Heartbreak Hotel (1988)

User Rating:

5.5/10   

Director:

Chris Columbus

Writer (WGA):

Chris Columbus (written by)

Release Date:

30 September 1988 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy

Tagline:

1972. My family needed some help, my town needed a hero, and my band needed a break. So I borrowed Mom's pink Cadillac and I kidnapped Elvis Presley, and our lives were never the same again.

Plot:

When a teen tries to set up a band at his school, his mother who was a big fan of Elvis Presley gets in a wreck he and his band members decides to kidnap Elvis and have him hooked up with his mother.

Plot Keywords:

Elvis Presley | Elvis | 1970s | Teenage Boy

Awards:

2 nominations

Cast

David Keith	...	Elvis Presley
Tuesday Weld	...	Marie Wolfe
Charlie Schlatter	...	Johnny Wolfe
Angela Goethals	...	Pam Wolfe
Jacque Lynn Colton	...	Rosie Pantangellio
Chris Mulkey	...	Steve Ayres
Karen Landry	...	Irene
Tudor Sherrard	...	Paul Quinine
Paul J. Harkins	...	Brian Gasternick (as Paul Harkins)
Noel Derecki	...	Tony Vandelo
Dana Barron	...	Beth Devereux
T. Graham Brown	...	Jerry Schilling
Dennis Letts	...	Alan Fortas
Stephen Lee Davis	...	George Klein
Blue Deckert	...	Jones

Runtime:

97 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Australia:M | UK:15 | USA:PG-13 | West Germany:6 | Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

Austin, Texas, USA

Company:

Silver Screen Partners III

Trivia:

Tuesday Weld, who plays the mom whose a big fan of Elvis Presley in the movie, was in Wild in the Country (1961) which starred Elvis Presley.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Making of 'Bubba Ho-tep' (2004) (V)

Soundtrack:

Burning Love

"Hell no, kid. I didn't do that for you. I did that for rock and roll."

This movie is much better than people seem to think. It's not just fun family entertainment, it really shows Elvis trying to come to terms with what went right and wrong with his life. It goes from a spooky, spiritual opening, where Elvis acknowledges his own mortality in song ("So hush little baby, don't you cry/You know your daddy's bound to die")To a rousing "If I Can Dream" finale. The idea is that Elvis gets everything right here that he got so tragically wrong in real time. He is the perfect father, husband, and artist, and he stands up for what we believe in, instead of just wasting himself. Touching and inspiring film.

What keeps the movie from going soft is the fact that the young rock and roller played by Charlie Schlatter (whatever happened to him?) is initially quite contemptuous of Elvis and his Las Vegas style lounge act. The kid chews Elvis out in a very memorable scene that really represents the feelings of millions of young 70's teens about the way Elvis went soft. The fact that Elvis listens and learns is extremely inspiring, but again, the film stays honest. At the end he tells the family, "I've found something here, and I'm afraid if I leave it will slip away again."

Sadly, it did.