Ahead of its time?
This film felt like it was filmed 10 - 15 years later. From the beginning shot of them running to catch the train and then to the opening credits on the train door. Its subject matter felt like one of those 1950s TV shows like a Playhouse 90. I'm sure audiences of the time probably hated the tragic tone of the film. What I really can't understand is how Hal Roach was involved in this.
"No! That’s not true at all. Elvis takes fifty percent of everything I earn." Col. Parker