More Than Hips: Elvis and the Rockabilly Dream in Jailhouse Rock
Jailhouse Rock (1957)
Directed by Richard Thorpe
Starring Elvis Presley, Judy Tyler and Mickey Shaughnessy
Richard Thorpe’s Jailhouse Rock is a sleek vehicle for the infamous hips of Elvis Presley. It tells the story of Vince Everett’s rise from a manslaughter conviction to rock star mogul. And, of course, the soundtrack is key.
In the days before the internet and a glut of TV, seeing the King of Rock ‘n’ Roll on a 16-by-9-foot screen must have been electric. Outside big cities, Elvis was mainly seen in magazines. You’ve got to remember: This is 1957, just 12 years after the end of World War II and one year after Elvis’ first No. 1 hit, “Heartbreak Hotel.” To see this phenomenon on a big screen in a theater—so close to an untouchable face—must have felt like a revelation.
Jailhouse Rock is melodrama at its finest. Who cares about the plot twists? The rockabilly tableaux is brilliant. Kudos to Thorpe and cinematographer Robert J. Bronner. The third act’s climax does feel forced, but in retrospect, it plays as a twist of ham-fisted tension. Again, who cares about the plot? Thorpe and his crew wanted to keep the story moving so the audience could project their fantasies onto Vince and his life. That rockabilly tableau was a dream catcher. The plot was just the framework for an emotional chord centered around the icon on screen. It was the King they came to see.
Now, don’t get it twisted—Vince Everett isn’t a hero. His atrophied neck muscles give him a slightly annoying pubescence, but at his core, he’s Machiavellian. When his strictly business partner, Peggy (played by Judy Tyler), rebuffs his initial advances with “How dare you think such cheap tactics would work on me,” she later succumbs to his second attempt. He then explains to her, “That ain’t tactics, honey. It’s just the beast in me.” Vince is a complex character, more complex than Thorpe or Hollywood could handle.
Oh, and by the way, Elvis choreographed the film’s iconic dance sequence for the title song. And it’s the best part.
I recommend this film to any fan of Elvis Presley or Baz Luhrmann’s biopic about him. Watching Vince is like seeing what Elvis was not—it’s a preferable fantasy.
This film is very cinema.