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Elvis's outfits are impressive in 1967's
Clambake, especially a groovy, belted sport coat and a cream-colored suit covered with cowhide-style stitching. The costumes are more creative than the soundtrack, which is heavy with the mindlessness of late-period Elvis movies. As he sings "Confidence" (an obvious rip-off of the Oscar-winning "High Hopes"), you can almost see Elvis batting out "Just shoot me" in Morse code with his eyelids. The only decent tune has the star crooning a nice, lonesome version of the standard "You Don't Know Me." This one's set in Florida, but with none of the scenic fun of his Hawaii pictures. He plays a rich oilman's son pretending to be a water-skiing instructor, with Shelley Fabares (a three-time Presley costar) as the girl. The camp highlight is an ensemble number with go-go girls helping Elvis fix a speedboat, which is just about as far from Sun Studios as you can get.
--Robert Horton
Product Description
Elvis Presley sizzles as a lovelorn million-heir in this riveting and romantic rock 'n' roll romp. Vying for the attentions of the lovely Shelley Fabares ("Coach"), Elvis finds himself caught up in arivalry with playboy Bill Bixby ("The Incredible Hulk") "against a tuneful background of comedy, romance and speedboat racing" (Film Daily)! Clambake is "pleasing escape entertainment" (Boxoffice) and the wildest party to hit the beach since they invented the beach ball! It's a hip version of The Prince and the Pauper as Elvis relinquishes his oil-baron father's fortune and trades identities with a penniless water ski instructor (Will Hutchins) to learn about life from the bottom up. Suddenly short on money but long on determination, he repairs a radicallydesigned powerboat in order to win the regatta and the affection of a girl who's determined to marry rich!