Roustabout

Released the same year as Viva Las Vegas, Roustabout is often viewed as one of the lesser lights in Elvis' 1960s movie output. Which is a shame given that it has vitality in abundance, sees the King playing a two dimensional character, features the professional workings of Barbara Stanwyck and Leif Erickson and is beautifully staged and photographed (Lucien Ballard) amongst a Carnival backdrop.

Plot sees Presley as night club singer Charlie Rogers who has a big chip on his shoulder, getting into yet another fight he gets fired and via a motorcycle run in with Maggie Morgan (Stanwyck) and Joe Lean (Erickson), ends up working at Maggie's carnival operation while he waits for his bike to be fixed. He has his eyes on Joe's daughter, Cathy (Joan Freeman), but Joe, himself carrying a heavy burden, has a big dislike for the young upstart. With the bank closing in ready to close the struggling carnival, hope may come in the form of Charlie's singing attributes, but will he stay? Will he be lured away by a lucrative offer from a rival Carnie promoter? With Charlie struggling to ingratiate himself to the Carnie way of life, and him constantly failing to show his true emotions to win around a hard to convince Cathy, the odds against him staying seems short.

Well how do you think it's going to end? Exactly the way you expect it too of course. But there is great fun and frolics along the way and it is a true spirit raising finale. The clutch of songs are not the best, though the beautiful tenderness of "Big Love, Big Heartache" and the interesting take on "Little Egypt" are reason enough to be pleased with the musical contributions. Presley delivers a good turn, a nifty blend of rebel yell and housewives baby, the carnival atmosphere is well born out and crucially the film manages to not undersell the graft that carnival workers did to put on a show for the public's entertainment. It also opens up a game for spotters of future "names", see if you can spot Raquel Welch, Teri Garr and Richard Kiel in teeny tiny roles.

A lovely enjoyable Elvis film, foot tapping and smiles guaranteed, and the King, quite frankly, rocks in this one. 7/10

Elvis Presley was a hugely influential performer with one of the most distinctive singing voices of anybody. He embarked on a film career consisting of 33 films from 1956 to 1969, films that did well at the box-office but mostly panned critically (especially his later films) and while he was a highly charismatic performer he was never considered a great actor.

'Roustabout' is not one of Elvis' better overall films, not being as good as the likes of 'King Creole', 'Flaming Star', 'Jailhouse Rock', 'Viva Las Vegas' and 'Loving You'. This said as far as his mid- 60s onwards efforts go, 'Roustabout' generally is one of his better faring ones.

Very rarely were the script and story strong suits in Elvis' films, quite often being weak links even. 'Roustabout' is not an exception. The story is paper thin and formulaic, with neither the friction between Charlie and Joe or the romance between Charlie and Cathy ever igniting and structurally it's all too pat and obvious. The former due to too much immature silliness and not enough grit, which one kind of expected when you have the rebellious sort of character that Elvis played in the 50s in films that did have tension and grit, and the latter due to the chemistry not being there and Joan Freeman being somewhat bland.

The songs generally are less than stellar and mostly very forgettable. A few do work, and they will be mentioned later, but most suffer from lacking sound mixing that give them a cheapness, sloppy lip-synching, fitting awkwardly and from being too short. "Carny Town" and "It's Carnival Time" especially apply here. The script has its fun and good-natured moments, as well as its tragic ones, but over-silliness and corn run all over it as well.

However, 'Roustabout' is a good-looking film, it's beautifully shot with a great atmosphere and the rural scenery is colourful and evocative. A few of the songs are good, the title song and "Little Egypt" being knockouts. The tender "Big Love, Big Heartache", the acid "Poison Ivy League" and the energetic "One Track Shot" also stand out. The choreography has a good deal of energy, the carnival atmosphere is just magical and the Wall of Death scene hits hard.

