Continuing with Ann-Margret week, we move from a movie about a fake Elvis to one with the real deal.
Sometimes movies are just fluff, and that’s OK. Viva Las Vegas is a candy colored Elvis vehicle that is 0% substance, but gives you enough of a buzz to carry you through the day.
Elvis plays Lucky Johnson, a mechanic/race car driver that is trying to get money to purchase a new engine so he can race in the Las Vegas Grand Prix. Ann-Margret is Rusty Miller, a hotel pool swim instructor that brings her car to Lucky’s mechanic because it’s causing her problems.
Both Lucky and his friend/rival Count Elmo Mancini are smitten with her (because how could you not be) and immediately do what I believe all car mechanics do and lie to Rusty about how much work it will take to fix her car in an attempt to squeeze more money out of her get her to stick around longer. When Count Elmo realizes that Lucky might have the upper hand, Elmo fixes Rusty’s car and sends her on her way without grabbing her name or occupation. Cock-blocked Lucky hits the Las Vegas strip in an effort to find her, because for some reason he believes Rusty’s a showgirl? I’m presuming he assumed this based on how nice her legs look, which… oof.
How can showgirl costumes look so freaking ugly?
After a night of Lucky cosplaying as the pied piper of drunk cowboys, he lives up to his namesake when he discovers Rusty is the swim instructor at the hotel he is staying at. He steals Elmo’s guitar and tries to woo her with a little ditty, but she’s having none of it and leads him off the diving board.
I’m going to use “he’s got about as much appeal as a soggy cigarette” in my everyday vernacular from now on, so be prepared.
The wad of cash Lucky was carrying on him to buy the engine he needed for the race is now soggy and sucked up a pool filter! Oh no! He decides to solve this problem by getting a food service job at Rusty’s hotel, and now that he has access to her work schedule, further harass her. She agrees to go on a date with this weird stalker for whatever reason, and asks him to meet her at the University of Nevada because she wanted to school him in the art of dance.
I’ve been watching a lot of movies from the 1940s and 1950s and oh man, being catapulted into the 1960s with this movie was the shot in the arm I needed. I love Ann-Margret’s dancing, her slack-jawed facial expressions, and her unparalleled enthusiasm. It is the best representation of how dancing changed in this decade, and was probably what Danny Kaye was bitching about in White Christmas.
I’m going to take a moment to gush about Ann-Margret here, because her charisma is absolutely insane. The moment she appeared on screen, it took my breath away. And not just because they were objectifying her like crazy, but because her smile is completely disarming. She’s charming and sexy and sometimes I kind of want her to eat me alive. If that wasn’t enough, she’s also cool as fuck and continues to ride her motorcycle well into her eighties because she likes the speed. *swoons*
Anyway, after their dancing duet, they go on the most elaborate date that features a set of increasingly intense activities.
It concludes with another dance number that I wish was sung by Ray Charles instead of Elvis. Actually, a lot of performances he gave in this movie had me wishing the original person was singing it, which made me realize I don’t really give a shit about Elvis? I mean, he’s fine I guess, but he certainly doesn’t deserve Ann-Margret in this movie and didn’t in real life. It’s kind of frustrating her legacy is always going to be tied to their affair, like, can you imagine dating someone almost 60 years ago and making more than 60 movies after this one, and still being asked about him every time you are interviewed? Bleh.
Also, peep Toni Basil as the girl with the red dress on. Iconic.
The next morning, Rusty picks a fight with Elvis about his dangerous profession and informs him she’d rather plant trees than bury his lifeless body in the ground. This is the exact moment where they should have gone their separate ways. They’re maybe 48 hours into knowing each other and it wouldn’t be hard to call it a wash and move on, but noooooooo, they need to double down on this mess and emotionally torture each other.
First, Rusty goes on a date with Lucky’s friend/rival Elmo, which Lucky literally crashes several times with plates of food and a song. Second, they both decide to compete in the conveniently-timed staff talent contest at the hotel – Lucky because he believes the prize will be enough money for a shiny new race car engine, and Rusty to guarantee Lucky doesn’t succeed. This is healthy.
Rusty performs this saucy number for her coworkers, and Elvis gets down to the titular song. The applause-o-meter can’t determine a winner, so after a coin toss, Lucky is considered the victor. Instead of a cash lump sum, however, Lucky is gifted a honeymoon package at the hotel?! Rusty wins a pool table, which is something that she’ll definitely use and isn’t a burden to store. Lucky tries to trade prizes with Rusty in an attempt to pawn it for cash, which only disappoints her further. After his plan is truly thwarted, Lucky wanders around the city moping to a song that Frank Sinatra should have sang. One of them wants to settle down and live a risk free life, and the other wants to burn all the cash in his pocket and race fast cars, but he still loves herrrrrr.
Again, instead of cutting her losses and dumping this dude who clearly doesn’t share the same values as her, Rusty shows up at Lucky’s place of employment with her father and tries to pick yet another fight? This plan is completely unclear to me. Unfortunately for her, Lucky’s friend somehow got the money to buy the engine for the car, and he, Lucky, and Rusty’s father get straight to work to installing it in Lucky’s car, as the Grand Prix begins at midnight. Rusty leaves to go make snacks.
How does a hotel lifeguard afford a car like this??
After angrily assembling several sandwiches, Rusty returns to the shop and walks the fine line between genuinely trying to help, or purposely sabotaging their endeavor. Through the magic of a jump cut, the car is magically finished, Lucky immediately races in the Grand Prix for like 6 hours on no sleep, and miraculously wins. It’s revealed Rusty’s father paid for Lucky’s engine, so Rusty decides to get married to Lucky after all, even though there’s no way this couple is going to make it whatsoever. The end.
This movie was written in 11 days and it shows… It’s not going to change the world, but you do get to watch Ann-Margret sing and shimmy around in adorable 60s fits, if that’s the kind of thing you’re into.