If it wasn't for the presence of Frank McHugh and Elsa Lanchester in this film, I think I would have knocked the rating down one star as they really turn a silly premise into a lot of fun just by being there. Elvis Presley may be the star, and two attractive young leading ladies Dodie Marshall and Pat Priest do their best, along with Pat Harrington Jr. (as a beatnik) and Skip Ward (as Presley's rival), but it's McHugh's familiar laugh from all those great 1930s Warner Brothers films and Lancaster in her lengthy single scene (singing and dancing and insulting the king of rock and roll) who walk away with the film. There's also a Bob Denver like minor character, a rather flamboyant young man, who gets laughs simply by his unique presence.
The silly story has Presley out of the Navy and becoming involved in scuba diving to collect a treasure, utilizing McHugh's boat, getting involved in romantic misunderstandings, and being seen in tight scuba gear, breaking into song every now and then. He has a comical scene with yoga instructor Lancaster who begins to sing out of the blue, resulting in a delightful duet. The presence of these veteran actors reminds me of what made many of Jerry Lewis's lesser vehicles all the better simply by their presence in it. Films like this in Elvis's catalog show that producers were desperate to keep him in the public eye as a movie star, utilizing any type of ridiculous story to get him on the screen just so he could sing and shake his bottom while playing a guitar. Definitely not a classic, but filled with innocent charm that had me smiling as I bobbed my head to some forgettable songs.
The silly story has Presley out of the Navy and becoming involved in scuba diving to collect a treasure, utilizing McHugh's boat, getting involved in romantic misunderstandings, and being seen in tight scuba gear, breaking into song every now and then. He has a comical scene with yoga instructor Lancaster who begins to sing out of the blue, resulting in a delightful duet. The presence of these veteran actors reminds me of what made many of Jerry Lewis's lesser vehicles all the better simply by their presence in it. Films like this in Elvis's catalog show that producers were desperate to keep him in the public eye as a movie star, utilizing any type of ridiculous story to get him on the screen just so he could sing and shake his bottom while playing a guitar. Definitely not a classic, but filled with innocent charm that had me smiling as I bobbed my head to some forgettable songs.