Rating: 
Summary: A Good Beginning...That Sadly Went Nowhere
Review: This was Elvis' first attempt at a dramatic non-singing role. (He had done dramas before he went into the army. Both "Jailhouse Rock" & "King Creole", though having music in them, were dramatic roles, albeit tailor-made to fit his persona.)This movie is a decent western with an important & relevant message on race relations (especially when you consider that it was made during the beginnings of the Civil Rights Movement.) Basically, the story takes place in Texas after the Civil War. Elvis' character, Pacer Burton, is the son of a Texas Rancher & a woman of the Kiowa-Indian Tribe. When the whites & Native Americans go to war (is this supposed to be the Red River War of the 1870's?), he & his family are caught in the middle. It's a powerful movie with a simple (and that's the beauty of it) plot that unfortunately, was all too plausible during the settling of the Old West. (Both Quannah Parker & the Bent Brothers were half-caste children of white/Indian parents & they eventually had to choose sides when the U.S. settlers/militia & Southern Plains Tribes went to war.) That's not to say that this film doesn't have flaws. Some of the dialogue is laughable at times. (Example: "I shall return again when the sun has killed the stars!" Also, "If Earth round, why men on bottom not fall off?") And the scene at the opening birthday party has Elvis singing "A Cane & A High-Starched Collar" to awkward square-dancing! (It's the only on-screen song that Elvis sings in the movie. The title tune is over the credits. Well, at least it's not as bad as Frankie Avalon singing "Gee Whizz, Golly Gee" in "The Tall Men" or Fabian singing "This Wonderful World" in "North To Alaska!") Also, from a historian's standpoint, it would have been nice if the film-makers had tied in the real-events of that time & place to this (fictional) story. (I mention the Red River War, which actually took place in 1874 in Texas between white buffalo hunters/the U.S. Army & an alliance of Kiowas, Commanches, Southern Cheyennes, Southern Arapahos, & Plains Apaches. If they had tied that real event to this story, it would have made the movie much more interesting.) Keep in mind, however, that any flaws in the script & direction do not take away from the power of the message in this film. Most of the dialogue, as well as the incidental film-music is very good. Another customer reviewer (who, out of respect, I won't name!) criticized this movie because it wasn't a musical. That's the real-life tragedy of this movie & Elvis' film-career. Elvis was a great singer, a true pioneer of rock n' roll. To be sure, there were MANY others (Chuck Berry, Little Richard, Fats Domino, Gene Vincent, Eddie Cochran, Jerry Lee Lewis, LaVern Baker, Jackie Wilson, The Everly Brothers, Wanda Jackson, Red Prysock, Carl Perkins, Bo Diddley, JoAnn Campbell, Sam "The Man" Taylor, Brenda Lee, Larry & Lorrie Collins, Bill Haley, etc. Did I name enough?!) But in the popular mind, he (rightfully) is ranked above them all, at the top, "The King", if you will. He also wanted to be (and I believe was capable of being) a great dramatic actor in the same vein as Marlon Brando (who was originally offered the part of "Pacer" in this film) & James Dean. Unfortunatelly, SOME of his fans (like the afformentioned "critic") couldn't accept him in anything other than a musical! (And BAD musicals at that! Movies like "Easy Come, Easy Go" & "Kissing Cousins" are examples of this & Elvis himself eventually became frustrated & depressed over having to act in junk like that!) The Colonel has been blamed for forcing bad scripts on Elvis, but the sad fact is that he was a business man & "Flaming Star", along with "Wild In The Country" failed to make significant profits at the box-office. "Blue Hawaii", however, did make a huge profit. It was THE FANS who dictated the Colonel's policy (and in no way am I implying that Parker was an honest businessman, but that's another story), & in the end, it's the fans who have to share in the blame for contributing to Elvis' decline as a successful (& serious) film-actor (and in a way contributing to his death, since it was this frustration, along with many other factors, which fueled his drug-dependency.) Frank Sinatra became a successful actor. Likewise, Kris Kristofferson, Kenny Rogers, Barbara Streisand, Beth Midler, & Diana Ross have found success as actors. The fans accepted these talented singers IN NON-MUSICAL ROLES. It's a shame that WE (yes, I'm a big Elvis fan) couldn't do the same for Elvis. It's tempting to speculate what would have happened if this movie, instead of "Love Me Tender" (which also takes place after the Civil War) had been Elvis' first film. Perhaps the fans would have been more inclined to accept him as an actor. Oh well, we'll never know for sure. One thing is certain, however. "Flaming Star" is a good example of what (sadly) might & should have been. P.S. A word on the "violence" in the movie. The afformentioned "critic" also took exception to the level of "violence" in the film. (Apparently, he showed it to his kids, assuming that just because it's an "Elvis-film", it's appropriate for family viewing. He was shocked by the serious tone & offended by the action sequences.) With respect to this person (and he is entitled to his opinion), "Flaming Star" is a WESTERN, one with social-commentary. The action sequences are there to illustrate the tragedy of the story & are no means excessive. Elvis & the people behind him DID NOT intended this movie to be marketed towards children & as such, it's a good idea to limit viewing of this movie towards viewers over the age of 12! (Hey, it was made in 1960, for God's sakes! They didn't have ratings back then!)
Rating:
Summary: A Classic
Review: What a first class film. After the worrying opening sequence with Elvis singing " A Cane & A High Starched Collar" with one chaps dancing partner being a chair, we open up to a classic Western. With excellent picture quality, Elvis' performance is totally believable as a man torn between two sides. Only criticism is the huge amount of wasted space on the DVD which could have a least have had a documentary perhaps showing deleted scences, I would have loved to see Elvis singing "Summer Kisses, Winter Tears" or "Britches". Ho-Hum! Perhaps there will be a special collectors edition one day.
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