Priscilla
Priscilla,
directed by the sure hand of Sofia Coppola, is a collection of snapshots from
the relationship between the King of Rock and Roll, Elvis Presley, and the
woman who would become his wife, Priscilla Beaulieu. The film is seen from
Priscilla's point of view and is based on Priscilla Presley's memoir Elvis
and Me, so it's definitely like being a fly on the wall in Graceland.
Priscilla
Beaulieu (Cailee Spaeny) first met Elvis (Jacob Elordi) at a party in 1959 when
she was only 14 years old. Elvis was already a rock and roll superstar, but he
felt that the young girl was different from his legion of female fans. She was
someone he could talk to. Despite the age difference (Elvis was 24 at that
time) and concerns from her strict parents, the two began casually dating.
In
1963, Elvis asks Priscilla to move in with him at his Memphis, Tennessee estate
known as Graceland. The couple would marry four years later.
The
early happy scenes are great. We see this girl being absolutely thrilled that
she is living a fairy tale come true. Of course, it doesn't last long. When
Priscilla first met Elvis, his addiction to uppers and downers was already in
full swing, and he began giving pills to her. She would eventually experience
his mood swings and angry outbursts. For better or worse, the movie really
makes you feel the monotony and loneliness of Priscilla's day-to-day life
isolated at Graceland while Elvis was off making movies.
The
performances are on the money. The fact that Spaeny is petit (she is listed as
5' 1") works for the movie. She looks like a little girl, and Priscilla was a
young teenage girl thrown into this big, crazy lifestyle and she struggled to
find her way. As for Elordi, he embodies Elvis so well that it is kind of
haunting.
Coppola's film is somber and
often very quiet. That is a stark contrast to Baz Luhrmann's high energy Elvis
(2022) movie, yet these two films seem to go together. Both are compelling
glimpses into the lives of Elvis and Priscilla Presley.
