It was a little over one year ago that director Baz Luhrmann’s “Elvis” hit theaters. The vibrant and stylish biography of music icon Elvis Presley won over both audiences and critics before eventually earning eight Academy Award nominations. How interesting that in such a short time we’re getting another movie set around the life of the “King of Rock and Roll”. But this one comes with a distinctly different focus and is told from a uniquely fresh perspective.

“Priscilla” is based on the 1985 memoir “Elvis and Me” by Priscilla Presley, the wife of the legendary Elvis Presley who also serves as the movie’s executive producer. It’s written and directed by the ever compelling Sofia Coppola and is her first feature since her underappreciated 2020 dramedy “On the Rocks”. Much like the book, Coppola’s film looks entirely through Priscilla’s eyes, showing how she first met Elvis in 1959, their soon after marriage in 1967, and the rollercoaster ride that eventually led to their divorce in 1973.

While at times Luhrmann’s film leaned heavily on its style and energy, Coppola takes a much more subdued approach to “Priscilla”. For most of its running time it’s patient and methodical, almost languid as it roots us in Priscilla’s experience. But that’s very much intentional and it does a tremendous job conveying her feelings while caught in the web of their high-profile relationship. Often lonely and isolated; other times smothered and domineered – it’s all sublimely realized through the quietly captivating performance from 25-year-old Cailee Spaeny.

Even more intentional is Coppola’s depiction of Elvis and her aim to stay away from anything that might be considered a reason why Elvis talks, thinks, and acts the way he does. In her movie he just is how he is. As a result Elvis (ably played by Jacob Elordi) is portrayed as an irredeemable monster, occasionally caring when it suits him, but mostly controlling, neglectful, and abusive. The majority of what Coppola shows us has been well-documented as true and snaps at the fabled image of Elvis Presley. But the lack of nuance in the portrayal, though still intensely effective, feels ever so slightly suspicious.

Coppola begins her story in West Germany where a somewhat shy 14-year-old Priscilla Beaulieu is introduced to 24-year-old rock star Elvis Presley. It’s immediately queasy and uncomfortable with words like predatory, grooming, and coercion coming to mind as they play out on the screen. There’s a striking delicacy in the way Coppola presents it, but also a unflinching honesty that forces the audience to reckon with what they’re seeing. And one of Coppola’s greatest tools is Spaeny who conveys youthful innocence with an alarming clarity.

From inexplicably winning her parents’ blessing to being whisked away to Elvis’ Graceland estate in Memphis, the movie follows the troubling pseudo storybook “romance”, with all of its red lights and warning signs, as it slowly erodes into something increasingly constrictive and toxic. Over time Graceland becomes a lavish prison for Priscilla. Her starry-eyed illusion turns to loneliness and melancholy as Elvis runs around with his meatheaded Memphis Mafia or is out West shooting movies and making tabloid headlines with his sexy co-stars. They eventually marry once she turns 21 and only months later they have a daughter, Lisa Marie. But things only get worse.

For most of the film Coppola keenly visualizes Priscilla’s crushing circumstances through her deliberate pacing and careful attention to emotional details. It all flows seamlessly until the erratic final third where the film begins jumping from point to point, hitting interesting marks in Elvis and Priscilla’s crumbling relationship but doing little to connect them together in a satisfying way. It’s so strangely at odds with the first two acts and goes by in a blur. But maybe that’s what Coppola is going for. Perhaps that’s the way Priscilla recalls those final months with Elvis – as a blur.

Aside from the strategic depiction of Elvis and the skittish storytelling near the end, “Priscilla” is a captivating experience that provides an inside look at one of the most well known celebrity couples of our time. It features bravura filmmaking and is driven by a bold vision that doesn’t follow the normal biopic model we’ve grown accustomed to. Coppola has more on her mind and watching her bring it to life is riveting, even if she doesn’t hit every mark. (Just a note: in my screening the dialogue, specifically from Elordi, was often mumbled and hard to understand. I’m not sure whether it was Elordi’s performance, the sound mixing, or my theater. Let me know about your experience with the sound). “Priscilla” is in theaters now.

VERDICT – 3.5 STARS