Photo: Philippe Le Sourd/A24
Sofia Coppola’s movies are known for their aesthetic visuals, exploration of femininity and girlhood and soundtracks. She has produced films such as “The Virgin Suicides” (1999), “Lost in Translation” (2003) and “Marie Antoinette” (2006). Although, for many people she is only known for her relation to Francis Ford Coppola — her father — who directed “The Godfather” movies. Additionally, she and Spike Jonze, another well-known filmmaker and photographer, were married for a short time. Despite her connections, there is no denying Coppola’s talent, creativity or the impact her movies have left on viewers; and her new feature film, “Priscilla” (2023), based on Priscilla Presley’s book, “Elvis and Me” (1985), proves it.
The reason Sofia Coppola’s films are so adored isn’t only because of the beautiful cinematography but also for her focus on women and girls who aren’t typically in the spotlight or who were (historically) criticized. Take, for example, her movie “Marie Antoinette” — although it isn’t necessarily historically accurate — the film portrays Marie Antoinette as she was when she assumed the role of the dauphine of France: a fourteen-year-old girl. Antoinette was often described as excessive; spending her money on fashion, gambling and other indulgences. However, it’s generally not taken into account by the public that she was only a teenage girl when she was thrown into marriage with Louis XVI. Coppola’s depiction of Antoinette portrays her as exactly that and tells a different side of the story that viewers can sympathize with. Coppola applied this same technique to “Priscilla.”
In Coppola’s “Priscilla,” she reveals a different and darker side of Elvis as depicted directly in “Elvis and Me,” Pricilla’s memoir. Priscilla was also made an executive producer of the movie, so she had a large say in the filming process.
In 1959, Priscilla Beaulieu was 14-years-old when she met Elvis Presley, who was ten years her senior. The movie establishes a clear power imbalance between the two, not only due to their age gap, but also in how the actors portray the couple through wardrobe, expressions and overall appearance. Priscilla Presley is played by Cailee Spaeny and Elvis Presley is played by Jacob Elordi. Their height difference — Spaeny is 5’1” and Elordi is 6’5” — seems intentional, as it shows the audience how young Priscilla was when she met Elvis. Additionally, at the beginning of the film, Priscilla’s wardrobe and hairstyle are what you might expect from a typical teenage girl in the 1950s: long poofy skirts, pastel cardigans, saddle shoes, high up-dos and so forth. On the other hand, Elvis is more mature; already relatively popular within the music world and working on his career.
Although age differences like these were not as frowned upon then as they are now, looking back, there is a clear difference in maturity between the two. Elvis impacted the music industry tremendously, but there should be more criticism of his actions — his interest in a fourteen-year-old, for one. It’s possible to criticize a person without completely diminishing their success and accomplishments.
As the movie continues, we see both the good and bad versions of Elvis from Priscilla’s perspective. It seems that as time goes on, her entire livelihood revolves around him. He dictates what she wears and what she looks like but doesn’t consider her feelings. There have been criticisms that Coppola portrays Elvis in a negative light: that she is too harsh on him, which isn’t surprising. When it comes to male musicians, specifically within the classic rock scene, they have more autonomy than female musicians. Their destructive and controversial actions are forgiven much easier, the excuse always being that “it’s just how things were back then.” Although this is true in some respects, it is now 2023. You can both recognize the talent and impact of a musician without idolizing them, putting them on a pedestal and ignoring their actions such as an inappropriate relationship with a 14-year-old.
“Priscilla” not only offers a new perspective on Elvis and his life, but also a beautiful aesthetic in regard to its visuals. Coppola does not disappoint when it comes to cinematography, set design and wardrobe. Although I can say that the movie does focus a lot on aesthetics, that should be expected when watching a movie directed by her. Coppola’s films tend to focus on conveying emotion through beautiful cinematography. The cast is wonderfully and strategically chosen. Spaeny resembles the young version of Priscilla in regards to stature, hair and makeup, and does a great job of portraying her emotions through facial expressions. Throughout the movie, the audience can determine Priscilla’s mental state just based on her eyes. The same goes for Elordi. His portrayal of Elvis — specifically his voice — is incredibly accurate. Despite the accuracy of his voice, I felt that sometimes it was hard to understand what he was saying due to the accent. On the other hand, many viewers enjoyed Austin Butler’s portrayal of Elvis in “Elvis” (2022) more, and while I believe he did a good job, there is no denying that Jacob Elordi’s portrayal was also fairly accurate. According to a Vanity Fair article, Priscilla Presley herself was “stunned by the accuracy of Elordi’s Elvis voice.”
While it was hard to understand Elordi’s accent at times, my main critique is that the movie was pretty slow-paced in the beginning, but far too fast-paced at the end. It also seemed to jump around a lot which made things a bit confusing. For example, at the start of the film, there are multiple scenes of Priscilla sitting at her desk at school which I felt were unneeded and did not necessarily add anything, instead making the beginning rather redundant and long. However, the ending seems a bit rushed – nearing the end, the movie does not go into a lot of detail about Priscilla’s life with her daughter and her feelings about Elvis leading up to the divorce, which is why I feel it was a bit fast-paced. Although the focus of the movie was on Priscilla and her relationship with Elvis, I felt that there was a lack of deeper understanding of her character and who she was during her relationship with him. Still, I commend Coppola for creating a movie about a topic like this. It is controversial and it’s no surprise that she has garnered criticism due to it. However, I think it was executed well and done respectfully. If you’ve watched “Elvis”, I would recommend watching “Priscilla” as well to see a different perspective of the famous rock ‘n’ roll star, Elvis Presley.
Ava Werner is a third-year Psychology major with a minor in Women’s & Gender Studies. AW973732@wcupa.edu.