DVD Reviews: Elvis: Fun in Acapulco

One of the things I always loved about the Elvis films was that they always looked like everyone was having a lot of fun at the time. It must have been hard for some of the lesser known actors when performing with "the King", but they all fair pretty well and make for a fun and engaging storyline.

For the most part, the story is written around Elvis' ability to belt out a song or two and when it comes to Elvis Presley, that would have been reason enough to watch the film in the first place.

This particular adventure sees Elvis down and out in Acapulco, Mexico. Befriending a small child who sees Elvis do an impromptu performance in a tavern. He reaches out for Elvis and secures him a job in a lush resort where The King performs of an evening and by day works as a lifeguard at the resort's pool.

Inadvertently stepping on the toes of the guard already working there, Elvis must overcome his fear of heights and join the other men proving their bravery by diving from the high cliffs of Acapulco. This fear stems from an accident that happened earlier in his life that makes it hard for him to face up to the heights of the cliffs. Add to that the love interest of a young beautiful lady (played by Ursula Andress) and the competition of a local hero and you are in for one hell of a rollicking good time.

I really enjoyed this movie and I am not a huge fan of Elvis or his music, though this movie has served to change that opinion and I will be seeking out more of it. The way the title is presented quite frankly, is fun and a nice respite from the dark and moody movies of today. It is a film of yesteryear of course, and the cinematic style fully reflects that. I think that if most folks watch this without prejudice to it's age, that they will enjoy this as a great diversion.

The disc overall is not of the best quality with a bit of grain visible and occasional low level noise. Certainly not enough to stop any enjoyment of the film, but a bit of a scrub up would have been nice to promote the overall quality of the film. Audio is still a treat on this one and the audio sync is fairly intact with only occasional slipping, once again not enough to ruin it for anyone.

There are no extras on this disc, however it's always the way with old stuff, you are lucky to get anything at all as most of the unused footage was quite literally thrown away. All things said and done, this is a very nice entertaining disc. A must for Elvis fans and something that the rest of us will get a lot of enjoyment out of as well.