Elvis Has Left The Movies

Episode 34: Elvis (2022) + A Final Farewell

We've reached the logical conclusion of this podcast. A biopic of Elvis? In 2022? It's just crazy enough to work. We loved it.

Baz's Elvis delivered pretty much everything we wanted. We hope this episode will deliver all that you'll want. The usual tangents abound but we do get around to talking about the film's plot, the cast, the fantastic costumes and all kinds of other stuff. 

It's a little wild (both the movie and this podcast) but we wouldn't have it any other way.
 
Thank you very much.

Episode 33: The Big Belated Wrap-Up (AKA What Have We Learned)

Baz Luhrmann's Elvis is almost here! So we've emerged from our hiatus to finally give you the wrap-up episode we promised.

We spend the first 15 minutes ranking all those Elvis character names and then engage in some TV talk. Matt finished Murder, She Wrote and Morgan is watching Twin Peaks.

We rank the 31 films based on whether they're worth watching and also discuss the new West Side Story and Dune.

Plus of course we chat about Baz's Elvis premiering at Cannes and the reviews from the fest.

Bonus Bit: Baz Luhrmann’s Elvis Trailer Talk

We took some time while doing the Change of Habit episode to talk about the recently released trailer for the flashy big budget Elvis biopic coming later this year. We marvel at how it's taken this long for a film about Elvis on this scale.

We're in agreement that the cinematography's great and no doubt the music will deliver. Morgan's got thoughts on Austin Butler's look while Matt shares his opinion on his voice. No matter how it turns out you can bet we'll make sure to catch it upon release.

Episode 32: Change of Habit (1969)

Elvis is leaving the movies and he's taking one last big swing for the fences but he's not looking where he's swinging and there's damage galore. They really tried to cram all the heavy topics into this one. 

Elsewhere there's tangents for Morgan's love of electronic music and we get to the bottom of what the heck a noodle ring is all about.

Also it's worth repeating how much we appreciate you, our audience, taking the time out of your lives to listen to all this blathering about Elvis movies.

Episode 31: The Trouble with Girls (1969)

Oh boy. The penultimate film. The last one adapted from a book and they tried to fit so much of the sprawling novel Chautauqua into this here motion picture. It is jam packed. So much so that we don't really do a front to back of the plot.

Instead we focus on the myriad performers of this film. These discussions leading to tangents about Scooby-Doo and Dolly Parton. Matt also did some extra homework this time to determine whether this film truly has the least amount of Elvis screen time or not.

Episode 30: Charro! (1969)

A belated Happy New Year! We're back and feeling refreshed as we tackle the home stretch of Elvis' filmography. This time we watched the one where Elvis doesn't sing. It's just like a regular movie. The only tune is a title track over the credits. Also Elvis has a beard.

It's a pretty simple film so we go off on a bevy of tangents as we usually do. We mention Solaris and Matt has a wild tale about a 1993 French TV Movie. Morgan talks of her life goal of selling out. It's great to be back folks.

Christmas Bonus: Bloopers and Outtakes Vol. 2

Merry Christmas folks! As a special bonus gift from us, here's another heaping helping of bloopers and outtakes from previous episodes. All the stuff left on the cutting room floor is now restored for your listening pleasure.

We end with the biggest tangent and it's about the Criterion Collection and includes talk of a Christmas gift for Morgan so it's especially timely. Also featured are discussions on: The history of I Am Legend, Hawaiian pizza, Speed Racer (2008), Adam Sandler and much more.

Episode 29: Live a Little, Love a Little (1968)

The time has come to finish up the films of 1968 and close out this year as well. We'll be taking a few weeks off for the holidays.

It's another movie based on a book so Matt read the source material again to offer comparisons. We say farewell to Norman Taurog and Morgan has strong feelings about dogs.

We conclude by telling you that Charro! (1969) is readily available to stream for free in many places so if you so wish you can get ready for next year when we'll kick things off with that film.

Episode 28: Stay Away, Joe (1968)

It's a return to a discussion we really wish we didn't have to do again. Indigenous representation in film. It's back with a vengeance because if we thought Flaming Star had its issues, hoo boy, Stay Away Joe is another beast altogether.

Morgan whips out the scalpel and cuts this bloated carcass of a film with precision. We close things out in cathartic fashion by Matt reading out reviews of the day that further tear this film apart. Surely we'll now be able to move on with the worst behind us.

Episode 27: The ‘68 Comeback Special (1968)

Matt's birthday wish was to not talk about Stay Away, Joe. Luckily for him his big day marks the anniversary of the '68 Comeback Special so that's the focus this week. Elvis returns to the stage and it's a rousing success.

With the director's other work, Matt brings up The Star Wars Holiday Special. Morgan speaks of a black velvet Elvis she was fascinated by growing up and also gives insight into the finer points of Singer sewing machines. It's a pretty chill time, just like the special itself.

