L'amour en quatrième vitesse

I used to not be a big fan of Elvis movies. For all of his talent with a song, his films (with a few exceptions) were basically all the same formula: a crooning playboy situated in (exotic location of your choice), with any number of young, excited women waiting in the wings. But in "VLV" he has a more independent-than-usual female co-star (the stunningly beautiful Ann-Margret), who not only matches him in sex appeal, but who forces him to fight for her affection. It's a wonderful match of wits, from the first number, "The Lady Loves Me." They are both marvelous as they each musically bait the other, right up until he takes a header into a swimming pool. (In subsequent scenes they water ski, have a western-style showdown, tour Vegas in a helicopter, and dance in a gymnasium.) Later, when they both compete in the same talent show, A-M gives Elvis a run for his money with her hotter-than-hot striptease "Appreciation." It's perfect that the final shot in the movie is a split-screen of the title song sung (by him) and danced (by her). If no one knew that they were having a romance in real life; they'd figure it out from the chemistry generated in this film. This one and "G.I. Blues" (which features another independent co-star) are my favorites.

Arguably the best of the standard Elvis Presley travelogue confections that comprised the majority of the films in his screen career, Viva Las Vegas succeeds largely due to the chemistry shared between E and sexy inferno Ann-Margret. Sporting the impossibly comic-book perfect names Lucky Jackson and Rusty Martin, the two stars forge a romance against the backdrop of the Vegas Grand Prix, which Elvis, naturally intends on winning. Typical Elvis movie values like achievement through hard work (E must slave away as a lowly hotel employee in order to raise enough cash to fix his racer) and plucky perseverance don't detract from the colorful widescreen photography and a number of fun songs, like "The Lady Loves Me," "C'mon Everybody," "I Need Somebody to Lean On," and the memorable title tune.

I love this film! Actually, every time that I see it I like it more. I'm biased, of course, being an Elvis fan (hey, isn't everyone?...if you're not, you should give it a try), but it's still an entertaining way to spend a while. The film's not based on the strongest storyline ever created and it relies on the chemistry between foxy mamacita Ann Margret and the King himself, and that's more than enough. The two had some intense off-screen things going on, too, and perhaps that helps the movie. Both Elvis and Ann Margret look great and they trade lines perfectly. Elvis is more engaged in this film than he had been in any since 1961 and the result's one that he could have been proud of. The shame is that the glossy musical formula than began with 1960's "GI Blues" became an endless rerun throughout Elvis' '60s Hollywood career, but "Viva Las Vegas" is perhaps the highlight of these musicals. Perhaps it's no coincidence that this film has less singing than the ones before and after, the songs all fitting well within the plot. The songs are also among the strongest of Elvis' '60s soundtrack offerings -- pretty much all of them are great tunes. This was most definitely not the case even in earlier films and would progressively become less the norm in subsequent years. The cinematography is also first-rate, as are lighting and transitions -- all of the things that add up to 'production value.' Lush colors and effective use of scenery -- natural and manmade -- included. This is obvious right from the opening credits and is stunningly apparent in the musical numbers. It really looks like a lot of thought went into how the songs were staged, lit, and filmed and that alone is a departure from Elvis' norm. Even most of the other of the better '60s films just stick Elvis up there, singing, while they roll film. Not a lot of imagination very evident in that approach. Check out the great presentation work on songs like "C'mon Everybody" and "What'd I Say," as well as the classic "Viva Las Vegas" talent-contest scene and the perfectly-executed "I Need Somebody To Lean On" scene in which onscreen Elvis is double-tracked with a melancholy inner-voice Elvis. Great stuff.

The film's -- to me -- probably the most entertaining and enjoyable of any of Elvis' '60s musicals. In that category I include most of the films that Elvis shot during the '60s except for the two dramas of 1960 ("Flaming Star" being a particularly excellent film), the two song-sparse movies of 1961 ("Kid Galahad" and the great "Follow That Dream"), and some of the late '60s movies that included only one or a few token songs and had stronger storylines ("Live A Little, Love A Little," "Stay Away, Joe," "Charro!," "The Trouble With Girls," and "Change Of Habit"). Actually, "Viva Las Vegas" is even more enjoyable than most of these ones, too.

