Product Details

• Actors: Elvis Presley, Mary Tyler Moore, Barbara McNair, Jane Elliot, Leora Dana
• Directors: William A. Graham
• Writers: Eric Bercovici, James Lee, John Joseph, Richard Morris, S.S. Schweitzer
• Producers: Irving Paley, Joe Connelly
• Format: Color, NTSC
• Language: English
• Rating: G (General Audience)
• Studio: Goodtimes Home Video
• VHS Release Date: March 5, 1998
• Run Time: 93 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (43 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B0000065M3
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #3,934 in Video (See Bestsellers in Video)

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  #6 in	Video > Music Video & Concerts > Artists > Presley, Elvis
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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Elvis tried something different in his final narrative movie… but the results are oddly similar to his usual '60s formula. Here the King plays a doctor working in an inner-city free clinic, playing host to three Catholic nurses (who are really nuns incognito). Elvis gets hung up on one of the nuns, played by Mary Tyler Moore; she seems a lot closer to The Dick Van Dyke Show than the Vatican. The songs are sparse--"Rubberneckin'" gets a workout in one of those awful stilted hootenannies so prevalent in Elvis pictures. The flower-power ambience is more interesting than the story; the film features Mod Squad-style attempts at racial politics, a sit-down protest, and a weird sequence involving "rage reduction" to cure an autistic child. Elvis has good scenes and indifferent ones, but he looks fantastic (this is just after the great "comeback"), and he dresses like no other doctor before or since. --Robert Horton

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

31 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars "A good movie, not just an Elvis movie.", February 28, 2001

By	tvtv3 "tvtv3" (Sorento, IL United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

When I was younger anytime my parents or other adults talked about Elvis movies, what came to mind were lame movies with very little plot, structured in a way so Elvis could sing some "new" tunes. My "mama always used to say that" Elvis was a better actor than most people believed, but from watching films like BLUE HAWAII, I thought she was just couldn't face the truth that Elvis couldn't act his way out of a paper bag. After seeing CHANGE OF HABIT (and learning more about how Colonel Parker ran the King's life) I realized my Mom was right, Elvis was a decent actor. It's just that he was never allowed many opportunities to display his talent and grow as an actor. This is unfortunate.

CHANGE OF HABIT is a good movie. It has an interesting plot, most of the characters aren't just paper mache blowing in the wind, and the movie deals with social issues that are still relevant even today. Many people suggest that Mary Tyler Moore is miscast in this film, but I found her believable in her role as a nun. Also, the supporting cast does a good job given their limited screen time.

As is the case in all Elvis' movies, there are tunes. However, unlike the other Elvis' films I have seen, the movie isn't structured around the songs. The songs that you actually see Elvis singing appear more natural than staged and a couple of them are really memorable, e.g. "In the Ghetto".

I haven't seen very many Elvis' films, but out of the ones I have viewed, this is the best. I wish Elvis would have been allowed to make more films like this. He could have ended up being remembered as much for his acting as his singing and that would have really been a change of habit.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Dr Elvis - Magnificent, October 30, 1999

By A Customer

This is a truly magnificent movie and represents a change from the racing driver come hotel employee that Elvis usually play. In the opening scene, the King is surrounded by a group of hippies whilst he plays guitar and sings a great song called 'Ruberneckin'.

The title track is an attempts to cash in on the folk scene in the vein of Dylan's 'Blowin in the Wind'.

Elvis playing a doctor is a genius stroke of scriptwriting as is a romantic involvement with a nun (Mary Tyler Moore) who eventually turns away from the Church to be with Elvis.

This film also has a social conscience and like 'Edge of Reality' has a sixties feel about it.

There is something great about this film, I can't put it into words. Maybe it is so bad that it is good, I am not sure.

I would recommend that anyone see this.

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Presley's Final Screen Role, November 12, 2004

By	Scott Rivers (Los Angeles, CA USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Change of Habit (DVD)

"Change of Habit" (1969) will not be remembered as one of Elvis Presley's best efforts, but this socially conscious drama represents an admirable change of pace. In his last fictional film, Elvis gives a believable performance in the improbable role of a ghetto doctor. He actually fares better than Mary Tyler Moore - hopelessly miscast as a nun. Though ludicrous in spots, "Change of Habit" is easier to sit through than many of Presley's lame musicals. Elvis remains fascinating to watch and the climactic gospel-rock number is a must-see.