bad Movie Night itch; it doesn’t seem to ever decide if it’s a buddy comedy between likable criminals or a Tarantino knockoff with slightly less-likable ones. BUT. The cast is hard to top, especially in that era: Kurt Russell (again), Kevin Costner, Courtney Cox, Christian Slater, Kevin Pollack, David Arquette, Jon Lovitz, Howie Long, Bokeem Woodbine, Thomas Hayden Church, and Ice-T (among others) all appear in various roles, many of which are Elvis pastiches. It’s been a while since I’ve actually seen this one which, despite seeming like perfect streaming fodder, is rarely available.

Further Recommendation: if you like an Elvis impersonation, try Lilo & Stitch (2002)

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I hope I’ve been able to help you dip a toe into the world(s) of Elvis Movies, and I hope you find
something to enjoy. Elvis left a complex legacy in both film and culture at large. If you’re down with reading a little bit more of my thoughts on all things related to the King of Rock and Roll, I wrote about Danzig’s 2020 album DANZIG Sings ELVIS for MovieJawn, and you can read it by clicking right here.

Until next time, Long Live the Movies!