Episode 26: Speedway (1968)

Morgan takes over the dispensing of facts this episode. Matt takes a back seat and doesn't make enough jokes because switching roles is difficult. As for the film, it's pretty alright. It earns the second spot in our "Elvis as racecar driver" thematic trilogy ranking.

There's another Roger Ebert review to read. He's kinder this time around but still gets in some zingers. Also it can't be stressed enough how this movie's centerpiece is an elaborate musical sequence set in the offices of the IRS.

Episode 25: Clambake (1967)

This was Elvis' personal pick for the low point of his career. So you know it's gonna be a doozy. We explain right off the bat what a clambake is and we wish it was as easy to explain this film.

There's a discussion about Christopher Columbus and you may experience déjà vu since Matt briefly mentions the original Planet of the Apes sequel again. The order of our talking points is all jumbled and we mostly go into the actual plot more in depth near the end. Then Morgan whips up a turkey analogy.

Episode 24: Easy Come, Easy Go (1967)

There's only so many ways we can say a movie is just kinda ok. It's not the worst but it has problems like any late period Elvis film. A subplot involving an artist commune provides the worst scene in the movie followed immediately by its best. So yeah our attention was pretty much easy come, easy go.

Morgan still hates go-go dancing. Near the end, Matt reads Roger Ebert's one star review of this picture. Then we finish by poking holes in an IMDB fact claiming Elvis met Jackie Chan. Not likely.

Episode 23: Double Trouble (1967)

Double Trouble doesn't have a great reputation but we felt the wacky European caper angle was a nice change of pace. However we do agree that this contains perhaps the worst Elvis movie song even if the other tunes were nice.

Also with double the trouble comes double the tangents it seems. We discuss, among other things, our preferred tea biscuits. Our love for Saul Bass and Brian De Palma. Morgan recommends the film In Bruges and reveals her hatred of The Animaniacs. We pack a lot in this one.

Halloween Bonus: Elvis‘ Leading Ladies in Horror

Elvis never made any horror films but we're not gonna let that stop us from giving you some Halloween content. Matt decided to focus on the actresses who have shared the screen with Elvis and rattles off the horror movies they appeared in while Morgan provides quips.

Most of the gals only did one horror picture in their careers. At least four of them got paired up with Vincent Price. If nothing else, tune in for the end in which we deliver on our proposed idea to discuss The Deadly Bees (1966).

Episode 22: Spinout (1966)

Another Elvis movie plot that's all over the place. Another podcast episode where your hosts follow suit. This one might contain our most Canadian discussion yet. It involves Jacob Two-Two and the voice of Leon's furniture ads. Elsewhere, Morgan attempts to guess which state Elvis was born in.

We like the one subplot in this film focused on an elderly couple reigniting their love for each other. Wholesomeness buried under all the usual. We end with a few Twitter shoutouts. Our fans are so nice.

Episode 21: Paradise, Hawaiian Style (1966)

The third and final film Elvis made in Hawaii. He tackles the classic adage "Never work with children or animals" and does both while in a helicopter no less. Morgan wasn't a fan. However she was a big fan of James Shigeta and his hot dad energy.

Matt gives a mini review of a film which attempted to give Roy Orbison the Elvis star vehicle treatment. It was weird. Also despite what we were led to believe about his career post-Girl Happy, Elvis does in fact briefly appear shirtless in this movie.

Episode 20: Frankie and Johnny (1966)

With one major hurdle behind us, it's back to pretty alright yet formulaic Elvis pleasantness. This week it's a little ramblin' gamblin' trip down the Mississippi River. It's also a period piece which means for the first time in a while there are interesting costumes to discuss.

Pretty standard fare. Near the end we brainstorm a whole psychological thriller movie plot out of one of the minor bits from this film and Matt gives out some free alternate podcast ideas that haven't been utilized yet.

Episode 19: Harum Scarum (1965)

It's the one you've all been waiting for I'm sure. Even most die-hard fans will agree that this is pretty much rock bottom, cinematically, for Elvis. We agree. At least we can put it behind us.

Given that we've got yet another movie appropriating a culture, Morgan gets to talkin' about orientalism. Matt discusses the crucial difference between a good bad movie and a movie that's just bad. Also there's a sizeable tangent where we discuss The Thin Man film series and Dashiell Hammett as a writer.

Episode 18: Tickle Me (1965)

How appropriate that Elvis plays a rodeo cowboy in this one since the movie felt like it was a bucking bull trying to throw us off with its many plots. It made for strange but not unrewarding viewing and at least one scene we deemed the best gag in an Elvis film so far.

No new songs were recorded for this film so we talk a bit about the various albums they plucked the tunes from. We also get the return of Matt talking about giallo. It's really an episode as unpredictable as the movie it covers.

Episode 17: Girl Happy (1965)

This movie jumps on the bandwagon of two different trends. We've got a beach party movie on our hands with a Beatles inspired rock band at its center. Luckily that means we ended up having a delightful time.

