All Shook Up and No Place To Go

June 3, 1998

3-1/2 Blue Suede Shoes out of 5

"All Shook Up" is a fun, charming - dare I say cute - film about a small town country music trio who - after winning a small town music contest - get stuck in a . . . uhmm, small town. An unexpected turn of events makes the group, quizzically named the "Teddy Bears," fugitives from the town's resident kleptomaniac Sheriff Dudston. The "Teddy Bears" defeat his trailer park beauty queen daughter (Yvonne Christiana) - seemingly their only competition in the talent contest - prompting the Sheriff to frame them for stealing a fistful of cash from one of the contest organizers. Racing down dusty back roads from the law, the wild-eyed adrenaline-soaked trio land their van smack in the center of a lake. Luckily, our shivering, wet heroes find respite in their time of need from a kind, nearby stranger known as "Earl." Earl, it turns out, is a fugitive of sorts, as well. He's none other than the King - with liberal servings of plastic surgery, of course - living a peaceful, secluded life in the backwoods of rural Florida.

At this point, much like the band's submerged van, the story sinks to a murky, unclear depth, just waiting to be towed back out into the open again. The "Teddy Bears" are all shaken up, but they - and the story - have no place to go. Each character is forced to "rediscover" themselves, but little if anything happens. Ginny Tambs (Christinna Chauncey), the starry-eyed, innocent, and beautiful lead singer made of sugar, spice . . . oh, and everything nice starts a promising career as a waitress, where she, uhmm, makes a little money.

Corley Tambs (Travis Robertson), her likeable, slightly awkward teenage brother spends the bulk of the film cooing over the Sheriff's daughter and tending to Earl's horses. Hey, you a sissy, boy?

And last but not least, there's the guitarist, Buddy. Hmmm . . . Buddy, Buddy, Buddy. Every Aaron Spelling series has a "Buddy." You know . . . the tough, dark loner who never stops brooding, never changes out of that black tee-shirt and jeans outfit, who never touches up that perfectly trimmed beard of stubble - the kind you want to light a match across, you know? Buddy spends his "rediscovery time" smoking grass. "Buddy, you still brooding and pissed off for no apparent reason? I thought that stuff was supposed to make you happy."

As an interesting side note, this film might have gotten a G rating if it weren't for the sporadic glimpses into Buddy's drug habit. No sex, no violence, and little if any bad language. "Hey kids, come out here! There's something good on the Disney Channel. Whoah! Hold on! Goodness gracious, holy Jesus, that's marijuana! Get back to your rooms! Now! Don't come out here!"

Amidst this sometimes dull second act of quiet time and introspection and barely discernible character arcs, emerges a much-needed shot of humor. Frank Gorshin delivers a seamless performance as the money-driven and corrupt Sheriff Dudston - the only criminal element in his crimeless town. Call him a mix between gruff Tommy Lee Jones and imbecilic Barney Fife - a genetic experiment gone terribly wrong. All the genetic tinkering of Johns Hopkins' finest, however, couldn't inject freshness into the stereotypical, cookie cut-out scripting of this character. But Gorshin does just this. From his perpetual chewing on a "fifty-cent cigar" to his chafing banter with his even less competent Deputy, Sheriff Dudston is a pleasure to watch through the slowly evolving story.

After the tip money has been collected, the horses have been tended, and the bag of marijuana has dwindled to seeds and stems, it's time to pull the van out of the lake, dust it off, and hit the road. Buddy has taken a few trinkets, though, in the form of Elvis's own priceless gold record collection, to remember the occasion.
Insert guilt trip, here:

Ginny and Corley reduce the rock-solid bad-ass facade of Buddy in a matter of seconds to a whimpering epiphany-spouting "sensitive guy" on a lonely stretch of road between cow pastures in B.F.E., Florida. Huh? Well, let's just say Buddy (Jackson Rose) - works better as a predictable, brooding tough guy.

In all fairness to the filmmakers, "All Shook Up" is a light-hearted film that should be treated and viewed from a light-hearted perspective. Apart from a couple of out of focus shots, All Shook Up is an impressively constructed production. Director Henry Less - with the aid of cinematographer Tony Foresta - paints an endearing, down-home picture of life in rural Florida. A long list of well-portrayed and likeable characters does much to numb any shortcomings presented in the script. And the masterful pacing, editing, and narration - coupled with a charming Elvis-ish score - makes "All Shook Up" an amiable movie-going experience. It might not be the feel-good hit of the year, but feel-good Florida Film Festival entries beware!

Thankyaverymuch!

Jonathan Figg
After graduating Rollins College in 1997, I plummeted into the real world as a writer and editor for an international business and finance publication based out of Altamonte Springs. I've written three feature-length screenplays and will direct my second short 16mm film this July. I look forward to having one of my own films reviewed in The Slant in the not-too-distant future. I welcome your hate mail, love letters, and anything in between at jonbug@ix.netcom.com.