Baseshment I like movies that are aware of what they are selling... without [any] greater aspirations than to make people laugh and that's it.

TrueHello Fun premise, good actors, bad writing. This film seemed to have potential at the beginning but it quickly devolves into a trite action film. Ultimately it's very boring.

Fairaher The film makes a home in your brain and the only cure is to see it again.

Casey Duggan It’s sentimental, ridiculously long and only occasionally funny

Dan1863Sickles If you can get past the ghastly appearance of Michael Shannon as Elvis, this isn't really a bad film. The brief real-life meeting of Elvis Presley and Richard Nixon turns into a whimsical look at both men, with lots of humor, some great period music, and some surprisingly poignant character moments featuring both American icons. I have nothing but respect for Michael Shannon. In a show like BOARDWALK EMPIRE, where he plays the rigid, fanatical, psychotic Federal Agent Nelson Van Alden, he's absolutely mesmerizing. But casting Michael Shannon as Elvis is like casting Boris Karloff as Rudolph Valentino. Shannon's Elvis is a ghastly-looking creature with a fake black wig that looks like it just died on the top of his head. And yet the first half hour of the movie is nothing but an endless procession of pretty girls blushing and fainting at the mere sight of him. It really starts the movie off on the wrong foot. On the other hand, Kevin Spacey is surprisingly effective as Richard Nixon. The movie has enormous fun playing with the double-sided fish out of water concept. Nixon is tough and confident when dealing with hard issues like war, politics, and money, but almost childishly insecure about his looks and sexuality. Elvis is completely at ease with his sex appeal and celebrity but almost childishly eager to prove himself as a "grown man."The real strength of this movie is that its best moments really are built on the way these two great heroes get to know each other. It's amazing that in real life they only spoke for fifteen or twenty minutes, but the movie makes you feel as if they're getting to know each other over a period of weeks. I loved when Nixon had a long speech by himself about how good-looking guys always make fun of him and how he hates them, yet when Elvis tells him he's not that bad looking he's incredibly flattered. By the same token, when Elvis talks about how much he has to offer as a "Federal Agent at large" you can see how Nixon goes way out of the way not to hurt his feelings, even as his face shows he realizes Elvis is really out there. While both the leads are incredible in this film, it's interesting that the younger men really steal the show at times. Colin Hanks as Bud Krogh and Alex Pettyfer as Jerry Schilling are both completely likable and believable in the role of loyal followers who try to help their heroes while carving out their own identities. If you can get past the awful casting of Michael Shannon as Elvis, there's a lot to enjoy about ELVIS & NIXON.

Howlin Wolf An unlikely battle of wills, and eventually, perhaps an unexpected meeting of minds…Michael Shannon looks NOTHING LIKE Elvis - but he does at least manage to capture a sense of the aura that surrounded the man… Spacey is a more comfortable fit, in his role.Over the course of its brief running time, it's an entertaining hypothesis about just how exactly two giant cultural figures occupied the same space for a short moment of history.

lavatch On December 21, 1970, an improbable meeting occurred in the Oval Office of the White House. Elvis Presley, the "King" of rock-and-roll met the President of the United States, Richard M. Nixon. It was Elvis himself who instigated the meeting for what appears to be the sincere purpose of assisting the government on the war on drugs. The outlandish request of the pop singer was to be made an "agent-at-large" for the investigation of drug abuse, wherein the singer would go undercover in the interests of justice. Astonishingly, Nixon and the White House staff went along with Presley's request in return for a signed photo for Nixon's daughter Julie, as well as a promotional photo with Elvis shaking hands with Nixon that was released at a later time. According to the film, the photo of Nixon and Elvis is the most requested photograph in the National Archives.Ironically, at the time of the White House visit, Elvis was already under the influence of drugs that would eventually take his life in 1977. One of the flaws of the film is that it was not made clear that Elvis was a drug user at the time. One need only to look at the Nixon-Presley photo and focus on Elvis's eyes to see that he was on the way to becoming a junkie.Despite its shortcomings, the film was light entertainment that included two good performances from Michael Shannon as Elvis and Kevin Spacey as Nixon. The actors both delivered understated interpretations and avoided over-the-top caricature. In perhaps the most memorable moment of the Oval Office conversation between the two titans, Nixon describes how he and Elvis share the common background of coming from humble origins to rise to the top of the ladder in their respective fields of politics and entertainment. Only in America!!!

townnfarmgirl This movie is a big bore. It's extremely slow getting started and the rest of it seems awkward and cringe worthy with the exception of the scenes depicting the meeting between the two title characters. Michael Shannon may be a good actor but this role was a terrible fit. Shannon is completely unbelievable as Elvis and could not have looked less like him if the makeup department tried. I don't mind if an actor doesn't look like the person they are portraying, but they should be able to capture their essence. I didn't think he did that at all. My opinion may be skewed, however, having grown up the daughter of a serious Elvis fan. I've seen just about just about every Elvis documentary and interview and I didn't see any likeness to Elvis in appearance or manner. Kevin Spacey's Nixon was, however, excellent. Thankfully it was a short movie.