Writer/director Sofia Coppola returns with a biopic centered on Priscilla Presley, shedding light on Priscilla’s perspective on her complicated romance with Elvis while exuding relevant themes and incredible performances that result in Coppola’s strongest vision yet.
The film – based on Priscilla Presley’s 1985 memoir Elvis and Me – follows Priscilla (Cailee Spaeny) as she meets Elvis Presley (Jacob Elordi) just as he’s blossoming into full-blown stardom and highlights the ups, downs, and toxicity of their relationship. It’s hard not to have Baz Luhrmann’s Elvis (2022) in the back of your mind when watching Priscilla. However, it quickly becomes clear that Coppola’s approach to Priscilla’s story is vastly different. While Priscilla expresses the extravagance of Priscilla’s lifestyle with Elvis through costume and set designs as well as the ins and outs of their relationship, it’s much more muted than what people would expect for a celebrity lifestyle – which makes sense for who Priscilla was then.
Before Elvis, she was just an ordinary person and one of the more compelling aspects of her story is seeing that persist in his world. Even when she’s walking alongside him with cameras flashing and approaching the larger-than-life setting of Graceland, her sense of normalcy isn’t lost. Coppola takes a grounded approach to depicting Priscilla’s perspective that carries over into her relationship with Elvis, and it makes their relationship more immersive and instantly compelling. The initial sparks of their romance are much quieter and real – with the added whirlwind elements of a fan like Priscilla getting her celebrity crush to fall for her. When Priscilla does make it to Graceland, there’s something really intriguing and slightly funny about seeing her and Elvis do normal things, like sitting in bed watching TV all day.
Coppola evokes this much-needed realism to the idea of celebrity couples that’s much more connective and interesting to watch in action. She strips away the glitz and glamor in necessary ways to really examine the personal strife and conflict that eventually consumes their relationship, but also makes the coming-of-age aspects of Priscilla’s story more relatable and funnier. One of the more underrated aspects of Coppola’s work is honestly how funny her direction can be and how she can craft hilarious reactions. There are plenty of funny moments that come from Priscilla’s persistence in seeing her love with Elvis become something more despite her parents’ resistance. The editing can provide some good laughs in quick transitions and cuts. There’s a fun, youthful spark to Spaeny’s performance that makes Priscilla personable and charming from the start. Plus, Elordi spouting Elvis-sounding lines with his interpretation of the voice will easily get multiple laughs out of audiences throughout.
With this very likable and heartfelt depiction of Priscilla’s perspective and her relationship with Elvis established, it makes the more gut-wrenching reality of their toxic elements so impactful. Priscilla’s perspective undoubtedly touches on what it’s like to be a normal person in a celebrity relationship. When she sees romantically-charged headlines of Elvis with other celebrities, Priscilla is understandably hurt and has her reality distorted – which is only amplified by her young age. Her perspective in this relationship is one that most can share and offers a rare glimpse into a true fish-out-of-water situation that’s further spurred by Elvis’ controlling behavior towards her.
As time goes on, there’s this power struggle that grows between Priscilla and Elvis that defines toxicity and genuinely can be harrowing to watch. Although there are good, loving moments sprinkled throughout, there’s an undeniable control Elvis enforces throughout their relationship. From determining when they first make love to denying Priscilla the opportunity to carve her own path in life, Elvis puts himself in a position to control the entire nature of their relationship. Honestly, once Priscilla arrives in Graceland, it’s hard not to feel her own control of her life start to slip – which only makes her eventual drug use influenced by Elvis more tragic. As their relationship begins to spiral and Elvis goes through his own trauma in the background, things become increasingly tense, and you’re left as rattled as Priscilla is. Now, while the film’s intentions aren’t to depict Elvis as some kind of villain for these actions since it’s well known that this behavior stems from his own issues, it does feel like the film is missing a little context with him.
With the story being more Priscilla-focused, there isn’t much time dedicated to exploring what’s happening with Elvis outside their relationship. It is interesting to have Colonel Tom Parker be this looming threat in the background and see how this separation of Elvis’s personal and professional lives really starts to damage him. However, any extensive coverage of Elvis’ personal story would take away from Priscilla diving deep into how Priscilla perceived this world and relationship. Plus, the film’s approach to Elvis actually results in some subtle themes coming through, since he’s basically enacting the same kind of control Parker puts on him onto Priscilla. It’s a very effective way of showing how abuse travels and can turn the abused into abusers.
As the film heads deeper into the growing toxicity and crumbling of Priscilla and Elvis’s relationship, nearly every aspect of the film becomes stronger. Spaeny delivers a career-defining performance with some great awards potential through the sheer resilience she expresses. She hits the wide range of emotions building within Priscilla in this relationship and captures the unbreakable love and vulnerability for Elvis that keeps her in this relationship and the growing strength that eventually gets her out. Elordi can flip the switch from being undeniably loving to cold and aggressive incredibly well yet still makes Elvis have this hidden pain that’s slightly sympathetic. But it’s Coppola’s direction that really shines through as she makes Priscilla’s arc of finding herself in this relationship deeply important and thematically impactful. Her story embodies all the heartache and trauma of inescapable toxic relationships – which is more relevant than ever – and it’s immensely satisfying to see her grow the strength to confront their issues and to make her own choice.
Priscilla is a very strong showing for Coppola – possibly her best in recent time – for how it immerses viewers into an underseen perspective in one of the most iconic relationships in pop-culture to display the loving spark, growing strife, and lingering pain that was present from the start. It boasts all the potential for some deserved awards love and offers timely themes surrounding relationships that’ll only help viewers grow in the ways that its titular character does.