Matt does a deep dive into how beach party movies became a thing and even gives a mini review of one he watched. Morgan liked a lot of the songs this time and was really taken by co-star Shelley Fabares.

Always pleasing to have nice things to say. Hopefully it'll happen more going forward.

Episode 16: Roustabout (1964)

We get a few signs of our growth throughout this series as we enter into the back half of the Elvis filmography. In this episode Matt is able to actually summarize the whole plot in short order and Morgan recognizes an actress and pinpoints which past film she appeared in. Look at us go.

That being said, Morgan is getting fed up with the tropes. She gets in a few good rants. There's also tangents about Buster Keaton's stunts, the origins of the song Blue Hawaii and a quick shoutout to John Woo.

Episode 15½: The Halfway There Special

It's pretty wild that we're already halfway towards our goal. So many movies. So we're taking an episode to pause and reflect.

The bulk of the time is taken up with us committing to ranking all the Elvis character names. Along the way we also discuss favourite songs, outfits, sidekicks, co-stars and even favourite scene of Elvis singing while driving.

We end the proceedings by riffing on which Elvis movie titles would make a good cocktail. Here's to the next leg of the journey and even beyond.

Episode 15: Kissin‘ Cousins (1964)

A classic movie gimmick. Have your lead actor play dual roles. Though they really don't utilize its potential with Elvis. The result is an almost okay movie. It wasn't as bad as we were expecting but maybe we're just getting better at keeping our expectations really low.

Morgan takes offense to a pair of overalls worn backwards. Matt notices Elvis holding a steering wheel strangely. It's the small details we just can't help but get distracted by. That's the Elvis Has Left The Movies difference.

Episode 14: Viva Las Vegas (1964)

Since we're opting to go with the production order of the movies instead of the release dates, Kissin' Cousins can wait for next week.

Elvis gets paired off with a leading lady who can really go toe to toe with him. Ann-Margret hops into this picture and brings along some folks who worked with her on Bye Bye Birdie.

Matt really dug the filmmaking on this one and Morgan once again has many thoughts on the wardrobe. We also talk about the connection Elvis has to a certain famous anime character.

Episode 13: Fun in Acapulco (1963)

Back to our regularly scheduled programming. We recorded it once and some audio was lost but second time's the charm so you may now hear our thoughts on Fun in Acapulco. It's a pretty good bad movie that contains probably our favourite weird scene transition yet.

We go into the surprising history Elvis had with Mexico which led to him being unable to step foot there. Also while talking about the cast Matt brings up a certain TV show that was spoken of in a past episode, much to Morgan's dismay.

Elvis Has Left The Movies Presents: Bloopers and Outtakes

Facing the dilemma of no new episode being recorded yet for this week, Matt decided to try this experiment. Didn't want you to be completely empty-handed. 

It's not a new episode but it is all new content. Many tangents and jokes get cut to keep things at a consistent runtime and all those extra bits are now collected here.

So if you came to this Elvis podcast hoping for an episode with almost no Elvis talk, this is the weirdly specific one for you. Hopefully we have Fun in Acapulco next week.

Episode 12: It Happened at the World's Fair (1963)

We'll tell ya what didn't happen at the World's Fair, a good movie. The location's an interesting change of pace but we can't muster too much enthusiasm for the story.

So you know what that means: Tangents galore! We riff on actors running in movies, what constitutes a comedy dance team and the original Planet of the Apes films. At one point a new spin on a classic musical is brainstormed.

Also we've got a twitter now, where bonus visuals related to our ramblings can be found. @ElvisHasLeftPod

Episode 11: Girls! Girls! Girls! (1962)

We're following up Morgan's fave with Matt's least favourite (so far). Elvis is back in Hawaii and nobody's fond of this fiasco.

Once the plot's been dealt with, there are tangents about Morgan's love of kimonos and she envisions a version of The Golden Globes hosted by The Golden Girls. Delightful stuff.

Later, Matt brings up True Grit and makes a few revelations that Morgan didn't know. There's also some reminiscing about those little sticky hand toys. Remember those? Gosh this movie sucked.

Episode 10: Kid Galahad (1962)

Rejoice everyone, it's another film we actually like. Something that'll probably become rarer as we move along. It's Morgan's favourite and she's glad that it held up on this latest viewing. Not a fan of many of the songs though.

Throughout the episode there's lots of discussion about the change in filmmaking starting to take place in the mid-60's and the birth of New Hollywood. Matt even has a book recommendation. Then, perhaps inevitably, we end things by doing Edward G. Robinson impressions.

Episode 9: Follow That Dream (1962)

Pro Tip: Don't record a podcast during a heat wave. At least that's the excuse we'll use for why things feel more scatterbrained than usual in this episode. Just like Elvis' goofy family take the road less travelled in Follow That Dream, we took detours at every tangent we could find.

Morgan compares the movie to a literal turd in a toilet during an extended metaphor and Matt makes an ill-advised attempt to describe some shots he liked from the film in an audio only medium. This is a weird one.