By day she is a pupil of a strict Catholic school, by night she is a rock and roll party lioness. More precisely, the lion's wife - during the thirteen years they spent together, Priscilla Presley became nothing more than the second half of Elvis Presley and the mother of his daughter. Why? The new work of director Sofia Coppola invites you to look at the secret life of a world-famous couple through the eyes of a woman. Based on Mr. Presley's memoirs, the drama "Priscilla" opens in Lithuanian cinemas on January 12.
The film had its world premiere at the 80th Venice International Film Festival in 2023. in September. Cailee Spaeny, who created the main role, was awarded as the best actress at this festival. The young American is also nominated for the same award at the Golden Globes, which will be handed out on January 8. "I've been a fan of Sofia Coppola since The Young Suicides (Virgin Suicides), - says C. Spaeny, who was introduced to the director by her senior colleague Kirsten Dunst, who played in the cult film.
"Priscilla" is Sofia Coppola's eighth, traditionally very stylish feature film. Fashion connoisseurs will experience additional joy in the cinema, who will not miss the silhouettes born in the fashion houses of "Chanel" and "Valentino". Although fans of the director's talent will find parallels with many of her previous works, perhaps the closest is the historical film "Maria Antoinette" (Marie Antoinette), in which the main role was created by the same K. Dunst. What they have in common are great costumes, fantastic music, stormy parties, glances at the main heroines imprisoned in golden cages, and surrounding gossip. True, these true stories are separated by 200 years.
The book "Elvis and I" was first published in 1985. Mr. Presley's memoir, which became a bestseller, fell into Ms. Coppola's hands a dozen years ago by chance, and the idea that the holiday read could become a new movie was dictated by the visuals of the story: "When I read it, I felt like I was participating in her experiences."
For the daughter of legendary director Francis Ford Coppola, it was important to give voice to a woman that every pop culture fan knows, but no one really knows. At the same time, it is the fate of an entire generation: "I think Priscilla's story is the story of many women my mother's age, based on the expectation that while men pursue careers, they will stay at home, as if that should be enough."
"For the first time, I was able to sit down with a living person whose story I am going to tell on the big screen," S. Coppola remembers the atypical beginning of the creation of the film "Priscilla". According to her, gaining the trust of Priscilla Presley was especially important to her, and this is evident when looking at the object of love of the main heroine of the film. "He's charming and easy to fall in love with - that's how people describe Elvis, whom Priscilla loved sincerely," comments the director on the choice of actor Jacob Elordi.
Although the only wife of the king of rock and roll agreed to make her story into a movie and was actively involved in its development, she had objections to the script written by S. Coppola in 2023. Lisa Marie, daughter of Priscilla and Elvis, who died in January. She didn't like the way her father was being presented. However, the director leaves it up to each viewer to decide whether Elvis was a monster.