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15 reviews in total

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11 out of 13 people found the following review useful:
Classic Presley, 6 February 2003
Author: Joe-290

Fun In Acapulco was at the height of Elvis's movie career. Its the stereo-type Presley film in a selection of pictures in between his rare good ones. Its got great songs (Bossa Nova Baby) and good looking women (Ursula Andress) and nice locations (Acapulco) and somewhat of forgettable plot. The greatest thing about Elvis's movies was the fun.The movies were out and out "HAPPY" films. They took you away from a world that may be dull and dark. Presley's films get stick but they were a good benefit to those who make the best of their lives for themselves and others. Elvis got bored of doing them when they became repetitive but if you pace them in your viewing, its just great fun. Dont put this on your top list of Presley flicks but certainly not at the bottom. Fortunately the movie was a million times better than Star Wars.

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7 out of 7 people found the following review useful:
The second Elvis movie I ever saw, 10 July 2003

Author: Pat McCurry (acehighpat@aol.com) from Wilton, NH

Fun in Acapulco is your standard, run of the mill Elvis flick. Unfortunately, it suffers from bargain basement production, but it is good enough to help you forget your troubles. It is obvious that some of the scenes filmed in "Mexico" were actually done in front of a blue screen. According to Priscilla Presley, the hotel scenes were filmed at a Mexican style hotel in California. Of course with every Elvis film, there is a few big names thrown in for good measure. In this case, the beautiful Ursula Andress, fresh from Dr. No and Alejandro Rey, who would find fame in The Flying Nun and Moscow on the Hudson. The cast is amicable, and most of the songs are passable (with the exception of the stupid 'No Room To Rumba In A Sportscar').

Elvis was still searching for that big role. While a few of the stars went on to meatier roles, Elvis was stuck doing the same thing. You could tell by the time he was finished with movies, he was just burned out. Still, you can see he has the knack for acting, even in a flick like this. I know it sounds like I am putting down this film, but I still find some charm in it. You can't say no to Elvis or Acapulco.

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7 out of 8 people found the following review useful:
He's not the King for nothing, 10 April 2000
Author: Boyo-2

If you are an Elvis fanatic, you have to see all the movies he made, even of the majority of them are not even decent. The fact that he is in them makes them more than they would normally be. This entry is not that bad - I mean it. You have Ursula Andress, always a plus, and all those location shots. Plus the number "Bossa Nova Baby" is great. Like this movie? Of course I do - the man is known as the King for a reason, and proper respect must be paid to the man.

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7 out of 8 people found the following review useful:
Latin rhythms and temperamental romance south of the border., 23 October 1999

Author: Michael O'Keefe from Muskogee OK

Richard Thorpe directed a previous Elvis movie, "Jailhouse Rock". Elvis plays Mike Windgren, who is running away from a family trapeze act accident. He is hired as a life guard and singer. Elsa Cardenas, a lady bullfighter, wants Mike's attention. The beautiful Ursula Andress plays hard to get. Mike gets over his fear of heights by diving off one of the local landmark cliffs. The eleven song soundtrack of Latin-beat ditties includes "You Can't Say No In Acapulco" and the million plus selling "Bossa Nova Baby". Better than average travelog.

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5 out of 5 people found the following review useful:
Queremos a Elvis!, 28 June 2002
Author: Shane Paterson from Las Vegas, NV

*** This review may contain spoilers ***

A few spoilers here...

Director Richard Thorpe had earlier directed Elvis in 1957's "Jailhouse Rock," the young singer's third film. "Jailhouse Rock," shot in black and white, featured a somewhat dark atmosphere and a far-from-benign Elvis. "Fun In Acapulco" is different fare all together. Elvis's figurative (and temporary) emasculation by the Hollywood machine is obvious in most of his '60s 'travelogue' musicals and this film presents the sanitized Elvis in his full glory, lacquered hair and all. The story's fairly typical in its lightweight nature -- Elvis films of the '60s were generally nothing that you'd confuse with something written by Eugene O'Neill -- but it has a couple of twists and a bit of a backstory.

