It's no definitive masterpiece but it's damn close.

When a movie has you begging for it to end not even half way through it's pure crap. We've all seen this movie and this characters millions of times, nothing new in it. Don't waste your time.

Ok... Let's be honest. It cannot be the best movie but is quite enjoyable. The movie has the potential to develop a great plot for future movies

Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

Honestly, how could anyone say that they liked this film? How could anyone say that most of the songs were even vaguely acceptable? Whilst the Beatles were doing "Help" Elvis was doing this! I watch this film with a profound sense of despair for the thrilling rock and roller who was turned into a bland automaton - from Heartbreak Hotel to pap. From a young firebrand to a pantomime character in lime green baggy pants. Colonel Parker knew he had a cash cow that would provide milk irrespective of the quality of the film or the music. Harum Scarum is incontrovertible proof that Parker had no respect for Elvis the person or the artist. Strangely, this film provided Elvis with two female co-stars who had genuine star quality - Fran Jeffries and Mary Ann Mobley. Only Ann Margret in Viva Las Vegas gave him the sexual competition that Fran and Ann provided. Without them, this film would have been utterly devoid of class. If only Fran Jeffries had been provided with a few dance routines, the film may have had a redeeming feature. Lastly, I am always struck by the fact that this impossibly handsome and healthy man would within a few years become a bloated parody of himself. Where did he go? Were films like Harum Scarum a sinister foreshadowing of a lost personality or am I reading too much into it? Did I really discern hints of self-loathing in his performance in this film? Had the Elvis who had always wanted to be movie star and who admired James Dean finally realized that his mentor and promoter had sold his dream for a handful of gold? Was Elvis the loneliest man on Earth? He certainly looked like it in this film.

Now this was something, not really a good something but it was something nonetheless. Being a novice when it comes to the filmic work of 'The King' I approached this film and his others from a fresh perspective. I guess I was put off by the stigma of corniness that plagues his filmography. After checking out Jaihouse Rock, Paradise Hawaiian Style and Spinout I thought I'd give this relative b-movie a look.I enjoyed the pseudo middle eastern soundtrack and expected the visual equivalent here, which essentially is what I got. The faux parody element of the film falls by the wayside pretty quick unfortunately and ultimately becomes another vehicle for Elvis' kung-fu, romancing and spontaneous song performances. Shake Your Tambourine and So Close So Far are the performance highlights and there is some overlooked snappy dialogue. The less said about the creepy Hey Little Girl sequence though the better. My favourite song, the Garage-lite Animal Instinct was sadly not featured in the film.Its universally looked at as the bottom of the barrel in the career of Elvis but I think its a pretty fun 80 mins or so, there are far worse movies out there.

I see where this movie could have really been good, i know i use to own it, the story line is so blasted lame and i do mean lame!!!!! and the songs are even lamer!! except maybe the song Who Am I!! and with it towards the end Elvis" lips aren't matching the recording! Sam Katsman definitely should have worked harder on directing this film, but can can you say about the man who was nicknamed the king of the quickies! I've read a lot about Sam Katsman, his work in the 30s and 40s. to bad he got his hands on Elvis huh. I firmly believe Elvis should have gotten a lot more involved with the scripts, maybe he would have cared a lot more about what direction his career was going. sign slapstck2000

Elvis returns, this time he is slightly weathered, quite a bit more lethargic, and desperate to escape his captors. But, his captors are not the oil paint smeared Arabs, nor the fairly innocuous women that surround him. His captors are much bigger than one motion picture could possibly describe. They are the entire industry he has found himself immersed in. They are the money-hungry culture vultures that readily devour a popular figure like him until he is but a bloated pasty corpse. This film shows them as they are through their sinister machinations. They can be seen with invisible marionette string as they force Elvis to march around in costume, as they prod him with sharp knives into doing little lackluster dances that turn into morose forced marches across the barren tundra of his once mighty career. This is not the Elvis of folklore, nor is it the Elvis that will return one day and save us from mediocrity. This is the dry Elvis, milked fully, udders raw, yet ever sedated. The Elvis that might have died on the screen in front of your eyes and you might have not even noticed it. Don't let the bright lights and forced smile fool you. It is your duty to lament this vision before you, because it is an ugly one.