Roustabout (1964)

User Rating:

5.6/10   

Director:

John Rich

Writers:

Allan Weiss (story)
Anthony Lawrence (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

11 November 1964 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Music | Romance

Tagline:

Elvis Presley as a Roving, Restless, Reckless, ROUSTABOUT

Plot:

Elvis is Charlie Rogers, a leather-jacketed biker who's fired from a singing engagement after getting into a fight with a group of college toughs...

Plot Keywords:

Carnival | Velodrome | Elvis Presley | Love | Fortune Teller

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Elvis Presley	...	Charlie Rogers
Barbara Stanwyck	...	Maggie Morgan
Joan Freeman	...	Cathy Lean
Leif Erickson	...	Joe Lean
Sue Ane Langdon	...	Madame Mijanou, Fortune Teller
Pat Buttram	...	Harry Carver
Joan Staley	...	Marge
Dabbs Greer	...	Arthur Nielsen
Steve Brodie	...	Fred the Pitcher
Norman Grabowski	...	Sam
Jack Albertson	...	Lou (tea house manager)
Jane Dulo	...	Hazel
Joel Fluellen	...	Cody Marsh (roustabout)
Wilda Taylor	...	Little Egypt

Also Known As:

Right This Way Folks! (USA) (working title)

MPAA:

Rated PG for mild thematic elements and language.

Runtime:

101 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

Iceland:L | Australia:G | Finland:S | Sweden:11 | UK:U | USA:PG | West Germany:6

Filming Locations:

Potrero Valley, Thousand Oaks, California, USA

Company:

Hal Wallis Productions

Trivia:

Mae West was offered but declined the role of Maggie Morgan.

Quotes:

[as Charlie steps outside the Tea House, three college students follow him - Charlie starts to get on his motorcycle]
College boy in gray sweater: Is that your sickle?
Charlie Rogers: You ought to stop reading those hot rod magazines, buddy. Sickle is out, it's either a bike or a motorcycle.
College boy in suit and tie: Made in Japan, huh?
Charlie Rogers: That's right, made in Japan.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "The O'Reilly Factor: (2008-06-24)" (2008)

Soundtrack:

Big Love, Big Heartache

Roustabout (1964) ***

Most people don't think too much of this Elvis romp compared to any other, but for me it stands out as one of the better "formula" movies the man made in the '60s. As club singer Charlie Rogers, Elvis is a little different from his usual stock characters from this period because the young man has a chip on his shoulder. He's a reckless person who never had a family and is prone to being self-centered and dismissive. After getting fired from a gig one day, he and his motorcycle are smacked up by a threesome of small-time carnival owners driving in their car, so they invite him to stick around their modest fairgrounds and work as a "roustabout" for a little cash while waiting for his bike to get back from the repair shop. Rogers is able to boost business with his singing to lure customers to the Fair.

Barbara Stanwyck plays the strong-willed carnival chief who breathes the carny lifestyle, but she's saddled with a crotchety and hard-headed partner (Leif Erickson) who once caused a tragedy to a customer by not safely securing one of the rides at the fair, and who tries to keep Charlie away from his daughter Cathy (Joan Freeman). It's refreshing to see a leading girl who can hold her own and not easily succumb to Elvis' whims. There are a few decent songs here and there, if no great ones. Raquel Welch can be spotted in the beginning of the film as one of a group of young folks going to see Charlie Rogers perform at the club.