The basics are that Elvis finds himself unemployed in Acapulco, short on money and too short on time to secure a work permit. He hooks up with a young street kid, Raoul, who's basically a pint-sized Colonel Parker (Parker, for the uninitiated, was the huckster who was Elvis' manager and who became as much a legend among managers as Elvis did among performers), always on the make for new ways to turn a peso. Elvis ends up doing double-duty as a lifeguard and as a fill-in singer at various clubs after Raoul helps him get his first gig at the Acapulco Hilton (the Hilton name to become more intimately associated with Elvis' name in the '70s when he changed the face of Vegas). Elvis experiences 'double trouble' yet again, being pursued by and pursuing two bodacious babes (a famous lady bullfighter, played by Elsa Cardenas, and the Hilton's Assistant Social Director, played by Ursula Andress), in the process ticking off the local diving champion (Alejandro Rey, who played the Cuban immigration lawyer in 1984's "Moscow On The Hudson"). Said rival reveals the fact of Elvis' character's past -- that he was a member of a family-based circus-acrobat team who 'lost his nerve' when he let his brother fall to his death.

I picked up on a few ironies within the film, some of them probably planned and others retrospective ones that were obviously not. Among the first group were Elvis talking about somebody being "all shook up" (actually, I think I've seen that one in another of his '60s films...maybe "GI Blues"). Elvis also talks about kings having had food-tasters, and follows it up with another mention of 'the King' (not, by the way, a title that Elvis was overly fond of when applied to himself). The other kind included Elvis donning a bullfighter's cape for part of a song, as a kind of visual premonition of his stage suits a decade later, and Elvis shocked that his young 'manager' expected a hefty 50% of Elvis' earning (exactly four years after this film was shot, Colonel Parker renegotiated his contract with a recently-concussed Elvis and claimed a whopping -- and undeserved -- 50% of Elvis' income along with other concessions that effectively gave the wily old carny more Elvis-derived funding than Elvis himself received).

Interestingly, Elvis didn't go south of the border for this film -- all of his wide-angle and long-shot scenes in which Acapulco scenery is evident were shot using doubles. Most of the back-projection composites are really well done, too, to the point that some people have a hard time believing that he wasn't in Acapulco for at least part of the shoot. Apparently, Colonel Parker reminded Producer Hal Wallis of the nightmare that filming became in New Orleans while working on the 1958 classic, "King Creole," and raised the specter of being forced to rely upon a few local policemen in a country where the principals didn't know the ground rules nor the relevant agencies. Elvis made up for the deficit by taking Spanish tutorials to try to improve his pronunciation (Ursula Andress, in the meantime, was trying to improve her English).

The Mexican flavor of the film is tastefully done and is consistent and authentic. It was really a natural combination. Elvis had always -- since the '50s -- incorporated some Spanish and Mexican stylings into his dress (as he continued to throughout the '60s and even more obviously in some of his rather jawdropping '70s on- and off-stage ensembles) and the same is true of his music. Although Elvis' prime influences were black and white gospel traditions, blues, country, and Dean-Martin-style pop balladeering, many of his '60s and '70s songs have an obvious Spanish tinge. In the 1970 documentary, "Elvis - That's The Way It Is," Xavier Cugat states for the camera that Elvis "sings Spanish songs like nobody."

