10 Best Elvis Presley Movies, Ranked

Netflix documentary The Return of the King: The Fall and Rise of Elvis Presley allowed audiences a glimpse into the life of one of pop culture’s most famous figures, and the iconic singer has several films to check out next. In addition to being one of the defining musical artists of the 20th century, Elvis Presley’s acting career saw him Star in 31 films, including mainly musicals that showcased his singing talent and charisma.

Throughout the 1950s, Elvis was a fairly consistent box office success, with his controversial manager, Colonel Tom Parker, dictating many of his acting choices. Presley wanted to take part in more serious roles, but these films, like Flaming Starearned less at the box office. Films like Prison stone and Long live Las Vegas were some of the highest-grossing films of their respective years, proving the desire for his musical films with accompanied soundtracks.

10

Wild in the Country (1961)

Director: Philip Dunne

Wild in the country is another Elvis musical film and was not considered a success at the time of its release. A review of The New York Times referred to Presley’s performance as “as immature as ever,“And the film wasn’t one of his biggest commercial successes, grossing just $2.5 million. But, that said, it was one of his chances to have a more dramatic character.

The reason his performance was immature may have been because his character, Glenn Tyler, was a rather immature figure. Elvis Presley may not have been Marlon Brando, but This was one of the most dramatic scripts he had the opportunity to work onand this continues through the best part of his film roles. It may only have a 57% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes, but it has a 3.2/5 star rating on Letterboxd.

9

The Trouble with Girls (1969)

Director: Peter Tewksbury

The problem with girls is one of Elvis Presley’s last films and which saw him paired with one of his best supporting castsincluding horror film legends Vincent Price and John Carradine. It is important to note that this is one of his only films released after the famous NBC Comeback Special of 1968, during a period in which Elvis Presley sought to redefine his career and image as an artist.

The problem with girls is another Elvis film that doesn’t have good reviews, with just 54% on Rotten Tomatoes. However, it is one of the most exclusive entries in his filmographyand his performance towards the end of his career shows some genuine improvements. It’s fascinating to see Elvis Presley in a more complex political plot. Although the name sounds like a typical Elvis film, it is one of the most distinctive and deserves some recognition for that.

8

Loving You (1957)

Director: Hal Kanter

Loving you was the film that launched Elvis Presley’s career as a Hollywood film star, shortly after his great success as a recording artist. In that sense, the art of the Elvis Presley-centric film musical was not as defined as it would become, but it had enough strength to make him a sought-after star. The film received decent reviews, but managed to gross $3.7 million at the box office, a respectable number for the time.

In terms of how it aged, Loving you it has a score of 3.1/5 on Letterboxd, undoubtedly placing it at the top of his filmography. Rotten Tomatoes audiences also gave the film a score of 70%. The film better quality may be the songs presented, such as (Let me be your) teddy bear and Loving youwhich are still considered classics.

7

Love Me Tenderly (1956)

Director: Robert D. Webb

Love me tenderly has to enter any ranking of Elvis Presley’s greatest achievements simply because of the quality of the titular song. Notably, the 1956 film was Presley’s first film role and he had such an impact that the title changed due to the popularity of his music in advanced sales. It also starred Richard Egan, and the film has one of the best casts of his films.

In 1956, Elvis Presley was just beginning to establish himself as a celebrity and later lamented that Love me tenderly presented him singing. Still, it was one of the films where he was praised for his performancedespite the film’s mediocre reception. The film has 3 stars on Letterboxd along with a 64% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes, although the lower numbers could also be because it is one of their most viewed films.

6

Blue Hawaii (1961)

Director: Norman Taurog

The 1951 Elvis Presley film, Blue Hawaiinot only was it one of his best films, but also created one of their strongest and longest-lasting albums. The soundtrack of Blue Hawaii included the hit “Can’t Help Falling in Love”, which is still considered one of his best and was one of the songs he sang on ’68 Comeback Special.

