Mirror Review: Priscilla
By Olivia Dignan
January 16, 2024
Sofia Coppola is well-known for her beautiful films focusing on lonely, white women, and many are arguing Priscilla is her loneliest girl yet.
Coppola’s first image of Priscilla shows her alone at a diner, in a new country, with no desire for new friends or company. Throughout the film, Coppola utilizes her commonly recognized isolation technique. The movie reflects Elvis Presley through the ‘love of his life’ and the woman he married. They meet when Elvis is already world renowned and incredibly popular, and Priscilla is a fourteen year-old high school freshman.
The audience experiences Priscilla’s story from her point-of-view, watching her get invited to a party on an air base by a friend of Elvis’s. He believes they will have a lot in common, because they are both from the United States. After much rebuff, her parents finally comply and allow her to attend a party at Elvis’s home. Upon her second time visiting, Elvis, knowingly ten years older, asks Priscilla to go somewhere quiet.
Experiencing the difference in power and the struggle between the two is enthralling. Priscilla is enraptured by the star before she’s given the chance to grow up. Elvis has no intention of anything sexual that evening (as underscored by Coppola), he solely desires a meaningful conversation. He does kiss her goodbye, all while emphasizing the relationship is entirely on his account. He is in control of what they do and when, and he expressed that from the beginning.
Elvis masters the art of keeping her at arm's length, giving her just enough to stay but not enough to keep her happy. He returns to America, leaving her confused and alienated for months. After some time, he finally decides it's time for Priscilla to visit, where instead of a fun trip she ends up knocked out for two days on insomnia medication and then quickly taken to Las Vegas. Coppola shows the couple boozing, gambling, and even highlights Priscilla beginning to self- medicate, taking the pills, herself.
Later, Priscilla is older and after much convincing has moved to Graceland to live with Elvis's family. He isn’t present to meet her upon her arrival, and instead gifts her a dog to keep her company. She grows dreary and bored, taking calls from Elvis and attending school as the days drag on. He doesn’t allow her to take a job at a boutique, claiming when he calls her, he needs her to be there for him. Although he is miles away, he’s still controlling her life, seemingly as his own pet. Although he is sleeping with other women, he refuses to do so with Priscilla, claiming it is hallowed to him in a way that other women aren’t. As derived from her memoir, there are scenes of extreme anger and aggression from Elvis, one including him nearly hitting her in the head with a chair.
As Priscilla is pregnant, Elvis requested that they ‘briefly separate,’ as he was ‘going through some things,' Priscilla, an already solitary character, was left more alone than ever. Although their separation was short, it was apparent that Priscilla felt the distance.
A following scene shows Priscilla with the baby, sadly waving as Elvis leaves them for an unknown period of time, off on tour. Her isolation is underlined once again.
“Priscilla” was an incredibly engaging watch, seeing a girl transformed from a highschool student to the partner of a super-star, all while still attending school, living with her parents, and trying to live life normally. Coppola does a beautiful job telling Priscilla’s story and illustrating the sadness and seclusion she experienced throughout her relationship with Elvis.
Meet the Writer!
Olivia Dignan, class 2024, is a staff writer for the Dedham Mirror. In her spare time, Liv enjoys reading, thrifting for new clothes, and being outside.