I like this film. It's not a great film, and it's not even the best of Elvis' '60s musicals, but it's enjoyable and pleasant and is far above many of the films that followed, particularly those shot 1965-67. A harmless diversion, you might say, and both Elvis and his female co-stars look great. The soundtrack, though, is one of my favorite of Elvis' movie years. Elvis really nails the Mexican sound, probably thanks in part to the backing efforts of the LA-based Amigos. Most of the songs are presented well, too, and most are presented in natural settings and well shot. Check out the tasty little number, "Bossa Nova baby," and witness Elvis' ability to move upper and lower halves entirely independently. Pretty good workout. The ending "Guadalajara" is great, and Elvis delivered the take used in the movie after only a couple of attempts in the studio, having learned the lyrics phonetically. "No Room To Rhumba In A Sports car" is the weakest song, but even it has a certain charm. By the way, the Beatles saw this movie at a Florida drive-in during their first US tour (they were hoping to have seen Elvis in person but had to settle for the celluloid version until their next tour of the US).

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1 out of 1 people found the following review useful:
Elvis Looks Good and the Girls Are Pretty, 16 August 2009

Author: wes-connors from Earth

This time Elvis Presley (as Mike Windgren) plays a trapeze artist who has lost his nerve, after high-wire mishap. He leaves his circus family act, "The Flying Windgren", and becomes a drifting sailor. When his boat docks in Acapulco, Mr. Presley gets a job as lifeguard at the local hotel. There are plenty of fit bathing-suited bodies around the pool, including rival lifeguard Alejandro Rey (as Moreno, before "The Flying Nun"), and object of their affection Ursula Andress (as Marguerita, after "Dr. No"). Presley sings, fights, swims, and struggles to overcome his fear of heights. And, Elvis still looks trim in his own bathing trunks.

Supposedly, one of the men carrying Presley, after his stuntman's triumphant cliff-side dive, got fresh, and groped the King; if so, it doesn't show on camera. As was sometimes the case, many of the soundtrack songs sounded better on record, with stronger studio instrumentation. This is the case with "Bossa Nova Baby", which was destined to be the film's lead hit single, peaking at #8. Of the film songs, "Mexico" was given short shrift; a pop delight, the studio version did well when released its own, peaking at #4 on worldwide charts. The title song reached #28 in Australia, and the lush soundtrack was a million-seller.

**** Fun in Acapulco (11/27/63) Richard Thorpe ~ Elvis Presley, Ursula Andress, Alejandro Rey, Paul Lukas

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1 out of 1 people found the following review useful:
Fun in Acapulco (1963) **1/2, 12 August 2007

Author: JoeKarlosi from U.S.A.

I fully expected to not care for this Elvis travelogue at all, but maybe I was in the right mood because it wasn't so bad. I was intrigued by the basic idea that Presley's playing a former circus acrobat who once accidentally killed his brother who fell to his death when Elvis failed to catch him during their trapeze act. Ever since, he's been terrified of heights and finds himself working hotels in Mexico to try and work out his problems; he takes on two jobs, as a lifeguard and a singer at the Acapulco Hilton. He hopes to conquer his fears by diving off the cliffs, and along the way bumps shoulders with established diving expert Alejandro Rey (who became known as Carlos in THE FLYING NUN), and moves in on his beautiful woman, Ursula Andress. The sights are colorful, even if much of it was faked with rear projection shots of Mexico -- they actually look pretty authentic and it's hard to notice. The south of the border music works within the framework of the film, and is passable (especially "Bossa Nova Baby"). The real stinker this time is the hilariously titled "There's No Room To Rhumba In a Sports Car", but these pictures are musicals, after all.

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Above average Presley film, 17 March 2012

Author: Bjorn (jbjorns) from Iceland

A typical Presley film that's quite enjoyable. Made a little before the King got bored with the indistinguishable material thrown at him and he gives a relaxed and likable performance here.

Here he's playing a character who's trying to overcome a past trauma (an accident in a circus show which resulted in his brother's demise) by taking a job as a lifeguard at a hotel resort in Acapulco. But, with this being a Presley film, he also moonlights as a singer and has two knockout beauties wanting his full attention.