A good cast helps and 'Roustabout' has that (Freeman excepted), John Rich also directing more than capably. Elvis is not at his very best and has been in better shape, but there is still an easy-going charisma and vigour to his performance. Barbara Stanwyk provides compelling realism and effortless command to her role, while Sue Anne Langdon adds a good deal of lustre and Leif Eriksson relishes his unsympathetic character. Familiar faces such as Pat Buttram, Steve Brodie and Jack Albertson are fun to see, and the film also boasts short appearances from Racquel Welch, Richard Kiel, Teri Garr and Billy Barty.

Overall, not great but decent likable fun. 6/10 Bethany Cox

Hot-headed singer who's prone to getting into fights gets a hankering for the daughter of a woman who runs a traveling carnival, eventually finds himself with a guitar working the run-ways. Good Elvis Presley musical, although the King himself is awfully pouty throughout. He sings several mediocre tunes in-between romantic bouts with pretty but bland Joan Freeman (who resembles both Susan Dey and a young Dorothy McGuire). Barbara Stanwyck is typically mercurial as Freeman's no-nonsense mother, and she gives the movie some kick. There are the usual carnival rowdies, a dim sub-plot involving a missing wallet, but the cinematography is colorful and the rural locations are well captured. There's a sensational tracking shot at the end done in one take, with the camera up and over the heads of the crowd, down along the run-way with the attractions and then onto the stage. A brunette Raquel Welch has a bit part at the very beginning, and Teri Garr is one of the carny dancers. An enjoyable star-vehicle for E.P.'s fans. **1/2 from ****

During the years of entertainment history there have been a plethora of stars who have left a trail of distinction in this world with their inimitable prowess in the arts, but nobody has ever reached the legendary status that Elvis Presley attained.

In 1964, Elvis Presley was cast in the role of Charlie Rogers in Roustabout, a film which starred him alongside acting veteran Barbara Stanwyck in her second last motion picture.Roustabout was directed by John Rich and produced by Hal Wallis with the screenplay by Anthony Lawrence and Allan Weiss.

By the time Roustabout was made, Barbara Stanwyck's motion picture career was in decline. That same year she starred in The Night Walker alongside her ex husband Robert Taylor, which served as her final film role.Raquel Welch makes an early appearance as one of the college kids at the Tea House.

Elvis Presley performed his own stunts in the movie.With a plausible plot and musical numbers that epitomizes the incomparable talents of Elvis, Roustabout is the true definition of a perennial classic from the 1960's.

Conclusion - It's not a great movie but it's a good movie and it's worth watching! Rated this 7/10

Welcome to 1964. Elvis is still stuck in movie limbo, the Beatles are ready to conquer America, and this movie pops up. Elvis has one of his better roles since Flaming Star, as he plays a angry young man named Charlie Rogers, who is not that likable at all. After Charlie gets sprung for getting in a fight with some college students, he heads down the road to nowhere for the next gig. That's when he meets Maggie, Cathy, and Joe. Joe runs him off the road and destroys the Big E's guitar and 'cycle in the process. Maggie offers him a job as a roustabout in her carnival until his bike is repaired.

Elvis sheds the family friendly 60s image for this role. He is a cross between likable and a jerk. He has the benefit of working with a fine supporting cast. Barbara Stanwyck shines as Maggie, who lives and breathes the carnival life (She also keeps this film from being just average). Joan Freeman is great as Cathy, a love interest that plays much harder to get than any other Elvis movie femme fatale. Even Billy Barty shows up in a short role. Steve Brodie and Iris Adrian show up again to reprise their loud, annoying husband/wife roles (they just have different names and backgrounds in this one).

The King manages to belt out 11 forgettable songs that include his better than average take on "Little Egypt". This film also shows an era when the carnival was a profitable business (I laughed at seeing an orchestra pit inside a carnival tent). The 'Wall of Death' scene was also the basis of the Irish film, Eat The Peach. All in all, a better than average performance for Elvis in a standard formula film.