When I first heard that there was going to be another Elvis Presley movie less than six months after the Austin Butler-led biopic by director Baz Luhrmann, I must admit I was skeptical of the timeline. Not that the life of the King of Rock isn't interesting enough to engage audiences more than once, but with the amount of fanfare that surrounded Butler's role and the film’s streaming availability, Sofia Coppola's "Priscilla" almost felt premature.
But my mistake was calling this "another Elvis Presley movie." This is a Priscilla Presley movie.
Throughout the film's 113-minute runtime, we get a lot of Elvis, sure – but from beginning to end, this is Priscilla’s story. Starting with their first meeting in Germany – 24-year-old Presley was stationed overseas during his two-year Army stint, while Priscilla, née Beaulieu and then just 14, lived with her Air Force officer stepfather on base – and mapping out their courtship through to their marriage's demise, Coppola ("The Virgin Suicides," "Marie Antoinette," "Lost in Translation")'s ladylike lens never strays.
While I could see some moviegoers feeling like "Priscilla" is lacking, plot-wise, it's actually pretty refreshing. Coppola doesn't invent storylines for shock or entertainment value (as far as I can tell, especially with its autobiographical source material and Priscilla herself credited as a producer). She doesn't place Elvis in more of a spotlight than he already takes up (don't forget, there's already a movie that does that), instead placing him solely in relation to Priscilla. She doesn’t paint Priscilla as someone who necessarily owns a room or takes charge; she's actually pretty soft-spoken next to Presley, the strength she displays at the end of her marriage a slow, quiet burn.
So, while "Priscilla" might read sluggish at first, it's a testament to a director's restraint and trust in her subject matter, an account of the reality that perhaps would have been sensationalized in another's hands. Priscilla was often at Graceland – as opulent and comfortable as it was – alone. She was a schoolgirl for half of the time she and Elvis were together. She was a young mother with little emotional support. That story isn't sexy or cinematic, exactly, but it's real, and that we must respect.
At the same time, I’ll throw some respect on Jacob Elordi's name, as well. While Butler (in?)famously let the role of Elvis Presley devour him, it feels like Elordi (who's unimaginably tall, apparently) slid into the drawl seamlessly. He made for a smooth, albeit a bit one-note, Elvis, and I must admit that hearing, "Cilla, come here" from him was quite dreamy.
Cailee Spaeny's casting was the perfect antithesis to Elordi – and not just physically, at 5'1" to his 6'5". Their pairing almost didn't make sense, which was the point, I suppose, and added strength to the story. At 25 with a sweet face, Spaeny smoothly transitions from a believable teenager to a striking young woman just shy of 30, an imperative element for the film to be able to drive home the essence of Priscilla Presley's story: In meeting Elvis so young, she never had the chance to figure out who she was as a person, let alone live it in the shadow of her superstar husband.
But all that aside, the best part of the film was, actually, the very end. Again, the film wasn’t about Elvis, so I should have expected that none of his music would actually be featured in the film, but one song they did choose to include was *chef’s kiss*.
In the closing scene, Priscilla is driving away, having departed Graceland for the last time following her declaration that she was leaving her husband. She's alone in the car, and the song that plays over her escape is none other than, "I Will Always Love You" – but not Whitney Houston's version. It’s Dolly Parton's.
You see, Dolly is the one who wrote and first recorded the iconic, powerhouse ballad. It was a single off of her 1974 album "Jolene" and went number 1 on the country charts, which intrigued one Mr. Presley. When Presley's (in!)famous manager, Colonel Tom Parker, all but demanded Parton sign over half of the publishing rights, Parton didn't let the deal go through. In the '90s, Houston came around to record it, with a fairer deal attached, and Parton made out nicely – in fact, she’s still cashing in those royalties in a big way.
So, I don't think it's a huge stretch to say that the closing song, played over Priscilla's moment of breaking free, was a very pointed choice. Elvis wanted to own Parton's song; Elvis wanted to own Priscilla, down to her hair color and the thickness of her eyeliner. In the end, he owned neither, and Priscilla made out all right without him.