Mjeteconer Just perfect...

Spidersecu Don't Believe the Hype

Baseshment I like movies that are aware of what they are selling... without [any] greater aspirations than to make people laugh and that's it.

Nayan Gough A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.

zardoz-13 "Casablanca" director Michael Curtiz helmed "King Creole," Elvis Presley's fourth feature-length film, about a troubled teenager who becomes a popular crooner in a Bourbon Street cabaret in New Orleans. Interestingly, "King Creole" is based on the Harold Robbins' bestseller "A Stone for Danny Fisher," and the action has Elvis behaving a little shady before he straightens out. Lensed in black & white, this 117- minute musical drama isn't as carefree as Elvis' vehicles in the 1960s would be. Elvis is at odds with his father and he isn't reluctant to bust his knuckles if he feels threatened. No, he isn't as insolent as he was in "Jailhouse Rock." Far from Curtiz at his best, this Paramount release has its moments. Carolyn Jones and Dolores Hart are cast respectively as bad gal and good girl. Walter Matthau is appropriately sleazy as a villainous mobster who owns most of the night clubs on Bourbon Street. Danny Fisher has had a rough time since his mother died and his father (Dean Jagger of "Twelve O'clock High") couldn't hold onto a job. Mr. Fisher has moved his older daughter Mimi (Jan Shepard of "Paradise, Hawaiian Style") into an upstairs apartment on Royal Street. Danny has suffered at school, too. He has failed to graduate. Moreover, since the family need money, Danny and his older sister have gone to work. Danny can only get a job as a busboy in the French Quarter. One evening, while he is cleaning up, he encounters a pair of hoods and a drunken dame, Ronnie (Carolyn Jones of "Last Train from Gun Hill"), in the bar and lounge where he works for Maxie Fields. When the guys get a little too rough with Ronnie, Danny gallantly intervenes with a couple of shattered liquor bottles. Danny and Ronnie leave, but Danny arrives late at school, and his grumpy old teacher, Mrs. Pearson (Helene Hatch of "Halls of Montezuma"), fails him. Naturally, Mr. Fisher is disappointed, but he has spoke with Danny's school principal, and they have worked out a plan for Danny to graduate if he attends night classes. Danny balks at the idea because his father doesn't have a job, but Mr. Fisher informs him that he has an interview for a job as a pharmacist. Surprisingly, Mr. Fisher lands the job, but this doesn't deter Danny from embarking on a career as a night club singer on Bourbon Street. Although Mr. Fisher objects to Danny taking such an unsavory job, Danny's employer-Charlie LeGrand (Paul Stewart of "Citizen Kane")-defends his decision. Meantime, mobster figure Maxie Fields (Walter Matthau of "Charlie Varrick") hears about Danny's rise to fame, and he wants to sign the kid to sing in his cabaret. Danny wants nothing to do with Fields, but Fields have hired some unscrupulous henchmen to do his dirty work. As it happens, Danny knows these reprobates and has little use for them. Unfortunately, he used his musical talents to help them shoplift at a dime store. Shark (Vic Morrow of "The Bad News Bears") wants to draw Danny deeper into Maxie's net of evil. They plan to rob the drug store where Mr. Fisher works. Danny joins them and learns about their plan. Happily, his father won't be involved. Unfortunately, the manager of the drug store turns over the weekly receipts to Mr. Fisher and sends him out to drop it in the night depository. As it happens, a shower is drenching the French Quarter, and Mr. Fisher dons his boss's raincoat and hat and plunges into the wet stuff. Too late, Danny learns that Shark and company not only robbed him, but also they slugged him, and Mr. Fisher required a skilled surgeon to survive. Maxie exploits this opportunity and foots the bill for Mr. Fisher's surgery. At the same time, he pressures Danny to leave Charlie and come sing for him."King Creole" has its moments, but few of its songs will rattle your cage. Elvis performs admirably considering what is required of him. Vic Morrow makes a grim villain.

nicholls_les I watched this again recently and loved it. This film clearly shows that Elvis Presley can act! Elvis plays Danny, a rile that was originally meant for James Dean, but in my opinion Elvis is a much better actor than Dean ever was.OK there are the obligatory singing bits but even then the music is well in keeping with the story and shows Elvis at his very best.The title track 'King Creole' as well as 'Steadfast, Loyal and True', 'Hard Headed Woman', and 'Trouble'. In fact the beginning of this film is truly remarkable and one of the finest I have seen. Kitty White and Elvis sing 'Crawsish' along with an unknown bass singer. I believe this showed how good Elvis was as a white singer with a Black man's soul.Dean Jagger, Walter Matthau, Vic Morrow, Carolyn Jones are all good and play their parts perfectly.Such a shame that more of Elvis later films could not have been directed as well as by Michael Curtiz does in this film.Sadly he never made another film as good as this one, mainly due to his manager, Colonel Parker, forcing him into silly musical films.As another poster here rightly says this film is a hint at the movie career that Elvis could have had without his manager Col. Parker's constant greed to display his peacock client in an ever-grating role of innocence to make money. Brilliant film!

PWNYCNY A high school failure and a desperate prostitute fall in love. Some story. Nothing contrived here. The movie includes an all-star cast that turn in powerful performances. Carolyn Jones's performance is outstanding, absolutely deserving of official recognition. Her performance dominates the movie. Walter Matthau is impressive as a racketeer and thug who will stop at nothing to get his way. Elvis Presley gives a strong performance as the young man who has to make difficult choices. He also sings several songs, all of which are excellent. In fact, the movie is worth watching for the musical soundtrack alone. But what makes this movie great is the story. It starts off slow but then the dramatic tension builds. The movie is surprisingly dramatic, engaging and entertaining. Filmed in black and white, that adds a film noir element to the movie which further intensifies the story.

JoeytheBrit Considering he spent the last thirty-odd years of his career in comedy roles, it's strange to see Walter Matthau as bad guy Maxie Fields, the New Orleans racketeer who feels compelled to own everyone around him. He's pretty good though, a mix of avuncular good humour and steel-willed calculation. Presley is a singer with home problems. He's torn between good girl Nellie (Dolores Hart) and damaged good-time girl Ronnie (Carolyn Jones), tormented by his father's lack of backbone and led astray by Vic Morrow and his pals. Presley was a singer who made films rather than an actor who sang, and the proof of that is right up there on the screen. Nevertheless, he possessed so much presence and charisma that he dominates nearly all of his scenes. It's Carolyn Jones who steals the show, though, with a nuanced performance as bad girl Ronnie.