The “King of Rock n’ Roll” is most referred to as Elvis Presley, a significant musician in the 20th century who reached audiences across the world. There are a multitude of movies depicting Elvis from his perspective, most recently the Austin Butler version, which tells the story of his legendary career while undermining the problematic aspects of his life. However, a movie has never been written from the perspective of those he affected the most. “Priscilla”, released in 2023, and written by Sofia Coppola, offers an in-depth biopic of Elvis from Priscilla Presley’s perspective during the fourteen years they were in a relationship. As a film, many moments of tension seemed rushed and failed to entice the audience. Further, the abrupt ending left you searching for the missing piece to the story. However, despite these shortcomings, this movie ultimately exposed the audience to a valuable new perspective.
Coppola is an American film director, producer, screenwriter, and fashion designer. According to Britannica, she was the first American woman to be nominated for an Academy Award for Best Director in 2004. Coppola wrote this film to tell the story of Elvis’s life from a side that is often overlooked, Priscilla’s perspective.
IndieWire, an independent film review website, states when watching Elvis starring Butler, Priscilla was not a prominent character. The review acknowledged how the movie conveyed Priscilla stating, “One bit of Priscilla’s dialogue continues to stay with me for how succinctly it crystallized the film’s conception of her. ‘I am your wife!’ She yells at Elvis.” Priscilla’s simplistic depiction as Elvis’s wife has caused society to disregard her side of the story and the hardships she endured.
Beyond being Elvis’s wife, this movie reclaims Priscilla’s individuality by sharing her experiences. Collider, an online entertainment publication, recognizes this in an article. “Priscilla is less of a biopic about the wife of a famous artist, and more of a coming-of-age story about a woman realizing her potential.” In an NPR interview, Coppola emphasizes how she wanted to depict Priscilla as a relatable teenager during a difficult yet common time of transformation. Coppola believes that she has inspired a new generation of women through her work. “There’s girls and women that feel seen, and a lot of them are telling me they want to be filmmakers.”
Some may question the accuracy of “Priscilla” since it differs from other depictions and the idealistic life society believed surrounded their marriage. However, Coppola ensured its accuracy by basing it on Priscilla’s 1985 memoir, “Elvis and Me.” Coppola also made Priscilla executive director which she addressed in an interview with NPR which stated, “And then [Priscilla] came on as an executive producer, so she was available to me to answer questions and went through the script. And it was really important for me that she felt good about the film, that she felt like it represented her story.” Coppola was dedicated to accurately sharing a different side that is rarely acknowledged by the public.
Still, many disagree with the movie’s message, specifically Elvis and Priscilla’s daughter, Lisa Marie Presley. In Variety magazine’s exclusive with Lisa Marie, she wrote an email about her reaction to the movie. She stated, “My father only comes across as a predator and manipulative. As his daughter, I don’t read this and see any of my father in this character. I don’t read this and see my mother’s perspective of my father.” Lisa Marie described the script as “shockingly vengeful and contemptuous.” However, Priscilla stated in an interview with People magazine that the accuracy was “right on” and that she was so in agreement with Coppola’s depiction of her life that she “would never support another movie from anyone else doing it.”