Among the supporting actors are Cesare Danova, a beatnik-y Nicky Blair, and William Demarest (Uncle Charlie from "My Three Sons"!), all of whom do a great job. Sharp eyes might also catch Terri Garr, especially in the "C'mon Everybody" scene, though she's in at least one or two others in the film. Red West, Elvis' bodyguard (he also wrote a song -- "If You Think I Don't Need You" -- used in this film) is an extra in the scene that included a bunch of Texas rowdies. Lance Le Gault (a blues singer and Elvis' double in '60s films, inadvertently seen in "Kissin' Cousins" and on full display as a tambourine-player in Elvis' sensational leather-clad 1968 'comeback' shows...he was also Colonel Decker on TV's "The A Team") plays a waiter who, ironically enough, is mistaken for Elvis by Ann Margret's character.

But yeah, when it comes down to it this is a film that succeeds primarily on the strengths of its male and female leads. Some great work by supporting actors doesn't hurt, but Elvis seems inspired to do a good job of acting -- not the walk-through that was becoming increasingly tempting in the face of uninspiring and mediocre storylines and production staff and accountants who didn't care about quality as long as the film was completed on time and on budget to result in the predictable crazy profits that Elvis movies generated in the first half of the '60s. The scene with Elvis waiting on the Count and Rusty exploits Elvis' comedic talents and was a nice touch. I'm surprised, really, that the pairing of Elvis and Ann Margret was never attempted again. They could've done "Grease" in '68!

The film also accomplishes its travelogue role and both it and the title song have become inextricably linked with that desert city. For those of us who have only visited Vegas in more recent years, and to those who remember it as it was in the summer of 1963, this film is a handy time capsule to the Vegas of yore. It was a kick for me to see Elvis and Ann Margret at the Sahara's camel statues because I had my picture taken there, atop one of the camels, back in the '80s (without realizing that it had such a direct Elvis connection). Cool!

All in all, if you haven't yet seen this film you might just enjoy it. It's not going to change your life (then again...who knows?) and it's not "Citizen Kane" (it's a lot more fun, though), but it's a classic of its kind. Scratch that -- it's just a classic. Unfortunately, a couple of months after wrapping "Viva Las Vegas" Elvis began production of "Kissin' Cousins," a film from producer Sam Katzman ("King of the Quickies") that was as cheap and nasty as they come and that showed the way to even greater profit (but at what cost?).

Watch the section where Ann-Margaret sings "Her Rival" Song in a letterbox format. The camera starts from above and does remarkable movement (before the age of computer controlled cameras) and Ann-Margaret does all the choreography (including catching the toast and making sandwiches) to the beat all in one shot! Possibly the best single-camera sequence of all time!

The movie only really slows down during the obligatory tourist travelog while in the helicopter scene.

Why didn't Elvis work more often with strong female musical co-stars like Ann-Margret? Given how powerful the result was in VIVA LAS VEGAS, it's a shame they didn't try to tailor more full-blown Hollywood movie musicals for him. He worked with Nancy Sinatra in SPEEDWAY, but aside from one song written for her by Lee Hazlewood, she wasn't given much to do musically in the film and doesn't even share a duet with Elvis. What would an Elvis teamup with Julie Andrews have been like? Or Shirley MacLaine? Or, dare I say it, Doris Day? And why not younger 1960s musical stars like Petula Clark or Diana Ross? Or even Annette Funicello. The possibilities are tantalizing. Instead they kept putting him with attractive but non-musical co-stars in lightweight romantic comedies with occasional songs, with titles like GIRL HAPPY, DOUBLE TROUBLE, CLAMBAKE, TICKLE ME, and EASY COME, EASY GO, that just don't compare with VIVA LAS VEGAS. At least in ROUSTABOUT, he had a formidable female co-star in Barbara Stanwyck. She didn't sing or dance, but she sure acted up a storm. And her chemistry with Elvis was far more evident than any he might have had with the starlets who populated all his fluffy, throwaway comedies with music.