Based on the 1985 biography, "Elvis and Me: The True Story of the Love Between Priscilla Presley and the King of Rock n' Roll" comes just that - a movie adaptation written, directed, and co-produced by none other than Sophia Copolla, daughter of Francis Ford Coppola, but with a much more marquee-friendly movie title than the book... just "Priscilla."
The "Elvis" movie released in 2022 was slammed for focusing more on Elvis' manager rather than the titular star himself, but at least "Priscilla" is aptly named, focusing on her point of view; although you're still likely to find out more about Elvis in "Priscilla" than from that earlier movie named after him! Not that you'll like what you learn if you're an Elvis fan.
This movie is also a bit of an odd duck. Firstly the book itself on which it's based is difficult to gauge as far as accuracy is concerned, since so many of the events chronicled were personal exchanges between two people, with no witnesses.
Now comes this movie which takes creative license with that already questionable book, with Elvis' estate shooting it down, with an unnamed Presley estate official saying that Coppola's writing and directing were "horrible." The estate also refused to cooperate with the making of this film, so hardly any of Elvis' music is actually in it, although the music used is one of the highlights of the film, as is the cinematography; it's lovely, with a nostalgic glow over everything.
Other than that, this is a fairly straightforward depiction of the basics of the book, with no symbolism, no metaphors, no deeper meaning, or hidden agendas; just a reenactment that ends with a whimper. It's largely done well technically, but the story told is, again, one that just seems like a visual Cliff Notes version of the book, with much of the more terrible details glossed over or completely changed, with an R rating for some language and drug use.
I think it's an above-average movie, but just barely. I'm more with the general audience response than with the Metacritics on this one.
What it does best is make you want to read the book to get the full account of Priscilla's story of her time with the king of rock n' roll. I predict her 1985 book sales will be reinvigorated.
