beauzee my summary doesn't really tell it all: over the years, I've gotten to like it (well, most of the soundtrack and a lot of the scenes).I think of all the Elvis(es), this one gave BIg El the most shudders! It would not have, in 1962-3, but after Sergeant Pepper, Dylan, Stones, it had to hurt. It's been written he did it only to pay off the "Circle G" ranch he had recently purchased.having said that, the plot is kinda groovy...except for an awful song together, Elvis and Will Hutchins make a good comedy team, the oil baron's son and gas jockey guy, switching places; and Shelly Fabares, looking beautiful, as usual.soundtrack has no hits but still some very listenable, melodic ballads, yes a special Elvis version of YOU DON'T KNOW ME, plus a minor gem, THE GIRL I NEVER LOVED, which he should have revisited. A HOUSE THAT HAS EVERYTHING has endured, even a very slight dancer, the contemporary HEY HEY HEY, sung in a lab. with shapely lab. assistants.so...no real surprises...well, maybe a surprise in that after all these years, it's pretty good fun. in some ways, looks better today. (Hey, "When I'm 64", wasn't all that great, either!).

Robert D.M When I first saw this movie, I was laughing all the way through. For all the wrong reasons. The songs are way below average (you don't even need to hear the whole thing to know that a song called "Goo" will stink.) Elvis is usually a decent actor, and always a great singer, but he is definitely off his game here. What got me the most about this one was that, for a musical comedy, it is BRUTALLY long. No Elvis movie should pass the 85 minute mark, unless it is very entertaining, which is very possible for Elvis to do. Sadly, that is not the case here, although, it is a lot of fun to watch with friends, if just for the sheer camp value. I don't get why so any people seem to love this film, but to each his own.

aimless-46 Although it has the worst title of any Elvis movie, "Clambake" (1967) is actually one of his better films. Which is surprising as it is one of his last and generally speaking each film seemed a bit worse than its predecessor. "Clambake's" salvation is certainly not in the soundtrack which is at best very ordinary, only the title song has any energy. Although there is an actual clambake scene on the beach about midway into the film, it seems thrown in just to justify the title, more impressive is a cameo of "Flipper" who had his own television show at that time.I'm inclined to credit Shelley Fabares for the good vibe I got from this film. She plays "golddigger with a heart of gold" Dianne Carter, Elvis' ultimate love interest. I never cared for her uptight Mary Stone character on reruns of "The Donna Reed Show", and therefore paid almost no attention to her until recently. But since seeing her in "Ride the Wild Surf" and "Clambake" I've had a major attitude adjustment. "Clambake" was the third time she was tapped for the love interest role in an Elvis film so obviously she and the King had grown comfortable working together. Their romance is a little different than the Elvis standard. In "Clambake" she does not start out hating or ignoring him. Instead they quickly become friends and she is obviously attracted, but she puts the brakes on any romance because she is hunting for a rich husband and has tycoon J.J. Jamison (Bill Bixby) squarely in her sights. She comes around in the end and their chemistry actually feels real, much like it did with Ann Margret in "Viva Las Vegas".The comfort factor is also apparent between Elvis and Will Hutchins, his real-life buddy. Oil tycoon Scott (Elvis) pulls a "Prince and the Pauper" and swaps places with drifter Tom Wilson (Hutchins). He wants to find someone who loves him for himself. Hutchins is supposed to provide the film's main comic relief as he enjoys the life of the rich and famous, driving Scott's "Munsters" inspired convertible and surrounding himself with gorgeous women who can't dance very well. Although the director had Hutchins overplay the part it is so poorly written that they can't squeeze many laughs out of the premise. But having most of his scenes with Fabares and Hutchins seems to have relaxed Elvis considerably, which makes both he and his film more likable. Contrary to most, I enjoyed the corny playground scene with the little girl who was afraid of the slide. The "Confidence" song is not a rip off of "High Hopes", the whole scene is a variation on the "Bounce Right Back" number Donald O'Connor did in "Anything Goes". While "Confidence" is not much of a song, this surreal scene is priceless. I wonder what long-time fans thought as they watched Elvis and Hutchins do something so totally "Guffman"? Most entertainers only do embarrassing stuff like this when they are first breaking into the business. Then again, what do I know? I'm only a child.

moonspinner55 Not-bad Elvis Presley outing has the son of a Texas oil tycoon escaping to Cypress Gardens, Florida in search of a girl who will love him for himself and not his millions; after swapping identities with a penniless water-ski instructor (unctuous Will Hutchins), Presley falls for a pretty brunette who makes it clear she wants only to marry for money. Lively direction by Arthur Nadel gives this musical-comedy some drive, with studio shots and location footage smoothly integrated (although the back-projection routine does get a real workout). Elvis sings a handful of fine songs including "A House That Has Everything", and his performance towers above the others, particularly a grating turn by Bill Bixby as a professional speedboat racer. The close-ups of the cast during the climactic speedboat race are hilariously over-exaggerated, but Shelley Fabares is a decent love-interest and the flick has a satisfying wrap-up. **1/2 from ****