Themes: Starting Over, Playing the Field, Mothers and Sons
Main Cast: Elvis Presley, Joan Blackman, Nancy Walters, Roland Winters, Angela Lansbury
Release Year: 1961
Country: US
Run Time: 101 minutes
Plot
One of Elvis Presley's most successful post-Army vehicles, Blue Hawaii casts Elvis as scion to a Hawaiian pineapple fortune. His snooty mother Angela Lansbury wants Presley to take over the management of the family business, but he'd rather make his own way in the world. He lands a job at a tourist agency, and incidentally finds time to dally with such lovelies as Joan Blackman and Nancy Walters. Steve Brodie, as ever, is on hand to inveigle Elvis into an outsized brawl. Among the songs featured in the film are the title number (originally written in 1937 for Bing Crosby) and "Can't Help Falling in Love." ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Review
Blue Hawaii is not a great movie by any means, but it's so amiable and ingratiating that most people will be willing to overlook its flaws and just let it wash over them. Its flaws are certainly many, starting with a screenplay that is filled with clichés and trite dialogue, and features a fairly hoary basic premise and a plot that thinks nothing of coming to a dead halt so that Elvis Presley can sing and swing through a number. Yet there's also lightheartedness to the whole enterprise that keeps it afloat. Clearly, the main attractions here are Presley and the setting, and the film doesn't stint on either one. Presley's in practically every scene, and he excels at this kind of role: slightly rebellious, but for the right reasons; easygoing, but determined; and always ready to break out the guitar and jam with his friends. And while there are plenty of scenes that are clearly studio-bound, director Norman Taurog also makes sure that he doesn't neglect the "travelogue" aspect of the film. Throw in "Can't Help Falling in Love," "Rock-a-Hula Baby," the title number, and a healthy heaping of other songs, and you've got an entertaining, unchallenging way to pass the time. ~ Craig Butler, All Movie Guide
John Archer - Jack Kelman; Howard McNear - Mr. Chapman; Flora Hayes - Mrs. Manaka; Steve Brodie - Tucker Garvey; Darlene Tompkins - Patsy Simon; Christian Kay - Beverly Martin; Jenny Maxwell - Ellie Corbett; Iris Adrian - Enid Garvey; Gregory Gaye - Mr. Duval; Hilo Hattie - Waihila; Lani Kai - Carl Tanami; Pamela Kirk - Selena (Sandy) Emerson; Jose de Vega
Chadwick Gates (Presley) has just gotten out of the Army, and is happy to be back in Hawaii with his surfboard, his beach buddies, and his girlfriend. His mother wants him to go to work at the Great Southern Hawaiian Fruit Company, but Chad is reluctant. So Chad goes to work as a tour guide at his girlfriend's agency.
Filming locations
Much of the film was shot on location at the Coco Palms Resort on the west shore of Kauai. The resort has been abandoned since Hurricane Iniki in 1992, but is now slated for redevelopment.[1]
Among the other locations used was the Tantalus lookout overlooking Honolulu; Chad and his girlfriend, Maile, have a picnic there early in the film.[citation needed]
The scenes at Chad's beach house were shot at Hanauma Bay, a volcanic crater that is open to the sea, near the bedroom community of Hawaii-Kai, a few miles away from Waikiki.[2]
Other information
Although it is mentioned in the film that Chad's parents live in Kahala, one of the most expensive and exclusive areas of Honolulu as of 1961, the view from their lanai (porch or terrace) shows Diamond Head as it appears from Waikiki and downtown Honolulu. This is an error because Kahala is located on the other side of Diamond Head from Waikiki.
There were several scenes filmed in and around the famous Waikiki Beach, including the opening driving scenes as well as the office scene across the street from the "International Market". The hotel scenes where Chad's clients stayed and where he picked up his tour group were filmed on the property of what is now known as the Hilton Hawaiian Village on Waikiki Beach. This is also where Chad and his girlfriend spent time on the beach.
Angela Lansbury, who played the mother of Elvis, was not yet 36 years old in 1961 when the movie was released. Elvis was 26 years old. Lansbury would later comment that her appearance here was one of the worst in her career.
It could be argued that this film set the tone for Presley's future film career: pretty locations, gorgeous girls, and mediocre songs. Almost all of these musical-comedy films performed well, whereas more "serious" films such as Flaming Star, Wild in the Country and Charro, did poorly at the box office. Blue Hawaii on the other hand was one of Elvis' most successful films.
While some of the songs on the soundtrack album can fairly be described as "inferior," others compare favorably to his non-soundtrack recordings. Presley's remake of the title song did justice to the Academy Award-winning song, while also introducing it to an audience too young to remember Bing Crosby's original hit version. His recording of "Can't Help Falling In Love" compares quite well to his other Top 10 hits, and his recordings of "Rock-A-Hula Baby" and "Ku-u-ipo (Hawaiian Sweetheart)" are notable as well.
The "Blue Hawaii" soundtrack album was on the Billboard Pop Albums chart for 79 weeks, spent 20 weeks at #1 on the Pop Albums chart, and sold more than 2-million copies [See: Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Albums 1955-1996]
