Viva Las Vegas

9/5/2019

Viva the King and Annie. Elvis Presley movies, by and large, aren't very good. Thirty one feature length pictures he made, of which arguably only half a dozen are jointly watchable and entertaining. But even the stinkers have fans, and not just fans of the King in general, also cinema fans happy to embrace the cheese and kind of just run with it. Yet to totally dismiss Presley's input into the world of cinema is doing a disservice to the small number of movies he made that actually hold up well under scrutiny. One such film is Viva Las Vegas. A film that is of course a frothy hip shaking colourful bonanza, but one that also shows that given a quality co-star to work off, Presley had it in him to move successfully away from the cash cow dirge that his manager Colonel Tom Parker was bindi

12/29/2020

Most Elvis movies were the product of a conveyor belt. Quickly written and produced and Elvis was not stretched as an actor or singer. Viva Las Vegas does not stretch this formula but is fun, thanks in part due to the chemistry between Elvis and Ann Margret. Elvis plays race car driver Lucky Jackson who is working as a waiter in Vegas so he can pay for a new engine. He plans to take on aristocratic Count Mancini in the race and both are also competing for the affections of Rusty Martin (Ann Margret). Jackson and Rusty take part in a talent contest as both aim for first prize. This is where Elvis sings Viva Las Vegas although his dancing moves look a bit weird. Jackson's rivalry with Mancini is friendly which adds to the fun. There is a thrilling racing sequence at the end