Plot: What’s it about?
Ted Jackson (Elvis Presley) is a Navy frogman, so he knows his way around the waves and loves to be in the water. On his last day of service, he discovers a sunken chest and of course, it perks his interest. So on his first day back in civilian life, he begins a new career and sets off to be a professional treasure hunter. Then again, when you know there’s treasure out there, it makes it easier to make such a decision, but nevermind about that. So he begins his quest to bring the sunken chest back ashore, but before he gets too far along in his mission, he finds himself distracted by potential romance. In fact, he has caught the attention of a couple young ladies, both of whom want to see that chest brought to the surface. But one is a good girl who likes Ted and wants to see him do well, while the other simply wants to use him to get her greedy little mitts on the treasure, to keep for herself. But can he manage to find out which one is his true love, while also trying to bring the chest back to land?
This is not the worst of Elvis’ cinematic efforts, but it is right toward the bottom of the list, as a real toothache of movie. Now I like a lot of Elvis movies, like Blue Hawaii, Roustabout, and especially Clambake, but with Easy Come, Easy Go, the Elvis formula was running thin and not even The King himself could keep things above water. And no, that’s not just a pun since Elvis stars as a frogman, but rest assured, this one tanks right from the start. In his less than stellar works, you can at least say that Elvis fanatics will be entertained, but I have some doubts about that here, as Elvis seems wooden and confused at times. Maybe even he couldn’t even believe he signed on for this, but in any event, this is not a fun motion picture. It tries to be and even uses the old tried & true Elvis movie tricks, but you can tell some of the magic is gone and even the songs lack the same spark, a real let down all around. If you’re an Elvis diehard, then give Easy Come, Easy Go a rental, but otherwise, just this clunker sink to the bottom.
Who knew a movie with Elvis as a military man with yoga skills who love to go down could be such a disaster? But that is the case with Easy Come, Easy Go, one of the bottom tier pictures in Elvis’ cinematic resume. It seems as though in a lot of his lesser movies, Elvis steps up and carries the flick himself, with his charisma, presence, and of course, vocal skills. But here, he seems to be out of it in many scenes and perhaps he just didn’t have the strength to carry this stinker, as even his performance is weak. Now we all know his traditional thespian skills were thin at best, but he did some good screen presence, but even by Elvis standards, Elvis simply isn’t Elvis in this one, so it tanks. If you want to see Elvis in better efforts, check out G.I. Blues, Clambake, Blue Hawaii, Viva Las Vegas, and Fun in Acapulco. The cast also includes Dodie Marshall (Spinout), Pat Priest (Tv’s The Munsters), Pat Harrington (The Candidate, The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes), and Skip Ward (The Nutty Professor, Red Line 7000).
Video: How does it look?
Easy Come, Easy Go is presented in a 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen transfer. While not as sharp and polished as more recent releases, this is a fine visual presentation, and the best the film has looked on home video. The colors seem in order, bright and vivid with pristine whites, and flesh tones are normal and free from discoloration. In some scenes the colors tend to become a little muted, but this is to a minor degree, and is rare. The contrast is strong with well defined shadows although some minor detail loss is evident. The transfer does not suffer from compression errors, but the source print does have some nicks and other wear signs at times.
Audio: How does it sound?
A new Dolby Digital 5.1 option has been included here, but aside from the musical numbers, there isn’t much to discuss here. But this is an Elvis movie, so if the music sounds better, than nothing else really matters, now does it? The music is well presented here, with a lot of life and it makes good use of the surrounds, though nothing too remarkable. The sound effects come across as well as can be expected, while dialogue is clean at all times. Not really a memorable track in any respect, but a solid one that presents the material in fine fashion. This disc also includes a restored mono option, a French language track, and English subtitles.
Supplements: What are the extras?
This disc contains no bonus materials.
