JAILHOUSE ROCK: Blu-ray (MGM, 1957) Warner Home Video

Falling somewhere between quaint urban putty of the pop-u-tainment ilk, and, a certified movie classic, Richard Thorpe’s Jailhouse Rock (1957) is a minor milestone in the musical genre. A showcase for the King of rock n’ roll, Elvis Presley (Elvis had made only two films at this point in his career – neither in his natural setting as a modern-age pop icon), Jailhouse Rock provided audiences with their first filmic example of Presley’s innate gifts for hard-hitting exposition. Elvis could have been a pretty fine actor, given half the chance. Indeed, this was the first time any movie had been hand-crafted around his enigma, to exercise the fledgling ‘new’ sound of rock n’ roll. Presley’s debut at MGM would be filmed in B&W – to keep costs down – and Cinemascope – the widescreen wonderment and ‘thing’ then to bring audiences into the theater. Initially titled, The Hard Way, then Jailhouse Kid, MGM finally settled on the song title for the movie, as, by the time the picture hit theaters, Jailhouse Rock was already a No.1 hit all across the country. Incidentally, the writing of the title tune, as well as the entire soundtrack, rested on the shoulders of Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller. However, after accepting their commission, Leiber and Stoller doddled and delayed on producing any new material. Eventually, MGM arranged a meeting between Jean Aberbach, director of Hill & Range music publishing, and the songwriters. Forced to confess they had not yet written a single note for the movie, Aberbach barricaded the duo in their New York hotel room after which, so legend has it, Leiber and Stoller wrote the entire movie score in just under 4 hours!!! Hollywood lore, indeed!

Interestingly, nowhere on MGM’s ledgers did the movie appear, as its screenplay was by blacklisted writer, Nedrick Young. To suggest Jailhouse Rock – the movie was an afterthought on almost everyone’s mind is a bit much. But there is some truth to the inference, it was not a top priority, in spite of Elvis’ formidable cache as a recording artist. Indeed, producer, Pandro Berman was too involved on The Brothers Karamazov (1958), allowing MGM’s then reigning mogul, Benny Thau to cast the movie without his input, but with an assist from Abe Lastfogel, President of the William Morris Agency. As Richard Thorpe had a reputation for shooting his movies quick and dirty, with minimal fuss and expense, he was hired to direct. Not surprising, the first scene to be photographed was the title dance sequence, employing choreography by Alex Romero, whose work owed more to Fred Astaire and Gene Kelly than Elvis’ hip-swiveling prowess. Evidently, it was a struggle to get Elvis to comply, and thus Romero took a different approach, asking Presley to perform his own moves.  Excited by Elvis’ wild gyrations, Romero appointed tumbler and acrobat, Russ Tamblyn to help Presley refine these moves; the two, working out a routine all night at Elvis’ rented Beverly Wilshire Hotel penthouse. Alas, during the shooting of this iconic number, one of Elvis’ dental caps fell out and became lodged in his lung. He was rushed to Cedars of Lebanon Hospital to have it surgically removed. The production was also marred by tragedy when co-star, Judy Tyler was killed in an automobile accident barely two weeks after shooting all her scenes. As a matter of record, Tyler’s husband also died in the crash. Shaken by the news, Elvis elected not to attend the premiere.

Plot wise: Elvis is Vince Everett, a reprobate who lives hard and takes what he wants. But after a brawl in a local night spot leads to his incarceration, Vince is taken under the wing of fellow cellmate, Hunk Houghton (Mickey Shaughnessy). A former country singer, Hunk educates Vince in the power and prestige of music – a lesson earned and learned well when, upon his release, Vince meets twenty-something socialite, Peggy Van Alden (Judy Tyler) and thrills her with his pipes. Peggy’s connections eventually lead to record producer, Teddy Talbot (Dean Jones), who wastes no time in exploiting Vince’s ‘new’ sound to make him one of the most popular voices in the business. Unfortunately, Vince has yet to learn humility and fame ought to go hand in hand. He alienates Peggy at a social gathering and all but wrecks his free ride to fortune after getting involved in yet another skirmish that could cost him his career.

Within a few months, Vince officially becomes a star. Alas, Peggy has had quite enough of Vince’s arrogance, even as he prepares to sign a lucrative movie deal. Asked to spend some time with the studio’s ingenue, Sherry Wilson (Jennifer Holden), purely for publicity, Vince runs afoul of Sherry’s own conceit. This Vince cures her off with a provocative smooch. Meanwhile, Hunk has had it with Vince's destructive ego. When Peggy shows up unexpectedly Vince is delighted until she explains her only motive for the reunion is purely professional. Approached by a rival record label, Vince is ready to jump ship. But Peggy refuses to sell. Now, Vince pulls a fast one. As he owns a controlling interest in his own career, he decides when he will get out of his contract. Disgusted by his behavior, Hunk decides to teach his ole pal a lesson. The two get into a fight and Hunk inadvertently strikes Vince in the throat, thereby damaging his vocal cords. Rushed to hospital, a short while later Vince is assured no permanent damage has been done. However, with his newfound humility, Vince sincerely doubts he can go on. To prove it, Peggy asks to be serenaded with ‘Young and Beautiful’. Vince obliges and the couple are reconciled.  

Jailhouse Rock is a predictable entertainment. And yet, its pedestrian plot is made palpable by Elvis’ charisma. There really isn’t all that much more to say. In his prime – and in 1957, Elvis was certainly that! – arguably no other ‘star’ could carry the load of turning such disposable fluff into gold as Elvis Presley. Featherweight plots under his command transcended all convention and were elevated into compelling ‘must see’ entertainment. It goes beyond the pull Elvis’ platinum-recording career had on bobbysoxers at the jukebox. Whatever that intangible elixir, oft referenced as ‘star quality’, Elvis Presley had it in spades. And especially at the start of his film career, the plots – while hardly cutting edge – where nevertheless salvageable. Book-ended with one chart-topping tune set upon the next, the mixture of songs and swiveling could not miss – and didn’t.  Today, save Elvis’ raw outpouring of gritty emotion during the title song, the rest of Jailhouse Rock seems utterly tame. There is not much to the story, though it clings together and enough, thanks to Presley, giving him instant cache and more gold records to be endlessly played on the hit parade.

From a remastering standpoint, Warner Home Video’s Blu-ray is a relatively smart affair. Contrast and black levels are solid, and tonality in the gray scale could scarcely be better. Fine detail abounds and image clarity is remarkable. There may have been a hint of DNR applied, as grain levels appear to have been slightly homogenized. The image is smooth where one would expect to find at least some light natural grain in background detail. Nevertheless, this is not a waxy image and the results will surely not disappoint.  We get a 5.1 Dolby TrueHD mix here as well as the original 1.0 mono, also in Dolby Digital, rather than DTS. Can’t really complain here. Dialogue is crisp, and the songs sound great. So, no complaints here. Interesting that Warner Home Video should consider this a ‘special edition’ since the only extras here are a very brief featurette that glosses over the production, and an audio commentary that is bland and not worth your time. Bottom line: Jailhouse Rock is one of Elvis’ early forays into picture-making and at a time before his managers basically sold him out to appear in travelogue ‘concert-styled’ junk, slapped together with minimal plot or effort applied, just to make a buck. This one, however, remains a keeper. So, get on your blue suede shoes and dance!

FILM RATING (out of 5 - 5 being the best)

3.5

VIDEO/AUDIO

4.5

EXTRAS

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