Grimerlana Plenty to Like, Plenty to Dislike

Rijndri Load of rubbish!!

Burkettonhe This is ultimately a movie about the very bad things that can happen when we don't address our unease, when we just try to brush it off, whether that's to fit in or to preserve our self-image.

Rosie Searle It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

Frog-Legs There are some bad Elvis films and then there is Stay Away, Joe- a bomb at a much lower level. Filmed as if there were only 2 pages of dialogue and the actors were told to just mug in front of the camera to pad it for 100 minutes. I'll give it 2 stars just because it's in color and it has a nice opening montage of the Grand Canyon. Burgess Meredith wears the worst Native American makeup I have seen in many a decade. There is also some guy with orange hair who is Elvis' sister's boyfriend. Joan Blondell was obviously just happy to get a paycheck and otherwise a waste of her timeNow that the Cleveland Indians have decided to retire the Chief Wahoo logo that was the center of so much controversy, Native American pressure groups can now focus their attention to this piece of cinematic travesty which portrays their culture as folks who just want to drink and brawl.

jdsuggs They wanted to make a good Elvis film. They wanted to bring his screen image up to date. They just didn't have the commitment to do what it took, as evidenced by a gun-slinging Joan Blondell (I love her anyway) and the almost unbelievable decision to let Elvis act near a comic bull, to or about which he will inevitably sing, with tragic results.The film they wanted to make here, more or less, in my opinion, is "The Rounders" (1965): a bawdy, modern western with a smallish feeling, driven by life-sized characters and the fringe world they inhabit. Good idea. And there are a lot of things going for "Stay Away": the location shooting, an excellent cast; and even the meandering plot serves the film well, to a point. Elvis is clearly on board this time with his unapologetically horny, scheming, and semi-corrupt character- a much needed change of pace.But they just can't get Elvis off of "Gilligan's Island". "Stay Away, Joe" is defeated by a number of things, ranging from the decision to let Elvis sing "diagetically" (i.e., in the film rather than over it), a make-up job on Burgess Meredith (who is completely wasted) that would make Bozo blush, and most especially, the overly broad comedy.Broad comedy is a nice fit for this film. But in one of several fight sequences, they push through a progression of painful cartoonish clichés that starts with timpani and slide-whistles and degenerates into the old favorites- someone gets something over the head and goes cross-eyed, little guy's punches bounce off big guy, etc. If that really makes you laugh, I beg your pardon, I guess. Joan Blondell chasing Elvis around with a gun and actually shooting at him while friends and family stand by and chuckle further erode the sense that we're in a more believable world than Hope and Crosby or Martin and Lewis inhabit. Blondell's daughter is one of the saddest clichés: the exploitable sexpot with a small child's mind. It all just doesn't fit.So unless you love Elvis and Elvis films as much as I do, stay away- Joe

beauzee positive things: Elvis seems to enjoy his part, just enough songs, two are great...the Director keeps things rolling.negative things: a very curious collection of native American stereotyping, esp. sad since Elvis won an award back in 1960 for his "Positive Portrayal of an American Indian", for FLAMING STAR. Here in 1968, his character is grounded but most of the support is not.still good to see JOan Blondell, L. Q. JOnes (CASINO), and Anne Seymour (a HONEYMOONERS player) in some lively scenes.Look for the nice CD with all the songs from the soundtrack, one not used in the film, incl. the infamous DOMINIC (THE IMPOTENT BULL).

JoeKarlosi It's been a looooonnnggg time since I saw this comedy, and I'd forgotten just how idiotic it is. I'd place this easily in the lower two or three of Elvis Presley's very worst movies. Presley plays Joe Whitecloud, a half-breed Indian bull rider who returns home to Arizona and the broken-down shack where his family lives, and where his friends love to party all night long. His parents are played by Burgess Meredith and Katy Jurado, and his old Indian grandpa is Thomas Gomez. None of the three offer anything of substance , comically or otherwise. The government has invested in the family's cattle, but they're lacking a bull. Elvis gets to sing just a few utterly worthless songs, and is pursued by a young boy-crazy gal and her gun-toting mother. This is just a real slapdash of a mess, and the dilapidated surroundings practically stink of manure and don't make this much easier. The one thing that puzzles me, however, is that Elvis actually seems to be having a good time in the film. Hard to believe, considering he got so upset about being stuck making so many mediocre movies. *1/2 out of ****