King Creole
Directed by Michael Curtiz
Written by Herbert Baker and Michael V. Gazzo from a novel by Harold Robbins
1958/USA
Wallis-Hazen
First viewing/Netflix rental
[box] Ralph: You’re a pretty fancy performer, ain’t ya kid?[/box]
Elvis was still making A movies with this one. The director, co-stars, and music are first class.
Danny Fisher (Elvis Presley) can’t catch a break. His widower father (Dean Jagger) is incapable of holding a job or, worse in the Rebel Without a Cause era, standing up for himself. Danny must work to support the family and this distraction plus his attitude has prevented him from graduating from high school for two consecutive years. This is Elvis, though, and we know from the first frame he has a thoroughly good heart.
Another thing we know is that Danny is a talented singer. He proves it when he rescues a moll (Carolyn Jones) from an evil night club owner, Maxie Fieilds (Walter Matthau). He proves it again by distracting the staff and customers in a drug store while some gang members rob the place blind. In the process, he falls for a pretty clerk (Dolores Hart).
A rival night club owner hears Danny at the night club and hires him for his own place. Danny is a huge hit. Maxie cannot tolerate this and uses every dirty trick in the book to steal Danny for his own joint.
This moves right along between the better-than-average tunes. The young Elvis is at his most gorgeous and sexy. I thoroughly enjoyed this one.
Clip – Elvis sings “Trouble”
