Priscilla Review

This weekend I saw the movie Priscilla about Priscilla Presley. I have no idea how accurate historically this movie was, but it struck several chords close to my heart, including domestic violence, gaslighting and drug use. Oh and the fact that Elvis was dating a fourteen-year-old girl, one he could easily manipulate, instead of someone his own age. Priscilla meets Elvia at a party when she is fourteen. Shy, and well-sheltered, Priscilla is smitten with Elvis and immediately begins to form her entire life around him which was frustrating. It’s always incredibly infuriating to watch that happen in movies. She completely neglected her schoolwork, showed no interest in making friends her own age. All it was was “Elvis Elvis Elvis”. She didn’t even seem to care much about her own family. But I could kind of understand. Because I had been there. When I was in eighth grade I started seeing a senior. I was obsessed. I would just journal endlessly about him. Except unlike Priscilla I didn’t have to share him with the entire Western world.

Elvia also introduced Priscella to drugs to help her “go to sleep” and “stay awake”. I started dating a drug dealer who introduced me to marijuana. He pressured me into sexual situations which was actually kind of the opposite of Elvis and Priscella. Elvis would withhold himself sexually from Priscella (much to her frustration). I was pressured into sex while I was severely medicated and at one point unconscious. My ex said he preferred it that way.

I was also infuriated at the way Priscella’s parents treated her. They just let her waltz off with Elvis Presley, a man so much older who was also in the in the limelight without any real reassurance their daughter would be okay. And she wasn’t okay. She walked into a quagmire of abuse and fear. Her parents did this because they wanted their daughter to be happy. But sometimes parents have to allow their children to be unhappy. Part of growing up means letting your children make mistakes. But this is a big mistake for her age. She is not old enough to make this decision. Wake up, parents! This is your child!

Elvis treated Priscella very badly in the movie, from getting her hooked on drugs to telling her she looked bad in dresses to throwing freakin chairs at her. I’m glad Priscella got out when she did before she seriously got hurt. She had to grow up to too fast and that isn’t glamorous. If you ask me, the adults in her life should be ashamed. And that includes Elvis.