Happy Birthday Elvis

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Welcome to the first official installment of my blog 'A Movie A Day'. It's January 8, 2010. Happy 75th birthday, Elvis.

What's this new blog series about? Well, a few things will remain constant, hopefully. First and foremost, each blog will at least live up to its name by at least mentioning A Movie A Day. I may veer off into occasional tangents and rants and daydreams on other subjects, but I'll try to keep some of my focus on the task at hand: Selecting a daily movie that ties into that day in history. And for this first edition, I figured I'd do a li'l celebratory take on the occassion of Elvis' birthday, focusing on his (sometimes problematic) movie career. So fix yourself a fried banana sandwich and ask yourself the question . . .

Could Elvis act?

That's kind of like asking whether or not Einstein could play basketball. It's kind of a moot question. Elvis was...well, Elvis!And Elvis Aron Presley was born on this day in 1935 in Tupelo, Mississippi; his twin brother, Jesse Goran, died in childbirth.

If he'd never made a single Hollywood movie his reputation would still be undiminished. But, for better or for worse (and mostly worse), Elvis did make movies. As an actor, he lacked nuance, depth, shading, decent roles, diction, and timing; on the plus side, he had a face like a trailer park Adonis (helped along with a streamlined nose job and jet-black dyed hair) and undeniable charisma. And in Hollywood, those two out of eight ain't bad.

For a while, Elvis strove to be taken seriously as an actor. At his audition for producer Hal Wallis, it's been said that he reenacted James Dean's entire part from Rebel Without a Cause, mumbling in his Mississippi drawl. He looks adrift in his first film role, as Richard Egan's kid brother in Love Me Tender (1956). He even got a death scene at the end. But Hollywood never quite knew how to handle Elvis—and vice versa--and Col. Tom Parker didn't want to tinker with a successful franchise. And so began the homogenization and neutering of Elvis, as he appeared in a series of films that became more formulaic and limp as he grew increasingly indifferent, finally walking through the interchangeable parts in a detached, dismissive haze.

But when he was young, lean, and hungry the charisma carried him. And he occasionally tapped into his own primal appeal in such stretches as King Creole (1958) and Wild in the Country (1961). But his best film, both musically and dramatically, is Jailhouse Rock (1957), made when he still gave a damn and had something to prove. Elvis plays Vince Everett, a nice enough kid who lands in prison after he accidentally kills a man in a bar fight. Elvis was still young and beautiful, and got to do all the by-now-patented Elvis-isms. He rocked, he crooned; he was shy and awkward; he was tough and tender; he was a hillbilly juvenile delinquent with a sneer that was as endearing to young girls as it was threatening to their parents. His rocking version of “You're So Square” in trunks by the swimming pool is a highlight, as is the iconic title number. (Contrary to popular myth, Elvis did not choreograph the other dancers in the famous “Jailhouse Rock” dance sequence, but the set piece was structured around his moves.

Check out the sequence here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zRu3tw9fYxE

(If link fails, just copy and paste to the website address bar above.)

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One last thought on E: On the occassion of his death, the press asked everyone who ever knew him to comment. My favorite quote on him came from John Lennon: "Elvis died the day he joined the Army."

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I look forward to your feedback, comments, suggestions, etc. on 'A Movie A Day'. And please check out Tripod Productions' audio show, 'A Movie A Day', at www.tripodproductions.net.

Later.