Wild in the Country

'I'm carrying a cupful of anger and trying not to spill it' says Elvis, backwoods literary genius, to Hope Lange's psychiatrist in this extraordinary film. Actually, he's carrying scriptwriter Clifford Odets' cupful, much diluted since the '30s when he was hailed as the white hope of leftist drama. Odets' characteristic cascades of metaphors sit strangely on almost everyone in the cast. Only Tuesday Weld's small town gal dreaming of the big time convinces as a character, not a mouthpiece. There are just a few songs, and the whole's as wild as a glass of milk, but its curio quotient is enormous.