Follow That Dream (1962)

When the Kwimper family car runs out of gas on a new Florida highway and an officous state supervisor tries to run them off, Pop Kwimper digs in his heels and decides to do a little ... See full summary »

Director:

Gordon Douglas

Writers:

Charles Lederer (screenplay), Richard Powell (novel),

Stars:

Elvis Presley, Arthur O'Connell, Anne Helm

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Elvis Presley	...	Toby Kwimper
Arthur O'Connell	...	Pop Kwimper
Anne Helm	...	Holly Jones
Joanna Moore	...	Alisha Claypoole
Jack Kruschen	...	Carmine
Simon Oakland	...	Nick
Roland Winters	...	Judge
Alan Hewitt	...	H. Arthur King
Howard McNear	...	George
Frank DeKova	...	Jack (as Frank de Kova)
Herbert Rudley	...	Mr. Endicott
Gavin Koon	...	Eddy Bascombe
Robin Koon	...	Teddy Bascombe
Robert Carricart	...	Al
Barry Russo	...	Blackie (as John Duke)

Storyline

When the Kwimper family car runs out of gas on a new Florida highway and an officous state supervisor tries to run them off, Pop Kwimper digs in his heels and decides to do a little homesteading. He and his son Toby and their "adopted" children - Holly, Ariadne and the twins - start their own little community along a strip of the roadside. The fishing is good and the living is easy until the mob sets up a gambling operation and the state supervisor sics a sexy social worker on the Kwimpers in an effort to take away Ariadne and the twins.

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Plot Keywords:

twins | fishing | gambling | florida | violence | 

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Taglines:

Want a Lift? Elvis Presley's Funniest... Happiest... Dreamiest... Motion Picture!

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Genres:

Comedy | Musical

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

11 April 1962 (USA)

Also Known As:

Here Come the Kwimpers

Filming Locations:

Crystal River, Florida, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Mirisch Corporation, The

Technical Specs

Runtime:

109 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Herman Raucher was hired to adapt the book "Pioneer, Go Home!" into a movie. The studio heads were displeased with the script he handed to them, saying that the dialogue didn't seem to fit the characters. Raucher told them that since the book didn't feature much dialogue for him to work with, he had to make up most of it up himself, and since he'd grown up in a Jewish neighborhood in Brooklyn, he had no idea what farm people sounded like. Raucher refused to re-write the dialogue, and an argument erupted between Raucher and the studio heads, with Raucher being fired from the project. Another writer was called in to re-write the dialogue for Raucher's script, and Raucher received no credit for the work he'd done. In 1963, the script that he had written was adapted into the play "Pioneer, Go Home!" Raucher recounts the story of his work on the movie and eventual firing in his book "There Should Have Been Castles."

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Goofs

When Pop Quimper is supposedly playing the guitar while Toby is singing, in more than one place, his hands move when there is no sound and when there is, they are back where they were originally, making it obvious that he is not really playing.

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Quotes

Nick: What happened?
Toby Kwimper: They were showing me how I shouldn't get hurt. I wish they would wake up so I could apologize. I don't think they can hear me now.
Nick: No, I don't think so either.

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Connections

Referenced in Mafioso (1962)

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Soundtracks

"Sound Advice"
by Bill Giant & Anna Shaw
Performed by Elvis Presley (uncredited)

User Reviews

Florida, Elvis style

This is one of Elvis's best films in my opinion. And one where he extended his range a bit. Usually he plays he troubled youths, or confident smart people who are trying to prove themselves. Here's he's an innocent in the world and it's a tribute to his acting skills that he was acquiring that he didn't descend into being Gomer Pyle.

Of course the film is greatly helped by the title tune which in my opinion is one of his best movie songs. Follow That Dream rightly belonged among Elvis's golden hits.

With an innocence here that rivals even Stan Laurel or Harry Langdon, Elvis manages to defeat some pretty sharp characters. The film itself has a charming innocence about it that makes it thorough going fun.