The soundtrack is quite possibly the best of any Elvis movie, with such gems as “Can’t Help Falling In Love,” the toe-tapping “Rockahula,” “Hawaiian Wedding Song” and an abbreviated but still enjoyable rendition from Elvis of the traditional Hawaiian classic, “Aloha Oe.” Unlike virtually every other musical, they never break into song for no good reason. Whether it’s to change the subject, serenade a grandmother on her birthday, or liven up a party, there’s always a radio or band present rather than having the music come out of nowhere.
Elvis was in top form here – handsome, slim, and boyish. A far cry from the overweight, ostentatious, muttonchopped, rhinestoned, caped and bell-bottomed joke he became a decade later. The rest of the cast was good, with the exception of an over-the-top Angela Lansbury and a cold, unmusical Joan Blackman. Still, the love story was one of the better ones, with the relationship established before the movie opens instead of the ridiculous whirlwind romance of most other Elvis movies.
Watch this on the biggest screen TV to get the feeling you’re actually in this Hawaii that never was, at least during the outdoor scenes, not when they retreated to the studio. Better yet, make it a double feature with “Gidget Goes Hawaiian” and you can luxuriate in the Hawaii of 1961, only two years after it had become the 50th state.