The dramatic aspect here is actually quite good and what little Presley gets to show off in dramatic acting he pulls off well. Other than that; this is standard Presley fare. A few musical numbers in nightclubs, a shallow love story with the irresistible Andress, a macho rival for the girl's affections and a cute kid who befriends Elvis. Actually; the kid here (Larry Domasin) is quite funny and endearing and scenes involving the two are very good.

The acting by Andress, Elsa Cardenas (as the other woman vying for Elvis's affections) and Alejandro Rey (as the fellow lifeguard and Presley's rival for Andress) is remarkably stilted. Elvis and the kid come off best. The songs here are fairly solid for Presley fans but none have become classics with the possible exception of "Bossa Nova" which is undoubtedly the highlight of this film's musical numbers.

In the end; "Fun in Acapulco" is enjoyable for a Presley fan and others might just have a decent enough time. The scenery here is wonderful and you'll just wish you were there (as is the case with many Elvis films). Too bad the King hardly ever visited these great locations as he was always in studio and a body double used for the wide shots (and it's quite apparent in a few here).

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The Absent Male Lead, 21 October 2011
Author: JoeytheBrit from www.moviemoviesite.com

It's 1963 and the hip-swinging, floppy-haired Elvis from seven years earlier has been replaced by a sleeker, clean-cut version with meticulously styled hair and a taste for fitted shirts and slacks. It's as if he's been badly cloned and the product subsequently dipped in Formica, which is quite ironic in a way because for much of this film we're not watching the real Elvis but a slightly taller and lankier double. The real Elvis got no nearer to Acapulco during the making of this flick than I did during the watching of it, and it's quite jarring the way the film keeps flipping back and forth between location shots and studio sets in the course of a scene.

The story is the usual nonsense. Elvis loses his job on a rich man's boat because of his employer's jealous teen daughter, and is sort of adopted by an annoying street urchin who is everyone's cousin and quickly wins Elvis a singing job at a hotel. It's a swanky hotel, built into the side of a cliff and overlooking the steep rocks from which local divers leap for the patron's pleasure. One of the guests is an unlikely female toreador, while the hotel's social secretary is the succulent Ursula Andress, the daughter of the hotel's chef who was once royalty. That's right: she's a princess in rags. Elvis used to be a trapeze artist but he once dropped his brother (it's the kind of thing you only do once) and now has a fear of heights. Lord only knows how it will all end up…

Elvis had evidently given up all aspirations of being a serious actor by the time this folly was produced. He was in some decent pictures in the late fifties and early sixties, but was too lightweight an actor to live up to them. I guess he found his level, and could hardly complain. This movie is filled with catchy tunes that are instantly forgettable – until the last twenty minutes or so, when director Richard Thorpe starts piling on the psychological angst with a teaspoon. Although the film itself is as forgettable as its songs, it's pleasant enough if you're in an undemanding frame of mind and looking for an escape from the realities of your life.

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FUN IN ACAPULCO (Richard Thorpe, 1963) **, 31 August 2007

Author: MARIO GAUCI (marrod@melita.com) from Naxxar, Malta

While the title itself promised little more than the fluff the film undoubtedly turned out to be, I was still let down by this Presley vehicle – given that it was helmed by the man behind one of his biggest successes and best films, JAILHOUSE ROCK (1957)!

The star plays an ex-trapeze artist with a guilt complex(!), while Mexico and Ursula Andress provide the scenery. The narrative involves Elvis befriending a resourceful kid who gets him singing jobs(!), plus a tedious subplot comprising the jealousy of both a lifeguard (Andress’ would-be boyfriend) and a lady bullfighter who has her eyes set on Presley. Paul Lukas turns up as Andress’ father, a deposed member of royalty now forced to performing chef’s duties – the image of him in an over-sized cap, coupled with his thick Hungarian accent, proves unintentionally hilarious…but his is a welcome presence, nonetheless.

Needless to say, Elvis sings a number of mostly forgettable songs during the course of the film: the best of these, unsurprisingly, is another Leiber/Stoller song – “Bossa Nova Baby”.

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