ELVIS COLLECTION SET!

Six movies by Elvis:

HARUM SCARUM(1965):

This is a lot better movie than I thought it would
be! First off, there is actually a plot to it, as well
as a couple of decent songs(Harem Holiday, Hey
Little Girl[the dance number here is great!], So
Close and Yet So Far and My Desert Serenade)!

This also has the great Billy Barty(his second
movie with Elvis, the first being Roustabout!),
Michael Ansara, and Mary Ann Mobley, who
all put in fine performances!

Again, the dance number about half way through
the film by the orphan girl(Sari) was rather
interesting to watch!! B

From another reviewer at Amazon:

Say this for Harum Scarum: At least it has
the virtue of boasting one of the strangest
settings of any Elvis Presley vehicle. Elvis
plays an action-movie star on a goodwill
tour of the Middle East who's kidnapped
in a remote country that has turned its
back on modernity. Vilified as an "American
unbeliever," he is enlisted by the Lord of
the Assassins in a plot to kill a monarch
(they've mistaken his filmic kung fu fighting
skills for the real thing). And this is an
Elvis picture? The soundtrack has a
particularly mad selection of faux-"Kismet"
numbers relating to the setting, with
lyrics such as "I'm gonna go where the
desert sun is/I'm gonna go where I know
the fun is." Hints that the whole thing
is a Rudolph Valentino spoof help the
early going, but it gets pretty draggy.
Elvis looks liveliest in a Vegas sequence...
a bit of foreshadowing. --Robert Horton

This is really a cute movie! And probably one of
the most darling young girls in any movie is in it!
Again not a lot of drama, but it has a plot, and
some good humor, tho the songs are pretty
forgettable!

This also has a very young Kurt Russell in it in
a short role! B+

From another reviewer at Amazon:

The novelty backdrop of the 1962 Seattle
World's Fair lends wonderful space-age
scenery to this Elvis vehicle. The King
co-stars with a pre-2001 Gary Lockwood
as freelance pilots stranded in Seattle,
where Elvis spends more time babysitting
a little kid than panting after ostensible
love interest Joan O'Brien. There's more
plot than usual for a Presley picture,
which in this case is not a good thing,
and the songs are pallid, save "One
Broken Heart for Sale." The real kick
is the futuristic look of the World's
Fair, as personified by Seattle's Space
Needle and Monorail (both of which
serve as backdrops for EP songs). Just
three years out of the Army, Elvis's
persona is thoroughly square and tame,
ruffled only by the occasional comic
double-take. And yes indeed, that is
little Kurt Russell, future star of Elvis,
kicking the King in the shins in a couple
of scenes. --Robert Horton

I've always known that I didn't especially care for
this movie, but never really could put my finger
on why! Well, I finally figured it out after watching
it for the umpteenth time! Elvis is not a very convincing
bad ass! Which makes this a pretty boring movie!
A couple of decent songs including the title song
and Treat Me Nice, but just not one of Elvis' best!! C+

From another reviewer at Amazon:

Elvis Presley's third and best film is this musical
romp released in 1957, just as the Big "E" was
reaching the peak of his hip-swiveling pre-army
success. Filmed in ultra-cool black and white,
the movie stars Elvis as a good ol' boy who saves
a woman from an assault but kills her attacker,
so he's convicted of manslaughter and sent to
jail. While doing time he takes up the guitar
and becomes a singing sensation, ready for
the big time when he's finally released. He
becomes a big star but his inflated ego gets
him into trouble with his former cellmate
and his new girlfriend. Short on plot but
heavy on rock & roll, this EP classic features
such hit songs as "Treat Me Nice," "Baby, I Don't
Care," "Don't Leave Me Now," and, of course,
the classic title song, performed in an
elaborate jailhouse number that Elvis
choreographed himself. This is Elvis in
all his big-screen glory, and the movie's
upbeat ending made it a huge success during
its original release. --Jeff Shannon

This movie is a lot of fun! Not much in the way
of music, but the story is pretty good(Elvis is a
race car driver who's behind on his taxes big time!),
and some really decent co-stars!

With Elvis is Nancy Sinatra(who doesn't get to
sing much here), Bill Bixby (returning for a
second time to an Elvis movie), Gale Gordon
(The Lucy Show) and William Schallert(the
father on both The Patty Duke Show and The
Hardy Boys, as well as being in Star Trek TOS
episode The Trouble With Tribbles!)

This also has several top-notch race car drivers
from the past: Richard Petty, Cale Yarborough
and Buddy Baker!

The movie moves along pretty good, with several
good chuckles! Worth a watch or two! B+

From another reviewer at Amazon:

Elvis looks sleek and cool in Speedway, a decided
improvement over the pasty indifference he
displayed in his middle-era range of pictures. The
movie itself is standard Presley formula, with the
King again playing a race-car driver, this time in
trouble with an IRS agent (Nancy Sinatra) over his
taxes. (There's even a production number about
taxes. Argggh.) On the plus side, a bunch of scenes
are set in the Hangout, a Pulp Fiction-esque diner
with booths shaped like cars and lots of dancers
doing the frug. Nancy sings a cool-weird Lee
Hazlewood tune, "Your Groovy Self," which
should have been picked up by the Austin Powers
folks. The plot reflects Elvis's real-life penchant
for giving money and cars away, although it's mostly
predatory manager Bill Bixby who causes the
financial problems. As ho-hum as this outing is,
you'll probably want one of Elvis's racing-stripe
windbreakers after you see it. --Robert Horton

Shelley Fabares(Girl Happy) is back with Elvis, playing
a spoiled little rich girl that Elvis is hired to sing for
and possibly marry! Also returning is Jack Mullaney
(Tickle Me) who provides a lot of humor along with
the rest of Elvis' band members!

