Dynamixor The performances transcend the film's tropes, grounding it in characters that feel more complete than this subgenre often produces.

Neive Bellamy Excellent and certainly provocative... If nothing else, the film is a real conversation starter.

Quiet Muffin This movie tries so hard to be funny, yet it falls flat every time. Just another example of recycled ideas repackaged with women in an attempt to appeal to a certain audience.

Marva It is an exhilarating, distressing, funny and profound film, with one of the more memorable film scores in years,

zardoz-13 "Harum Scarum" gives even second-rate Elvis movies a bad name. If you're counting, Harum Scarum" was Elvis' nineteenth opus, coming between "Tickle Me" and "Frankie and Johnny." Reportedly lensed in a mere 18 days, "Harem Scarum" combines routine musical numbers with a pedestrian Arabian Nights adventure. Virtually everything about "Kissin' Cousins" director Gene Nelson's atrocious epic reeks of inconsistency. Not for an instant is anything about it believable. One minute everything is light-hearted nonsense, and then the next minute, everything becomes serious. Only the villain dies, and he perishes in a burst of machine gun fire. Inevitably, Elvis croons some lackluster tunes. This forgettable Sam Katzman produced potboiler unfolds in an imaginary Middle East that has little to do with the real Middle East. Mind you, for the sake of cost-cutting, everything was shot on back-lot MGM soundstages instead of actual locations in the Middle East. American celebrity superstar Johnny Tyrone (Elvis Presley) has agreed to represent the U.S. State Department on a goodwill tour of the Arab nation of Babalstan. The Ambassador and he have arranged a premiere of his latest cinematic swashbuckling saga "Sands of the Desert," for a well-heeled audience of dignitaries and their dates. These misguided people actually believe that the on-screen Elvis hero is as formidable as the off-screen Elvis. Elvis relies on his considerable karate skills to dispose of a leopard that stands between him and a bound princess in the movie shown them.Oxford educated scenarist Gerald Drayson Adams had earlier written swashbucklers like "The Golden Horde," "The Desert Hawk," and "The Prince Was A Thief," so he knew all the right tropes to cover. He serves up clichés galore as our handsome, dark-haired hero accepts an invitation from sinister Prince Dragna (Michael Ansara of "Sol Madrid") to enjoy the hospitality of his older brother King Toranshah in Lunarland. Not-surprisingly, his fictional country is surrounded by rock formations know as the Mountains of the Moon. Predictably, U.S. Ambassador McCord (Hugh Sanders of "Mr. 880") is flabbergasted by Prince Dragna's gracious offer. "Johnny, this is a tremendous honor. Do you realize that you're the first American His Majesty, King Toranshah, has ever invited into his kingdom?" Dragna's date Aishah (Fran Jeffries) provides additional information for Johnny's benefit, "When you cross theMountains of the Moon into our country, Mr. Tyronne, you'll be stepping back 2,000 years. You will find the pageantry and beauty almost unbelievable." Strangely enough, the villains in Lunarland carry vintage World War II British sub-machine guns so 20th century smugglers must have penetrated its boundaries. No sooner has he flown over a rugged range of mountains and ridden on horseback through the wilderness does Johnny find himself drugged by the beautiful Aishah, abducted by the notorious Arab Sinan (a bald-headed Theo Marcuse), chief of a band of Assassins, and forced to assassinate King Toranshah (Phillip Reed) so Prince Dragna can negotiate oil deals. Of course, Elvis falls in love with Toranshah's daughter, the gorgeous Princess Shalimar (former Miss America Mary Ann Mobley), but he entangled himself in local intrigue with a con artist Zacha (Jay Novello) and his band of thieves. Long-time Elvis bodyguard Red West plays one of Sinan's henchmen. Naturally, the girls look sexy, the surroundings brightly lighted, and script about as serious as a comedy. Only the most die-hard Elvis fans will find this palatable, and the King warbles his way through this crap without a shred of credibility.

SanteeFats While this may be considered a typical Elvis movie I think it is not that good but it is a bit entertaining. There are the usual girls in what is skimpy costumes for the time, songs, music, and humorous scenes. Billy Barty is a rather unskillful cut purse who is also funny. Seems rather odd that almost all the Arabs are white and speak accent free English. Elvis uses what is suppose to be karate. If it is I could teach it with no training!! It is probably the hokiest part of the film. The assassins are a joke. Michael Ansara is a prince in league with the assassins trying to take over the tiny isolated country. This country shows many of the things that I think are still wrong with the Arabs. Slavery, women as property. I personally found the scene with Elvis singing a romantic song while the little nine year old girl danced what would have a provocative dance by an grown woman uncomfortable to watch. Almost kiddie porn with her dress slit to her waist and her dance moves. I have read that Elvis liked them around 14, but that was even younger. The princess and Elvis do the usual falling in love at first sight. Elvis, the princess, and the king are the only ones who go to save the two kids who are surrounded by the assassins. Yeah right!!! Since when ?!?! Jay Novello plays Zacha, a very opportunistic pay me and I am on your side,maybe, scoundrel. He is always looking for the easy ducat(s). Using the seamy peoples of the streets as an assault force Elvis and the king take the city back, chastise the bad prince, destroy the assassins, and of course Elvis gets the princess. The fighting to take the city back is the funniest part of the whole movie. The last thing I will comment on are the costumes that are worn. Talk about outre.

lb637 One only has to watch this sorry-excuse-for-art (film and movie-making is an art form...or it used to be) and be an eye-witness to the greatest cultural icon in American history self destruct before your very eyes. So many interviews are out there where the King talks about his Hollywood career as "just a job". And that's what we have with 'Harum Scarum'...just a job. And the blame falls clearly on the shoulders of the King himself. You see, Elvis credited Parker with his 50s success and saving his career after 2 years serving our nation honorably in military service. But after his return and he picked right up where he left off, He outgrew Parker and SHOULD HAVE FIRED HIM! There were rumours at the time that Brian Epstein was negotiating to buy the King's contract. Can you imagine what Elvis would have become had he been managed by Brian?? But instead, it all came down to Parker's greed and Elvis' undying virtue called loyalty. If you look at Hollywood as a place where art is created (or should be), then don't waste your time with this bilge. Just as an example: Elvis is running away from the assassins and you SEE smoke from gunfire (nearly point-blank range) but no gunshot sounds. And the King was so disgusted with the songs he even walked out of the recording studio after multiple takes of a stupid song called "Shake Your Tamborine". An American tragedy indeed. No wonder he used to look out at LA for his California home and tell his Memphis hanger-ons, "this whole town in laughing at me"

lastliberal Well, at least we get to hear eight songs by Elvis in this otherwise hokey movie.Here we see Elvis as a film star touring the Middle East to promote his latest movie. He is kidnapped by a gang of assassins who think he is a real action hero and want him to carry out a hit on the King for them.The director is Gene Nelson, a TV director, who's only ventured occasionally into the movie house for this, a Hank Williams Bio, a full-length Hootananey, a couple of other minor films, and another Elvis film, 1964's Kissin' Cousins.Elvis's co-star is Mary Ann Mobley, a former Miss America who also co-starred with him in the same year's Girl Happy - pretty, but no real actress, who stuck mostly to TV series.