Blue Hawaii may have one of Presley’s lowest critical scores on Rotten Tomatoes, but it holds one of the highest audience scores at 67%. It’s incredibly cheesy and ridiculous, but In many ways, it’s a quintessential Elvis film. It’s a film where not much happens, and what does happen is quite absurd, but the songs are so incredible and moving that it’s hard to deny the fun. Not to mention it was a pretty successful commercial hit, grossing $4.2 million.

5

GI Blues (1960)

Director: Norman Taurog

GI Blues was another commercial success for Elvis in the 1960s and was his first project after being discharged from the army. It was another film that received a rather mixed response from critics upon its release, but it clearly had enough appeal for Elvis fans to book their tickets. Today, it has a decent score of 3.1/5 on Letterboxd and 6.2/10 on IMDb.

THE The film’s greatest achievement was the song “Blue Suede Shoes”, which is another Elvis Presley classic that has stood the test of time. Music is the main appeal GI Bluesas it was nominated for two Grammy Awards: Best Soundtrack Album and Best Vocal Performance. GI Blues was essentially the model film for many of the formulaic Elvis musicals that followed, such as Blue Hawaii, Fun in Acapulcoand It happened at the World’s Fair.

4

Flaming Star (1960)

Director: Don Siegel

For the public looking for a Elvis Presley film with strong acting and pure drama, Flaming Star is probably the best choice. The 1960 Western has a few songs, as the studio wasn’t entirely thrilled with an Elvis-led film without music, but they are placed in the film naturally and wouldn’t fall into the musical category.

Today, Flaming Star has one of the best Elvis Presley scores from criticswith 91% on Rotten Tomatoes and 71% from the site’s audience. On Letterboxd, it holds a 3.3/5. Although the film was not a masterpiece of the western genre, it seemed to be the kind of film Elvis was looking for, or at least put him on the right path. Unfortunately, the film did not perform well enough at the box office compared to GI Bluesso Elvis returned to musicals soon after.

3

Prison Rock (1957)

Director: Richard Thorpe

Prison stone is another early Elvis film that holds up largely due to its absolutely iconic soundtrack, including the titular song. Today, “Jailhouse Rock” is the second most listened to Elvis Presley song on Spotifywith over 555 million streams all-time. As for the film, it was enough of a commercial success that Elvis Presley was ranked as the fourth best-selling box office product in the film industry that same year.

Prison stone has pretty average reviews for an Elvis Presley film, with a score of 3.2/5 stars on Letterboxd, a score of 6.5/10 on IMDb, and a 67% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. That said, it’s still a culturally iconic piece of cinema that resulted in one of Elvis’ peaks in popularity. Prison stone is quintessential Elvis, 1950s rock and one of the classics that every lover of his old music should check out.

2

King Creole (1958)

Director: Michael Curtiz

King Creole was one of Elvis Presley’s first films, and the star later suggested that Danny Fisher was his favorite character he ever played. He has a fun mix of romantic comedy, musical and heartfelt dramacovering the best of Presley’s film career before his acting roles began to become repetitive and arbitrary throughout the 1960s.

Presley is part of a talented ensemble, including Carolyn Jones and Oscar winner Walter Matthau, and still manages to shine in one of his best performances, playing a bold rebellious character. Today, King Creole yet holds some of Elvis Presley’s best reviews, with a 96% score on Rotten Tomatoes83% audience rating and 3.6/5 on Letterboxd. Given that musicals don’t tend to be that highly rated, these numbers are impressive.

1

Long live Las Vegas (1964)

Director: George Sidney

Long live Las Vegas is Elvis Presley’s best and most famous film. The 1964 film was one of the best-selling releases of the year, grossing more than $9 million at the box office, a huge feat for a musical film at the time. Elvis Presley’s documented off-screen relationship with co-star Ann-Margret likely contributed to the film’s sex appeal, as their chemistry was immaculateand is without a doubt the most glamorous and vibrant film in his filmography.

Long live Las Vegas remains today with an 87% score on Rotten Tomatoes, highlighting the film as one of Elvis’ most energetic and exciting. The song “Viva Las Vegas” is another timeless Elvis classic that defines the celebratory and emotional feel of the film. Long live Las Vegas is Elvis Presley’s most popular and iconic film for good reason.