Priscilla
Enigmatic film directors remain drawn to the icon that was Elvis Presley. First, it was Baz Luhrmann with his flashy Elvis biopic & now Sofia Coppola takes her turn with, Priscilla, a much more grounded, intimate & suffocating tale.
Priscilla focuses on the titular teenager whose life was changed in an instant when a chance encounter had her swept off her feet by the biggest rock star of the era. Played by Cailee Spaeny, Priscilla is a quiet, impressionable 14-year-old who has been starved of excitement while living on a US military base in Germany. So it's no great shock that she dove head first into a love affair with a much older Elvis Presley, played by Jacob Elordi. As their romance blossoms viewers are whisked away on this wild journey clinging to Priscilla's coattails.
Inspired by Priscilla Presley's book, Elvis & Me, Coppola explores the intimate dynamics of a well-known love affair from a relatively new perspective. While there are no groundbreaking revelations to be made in Priscilla, the film does a wonderful job of positioning Priscilla. In this film, she is not just a victim but a willing participant in a double life as a schoolgirl by day & Elvis' wife by night. A situation that ultimately robbed her of a normal adolescence.
The cinematography & visual aesthetic is where Priscilla truly shines. The film conveys much of its message through simple visual cues such as the age difference between Elvis & Priscilla being accentuated by the height discrepancy between Spaeny & Elordi. Another visual cue used regularly during the film is the isolation Priscilla must have felt, with Spaeny often shown alone in wide shots throughout Graceland.
As a biopic, Priscilla feels incredibly honest & heartbreaking. However, it's also very slow & intimate with little new insight of any substance. Bearing that in mind this film can feel like a chore to complete.
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