The greatest movie ever made..!

Gripping story with well-crafted characters

A movie that not only functions as a solid scarefest but a razor-sharp satire.

It's funny, it's tense, it features two great performances from two actors and the director expertly creates a web of odd tension where you actually don't know what is happening for the majority of the run time.

Gene Nelson's "Kissin' Cousins" qualifies as an average Elvis musical. The two things, however, set it apart from the usual nonsense. First, Elvis plays dual characters, something that he had never done and would never repeat. He is black-haired Air Force Lieutenant who flies F-84s, and later he is a blonde hillbilly. Mind you, Elvis was an adequate actor, but this duality is a genuine stretch for the King of Rock and Roll. Second, despite its cornball comedy plot, "Kissin' Cousin" acknowledge the perils of the Cold War. Now, this is something that you won't find in any other contemporary Elvis movie. Moreover, the idea that the setting of an Elvis movie is nothing but rainbows, which describes all his efforts, except "Love Me Tender," "Flaming Star," and "Charro." All those epics were westerns. Unfortunately, these two strengths don't overwhelm the general air of frivolity that permeates "Kissin' Cousins." More often than not, it amounts to just another silly, stupid, and shallow Elvis opus. Furthermore, it borrows a trope from the movie "Lil Abner" with aggressive women it hot, hormonal pursuit of men. All the women-except Ma Tatum-are lively little dishes in need of a man. The songs are all substandard, and the film itself looks rushed. Indeed, producer Sam Katzman produced it after Colonel Parker saw the excesses of "Viva Las Vegas." It is also interesting to note that "Kissin' Cousins" was finished before George Sidney's "Viva Las Vegas" illuminated movie screens. Katzman was known for making film not only quickly but as cheaply as possible. Nevertheless, the idea of negotiating with moonshining hillbillies who own land in the Great Smokey Mountains for the site of an ICBM missile base puts the entire fracas into a different category. The deployment of Elvis in to roles was done mostly in camera as the filmmakers relied on the old technique of over-the-shoulder shots rather than employing expensive special effects. You see Elvis talking to the other Elvis, but neither are shown face to face. Often, the stunt guys look too old to be Elvis. At the end, however, director Gene Nelson uses a long shot so that we can see both Elvis characters in the same image looking at each other. This was probably ambitious, considering that the notoriously frugal Sam Katzman produced this goofy nonsense. The predictable plot finds Elvis eventually getting Pappy Tatum to sign a lease for the Pentagon to install the ICBM missile base. "Kissin' Cousins" winds up better than most of the other contemporary Elvis movies because it reflects the tension that existed during the Cold War between Soviet Russia and the United States.

Elvis Presley was a hugely influential performer with one of the most distinctive singing voices of anybody. He embarked on a film career consisting of 33 films from 1956 to 1969, films that did well at the box-office but mostly panned critically (especially his later films) and while he was a highly charismatic performer he was never considered a great actor.That review summary may seem like a subjective statement, as there are people that like 'Kissin' Cousins' or don't think much of Elvis' earlier efforts, but count me in as somebody who considers Elvis' films before 'Kissin' Cousins' pretty good. 'Wild in the Country', 'Girls! Girls! Girls!' and 'Fun in Acapulco' were average or just slightly above that, but 'King Creole', 'Flaming Star', 'Jailhouse Rock' and 'Loving You' in particular were close to great. Elvis certainly made worse films than 'Kissin' Cousins' but there is a lot here that made his later films less good.Of course, 'Kissin' Cousins' isn't unwatchable. Glenda Farrell is sweetly affecting as Ma, while Arthur O' Connell makes much of little as does a suitably blustering Jack Albertson. Yvonne Craig has a pretty vapid role but has a perky charm and shares decent chemistry with Elvis. Didn't think much of the soundtrack this time round, but there are a few good ones with the title song, the rousing "Catching on Fast" and aptly named "Tender Feeling" coming off best.Despite singing beautifully, Elvis himself looks awkward and disinterested in a dual role that do nothing to play to his strengths (quite the opposite). His hillbilly character especially is a waste of film celluloid. While there are bright spots in the cast, most of them are at best forgettable as tamely stereotypical characters. A few good songs aside, the best the rest of the soundtrack gets is eminently forgettable, with "Smoking Mountain Boy" and especially "Barefoot Ballad" worse than disposable.'Kissin' Cousins', unlike Elvis' earlier films, doesn't even have the distinction of looking good, with the film evidently looking as though it was made in a rush and on the cheap judging from the phoney and un-evocative sets, Elvis' tacky blond wig and scrappy photography and editing. The script is badly out of date, unfunny and sappy sitcom-level, while the story feels over-stretched, sluggishly paced and painfully predictable. Gene Nelson directs without interest, energy or distinction.All in all, not unwatchable but a misfire. See Elvis' earlier efforts to see that he was capable of a good performance when allowed and that he did make good films. 4/10 Bethany Cox

This movie, tho not one of Elvis' best, certainly isn't as bad as some reviews have stated. Those who say it is Elvis' worst film have obviously never seen "Double Trouble", "Clambake", "Speedway", "Stay Away Joe" and a couple others. The movie is fun, if not brilliant and the blond wig he wore is tacky and a couple of the songs are pretty horrible (Barefoot Ballad). However, the supporting cast is quite good headed up by Oscar winning actor Jack Albertson. It also features the wonderful character actor Arthur O'Connell and Glenda Farrell. Batgirl from TV's "Batman", Yvonne Craig, is in fine form as Elvis' love interest. As for the music, the title tracks are pretty good. "Tender Feeling" is a wonderful ballad and "Catching on Fast" is a lively rock tinged number that goes down quite well. It is also apparent from many of those who did not like the film at all that they did not pay attention as they all claim one of the Elvis characters, Josh, is an army officer. Not so. He is an air force officer. Go back and look folks. At any rate, I've seen every Elvis movie ever made many times and this one is worth a watch.

Elvis Presley plays Brunet Lieutenant Josh and his Blond "hillbilly" cousin Jodie. Brunet Elvis has to secure the family of Blond Elvis' land for an important U.S. Army base. The Elvises wrestle and stuff; but, they never actually kiss. Yvonne Craig stands out among the busty mountain women; later, she was one of Batman's TV Catwomen.The fun in "Kissin' Cousins" is not in the situation; but in picking out the Elvis "double" in the scenes where they both appear. It's fairly easy to spot the fake Elvis. There are a lot of very well-proportioned women in bikinis running around and squealing; today, there are more satisfying ways to find that kind of entertainment.I enjoyed the song "Tender Feeling"; but, it's actually the song "Shenandoah" with different lyrics. "Barefoot Ballad" is the most embarrassing song. The musical highlight is the song "Kissin' Cousins"; but, watch for the superior version at the end, not the beginning, of the film. The material in "Kissin' Cousins" would make one good music video. As a full-length feature film, it's shameful. ** Kissin' Cousins (3/6/64) Gene Nelson ~ Elvis Presley, Arthur O'Connell, Yvonne Craig, Jack Albertson