The Final Scene of ‘Priscilla’ Means More Than You Think

The Big Picture

• Priscilla’
  s ending uses Dolly Parton’s “I Will Always Love You” to portray both loss and liberation in Elvis and Priscilla’s turbulent marriage.
• The film condemns Elvis’s darker moments, showcasing Priscilla’s journey towards independence and self-discovery.
• By not focusing on Elvis’s music,
  Priscilla
  provides a raw and uncomfortable look at the complicated relationship between Elvis and Priscilla.

More than perhaps any other element, music serves as a way to capture the mood of a scene. Few film moments are as important as the final one since it is the last chance to leave your audience with an impression. By any measure, Priscilla is no exception to this rule, but the specific song choice does far more than set the tone, and it has so much to say about the turbulent marriage between Elvis and Priscilla Presley.Dolly Parton’s “I Will Always Love You” was recorded the same year as the couple’s divorce and serves as an important reminder of feminine independence, given that Elvis was not allowed to record it. Throughout her film career, Sofia Coppola is known for exploring themes of liberation among young women and the final scene serves as the culmination of that very motif. For those who know the true story, however, the ending serves as a final farewell in a way that is both upsetting and uplifting. It serves a double purpose and, given its history, no song could be more fitting.

‘Priscilla’ Ends With a Condemnation of Elvis

There have been many different film portrayals of Elvis Presley (Jacob Elordi) over the years, but none have been as blunt and damning as this one. Unlike the Elvis biopic by Baz Luhrmann from the year before, which focused on the mythologization of the iconic singer, Coppola chose to take a direct look at the man himself through the perspective of his wife Priscilla (Caliee Spaeny) over their 15 years together. The film is not afraid to show many of his darker and controversial moments, from drug experimentation to rare but terrifying and violent outbursts. On top of an unpredictable husband and failing marriage, Priscilla also struggles with isolation during his many tours and when she realizes that she has been sheltered for most of her life, she starts to reconsider their relationship.

Towards the end of the film, the passion in the marriage between Elvis and Priscilla has become cold from his growing aggression towards her, absence in both her and their daughter’s lives, constant drug use, and nearly incomprehensible touring schedule. When Elvis nearly assaults her in a drunken stupor, it is treated as a clear departure from the gentle and cautious man she had first encountered many years earlier, as well as an ugly violation of both her dignity and their already damaged mutual trust. Throughout the film, Spaeny does an incredible job at portraying both the naivety and maturity of Priscilla in growing measure, resulting in a performance that somehow feels durable and fragile at once. At the same time, Elordi matches it with a man who remains insecure, overwhelmed, and egotistical. Deciding that she needs to become independent and unable to watch as he is consumed by his fame, Priscilla leaves Elvis to wallow in his pity before departing Graceland on her own terms. The final scene as she drives away from Graceland, which was incredibly emotional for both actors to shoot, features the song, “I Will Always Love You” by a young Dolly Parton, who would later have her own dealings with the King of Rock and Roll.

Dolly Parton Turned Down Elvis’ Offer to Cover Her Song

While not a conscious choice by Coppola (she wasn’t given the rights to Elvis’ music), the lack of his songs in the film helps to avoid any glorification of the singer. Very little focus is given to his musical career (especially when you compare it to Elvis) since Priscilla was hardly ever involved in it. Around this time, however, Elvis had largely fallen prey to the sins of many other rock and roll artists both before and since. His choice of music had also shifted, leaning more into country and blues than ever before and mostly covering other artists, with few original songs to his name. Despite this departure from the music and style that established him as an icon, his fame and fortune remained unprecedentedly high in a way that we have rarely seen again since.

It was at this time that a young Dolly Parton was first noticed for her song “I Will Always Love You,” a tribute to her business partner, who left to pursue television. Given the clear similarities between the piece and how it fits into his contemporary music, Elvis took an immediate interest and quickly approached Parton directly to record the song. Speaking to Howard Stern nearly 50 years later, Parton explained that Colonel Tom Parker, the controversial manager of Elvis since the beginning, demanded at least half the publishing rights for any song Elvis covered. Despite seeing it as an honor to have Elvis cover her song, Parton — who had just begun her own publishing company — refused and the deal soon collapsed. Elvis still went on to perform the song live at future concerts until his death. Although privately devastated at the time, Parton expressed no regrets in later yearsbecause it marked the start of her own career. Of course, several years after Elvis had died, “I Will Always Love You” would still receive a cover in the form of a famous rendition by Whitney Houston, which cemented to Parton that she had made the right choice to not let Elvis cover it. Still, it remains no accident that Priscilla specifically uses the original version.

The Ending of Priscilla is Both Tragic and Liberating

At first glance, playing “I Will Always Love You” during the ending of Priscilla might seem like a heartfelt tribute from a woman who still loves her husband but can no longer be with him. This is partially true, as the film is based on the memoir Elvis and Me by Priscilla herself, and she still speaks highly of their relationship to this day. However, the lighting and pacing reflect a somber mood, bittersweet and defined by loss. Regardless of how justified it might feel, she is now leaving an entire world behind her in Graceland, and she will never fully be welcome there again. She is giving up on a man who is falling into a cycle of self-destruction, and we know in hindsight how fast he degenerated after their divorce, dying less than five years later. Given the endless drama that has enveloped the Presley family since then, it can be hard not to see it as a tragic event for both Priscilla and Elvis as a couple along with the family as a whole, and the recent legal drama over the estate of their only daughter makes it all the more poignant.

At the same time, the scene features Priscilla during her happiest time in many years, as she finally has the chance to explore the world and claim her own identity outside the man she married. In the same way that Dolly Parton rejected Elvis to assert her independence, so too does Priscilla. Their rejections might differ in motivation, with one professional and the other personal, but they share a common theme about discovering your genuine self. Although she is consistently referred to as being mature for her age when they first meet, it is ironically only after leaving Elvis that she becomes a true adult.

In addition to being a great film on its own merits, the ending of Priscilla is a perfect example of how to convey your message through the soundtrack and still leave something open to interpretation. Due to its less glamorous nature in its treatment of the king, fans might find the movie uncomfortable and Lisa Marie, their only daughter, was certainly not a fan. Still, that also remains the point, as the film revels in its discomfort and the ending serves as a definitive statement about the complicated relationship between Elvis and Priscilla.

Given the beauty of Dolly’s song and her refusal to sell the rights to it, the use of it for Priscilla gives it a feeling of both loss and life. Just like the woman has done, the scene condemns Elvis but also condones him, acknowledging the importance of what their marriage had meant to her. Although Priscilla’s own feelings often contradict when discussing her husband decades later, the brilliant song choice by Coppola shows she has no such ambiguities.

Priscilla is now streaming on Max in the U.S.

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