Jailhouse Rock [VHS]

Jailhouse Rock Review
I'm told this was Elvis' favorite of his films, and it also is one of the critics' favorites. I'm glad they put this out in glorious black & white and didn't mess with it by colorizing it. The acting is very good...some may be surprised that a musician can act as well as Elvis could. The plot is interesting, as are the characters. This is an all-around enjoyable film and I strongly recommend it. Some nice extras on the DVD also.

The King Of The Hill?
I am been involved lately, on a blog site that I belong to, in a friendly but spirited "debate" over whether Elvis or Jerry Lee Lewis was the real "king of the hill" in the early days of rock & roll. I have argued that, pound for pound, Jerry Lee had more energy, more musical skill, more ..., well, you get the picture, than Elvis could ever dream of. And with some exceptions, noted below, this movie, "Jailhouse Rock" based on the successful recording of one of his most famous early songs only buttresses that argument. Any Elvis aficionado would have to agree that this film is probably Elvis' best cinematic effort (most of the others being merely vehicles for promoting his latest songs of the time). Overall, however, after fifty years it does not stand the test of time. The premise of the film is not a bad one, paralleling in some senses the real life Elvis' story of a backwoods kid who has two strikes against him trying for the brass ring- and winning. Elvis (Vince), as an ex-con is up against it in trying to crash into the record business. After falling flat on his face trying to get the established record companies to give him a shot he goes on to set up his own record company (not as hard to do in those days as one would think and certainly much easier than trying to do that today, Internet or not). After some frustrations and a few fights, verbal and otherwise, he catches the elusive break. Talent, will out. Oh, did I mention that he has a partner (two, really, but I want to discuss only one)? A young, vibrant and upscale woman who sees potential in a bad boy from across the tracks. She has faith in him. A classic 1950's teen movie cinematic trope. T he class struggle here, oops, the love struggle, forms the backdrop to the action of the film. Naturally after the now cocky Vince gets his comeuppance the couple live happily ever after making platters and making the hearts of teenage girls in the 1950's spin. Now one and all will agree that the movie script deserves no Academy Award nomination. Moreover, these kinds of movies were made to cash in on Elvis' sex appeal and to promote his songs. However, except for the classic "Jailhouse Rock" scene where we get high swiveling Elvis at his best the rest of the songs are sleepers. His acting, as the alienated youth trying to find his own way in a hard world that he didn't make, rings false. The alienated youth image was done better, a million times better, by James Dean who made an art form out of that alienation. On Elvis it seems contrived. In any case, I will give Elvis his big moment in that "Jailhouse Rock" scene. But if you have one scene to think about musically from the 1950's doesn't Jerry Lee Lewis playing like a crazy man on "High School Confidential" on the back of a flat top truck on the way to the local high school really represent a better iconic image of what early rock & and roll was about in the late 1950's. Case closed.

Elvis!
Im a huge elvis fan and what better way to watch than in blu-ray! It brings Elvis and his music alive once more.

Jailhouse Rock - Blu-ray Info
Version: U.S.A / Region A, B, C Aspect ratio: 2.40:1 VC-1 BD-25 / Advanced Profile 3 Running time: 1:36:37 Feature size: 17,79 GB Disc size: 18,64 GB Total bit rate: 24.56 Mbps Average video bit rate: 19.16 Mbps Dolby TrueHD Audio English 1216 kbps 5.1 / 48 kHz / 1216 kbps / 16-bit (AC3 Core: 5.1 / 48 kHz / 640 kbps) Dolby Digital Audio English 640 kbps 5.1 / 48 kHz / 640 kbps Dolby Digital Audio English 192 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 192 kbps Dolby Digital Audio English 192 kbps 1.0 / 48 kHz / 192 kbps Dolby Digital Audio French 192 kbps 1.0 / 48 kHz / 192 kbps Dolby Digital Audio Spanish 192 kbps 1.0 / 48 kHz / 192 kbps Subtitles: English / English SDH / French / Spanish Number of chapters: 26 #Audio Commentary #The Scene that Stole Jailhouse Rock (SD - 16 minutes) #Vintage Theatrical Trailer (SD - 2 minutes)

This film is UNPARKERIZED
This shows how Elvis could have been a great actor, but he became "Parkerized" into a joke. This is a great movie you should own in any form, vhs, dvd, or hd.