As a cute twist here we have cast as Shelley's rich
father, Carl Betz who also played her father in the
hit TV show The Donna Reed Show!

Songs include a pretty little number, All That I Am,
as well as Am I Ready and I'll Be Back!

Not an earth shattering movie, no real heavy plot
here, just three girls trying to get Elvis to marry
them! Not one of Elvis' best. C+

From another reviewer at Amazon:

Elvis is harried by three, count 'em, three
marriage-minded dames in Spinout, in which
he plays a race car driver/rock & roll singer.
He's offered big bucks to compromise his lifestyle
by playing a party for a rich girl (frequent co-star
Shelley Fabares) and drive a millionaire's prototype
car, but Elvis isn't tempted by material gain. (Sort
of an inverse plot to EP's real showbiz career.)
Most of the picture has the flat, studio-bound
look that director Norman Taurog perfected in
his many Presley vehicles, with only the big
race scene in the last 10 minutes perking things
up. However, the songs are rockin'-er than
usual for a mid-Elvis movie, with "Stop, Look
and Listen," "I'll Be Back," and "Adam and Evil"
all fun in a dragstrip kind of way. (Let us ignore
"Smorgasbord.") Elvis is in his chunky pre-comeback
form here, and looks understandably bored
by the plot. --Robert Horton

This is a wonderful movie if only for the fact that
it's set in old Las Vegas! Several scenes show most
of the old casinos that are no longer alive! It also
has Ann-Margaret who does a pretty good job of
keeping up with Elvis in this!

This also has William Demarest(Uncle Charlie in My
Three Sons [he replaced William Frawly after he
left the show]), and Teri Garr(TVs Star Trek TOS
episode Assignment: Earth)!

The scene at the pool early on in the movie was
a lot of fun! And the music, while a lot of it was
just so-so, had a couple of top-notch numbers,
including the great title song, What'd I Say, and
I Need Somebody Tonight! A number done by a
group called the Forte Four, The Climb was
another decent song.

The race at the end of the movie is absolutely
great, as the course runs through downtown
Vegas, as well as over the dam and through
a lot ot the desert surrounding Vegas!! Overall
a great movie! A

From another reviewer at Amazon:

It's pretty tough to beat Jailhouse Rock in
terms of sheer entertainment, but Elvis
lovers are particularly fond of this 1964
hit. The Big E plays race-car driver Lucky
Jackson, who arrives in Las Vegas for an
upcoming Grand Prix race. Lucky's car
needs a new engine, so he gets a waiter
job at a casino and starts working his
crooning charms on Rusty Martin
(Ann-Margret). It's their on-screen
chemistry that makes this flick a lot of
fun; Presley never had a better costar
than Ann-Margret, and their race-car
romance is quintessential 1960s fluff.
Then there are the songs, of course,
including the snappy title tune, a rockin'
rendition of Ray Charles's "What'd I Say?,"
and "The Yellow Rose of Texas." Viva
Las Vegas is one of the Elvis movies that
stands the test of time, when the legend
was still at his peak. And if you're wondering
if the King gets his car fixed in time to win
the race, well, check out the movie to find
out. --Jeff Shannon

COMPLETE LIST OF DVDs
LIST OF MOVIE DVDs
LIST OF ANIME/ANIMATION DVDs
LIST OF BOND DVDs
LIST OF DISNEY DVDs
LIST OF ELVIS DVDs
LIST OF MUSIC DVDs
LIST OF STAR TREK/STAR WARS DVDs
LIST OF SUPERHERO DVDs
LIST OF TELEVISION DVDs

TO PHOTO PAGES OF MOVIES:

A
B
C
D
E
F
G
H
I
J-K
L
M
N
O
P-Q
R
S
T
U-V
W
X-Z

ANIME/ANIMATION
ANIME SUPERHERO
BOND
DISNEY
ELVIS
HOLIDAY
MUSIC
MUSICALS
OTHER
SERIALS
SETS #-M
SETS N-Z
STAR TREK/STAR WARS
SUPERHERO
TELEVISION A-B
TELEVISION C-D
TELEVISION E-F
TELEVISION G-H
TELEVISION I-K
TELEVISION L
TELEVISION M
TELEVISION N-O
TELEVISION P-Q
TELEVISION R
TELEVISION Gene Roddenberry
TELEVISION S
TELEVISION T
TELEVISION U-W
TELEVISION X-Z
TELEVISION STAR TREK/STAR WARS
TELEVISION SUPERHERO

Music playing is:
Music From Spinout:
All That I Am
By: Elvis Presley