“ Rocketman”

One sees the film “ Rocketman” for Taron Egerton. This thirty-year-old Welsh actor does all his own singing ;and like his name, which is a variation of “thunder” in Welsh, he literally thunders on screen. The energy of his performances is breathtaking. Two key scenes are memorable. One has Egerton as Elton John rise with his legs behind him while still playing the piano keyboard. The audience levitates to his performance while singing ” La la la la” to the razzle dazzle. The second visual fantasy has Elton diving into his pool in a drug and alcohol whacked suicide attempt only to have his childhood-self sitting in a space helmet on the pool’s floor as Elton slowly swirls in his silk Versace robe.

Director Dexter Fletcher of “Bohemian Rhapsody” fame uses a musical video format to outline Reginald Dwight’s rise to fame as Elton John. Matthew Illesley plays the eight-year-old prodigy with the song ” The Bitch Is Back”. He directs fantasy orchestras from his bed and warrants placement in music classes for the gifted. On a Royal Academy Of Music scholarship, Dwight is taken to lessons by his grandma (Gemma Jones). His mother ( Bryce Dallas Howard) is busy with her philandering, and his father ( Steve Makintosh ) is cool to his son’s ” softness” and equally self-absorbed.

The lonely, emotionally neglected boy plays out in AA therapy sessions with the circle repeated in his abuse of alcohol, drugs, and sex. Bulimia and non-stop shopping get mentioned, as does poor anger management. While these sins are enumerated, the executive producer ( Elton, himself) and the producer ( David Furnish, his partner) balance the warts with Elton’s 450 million dollar philanthropic activities. This being said not much character insight is given. Compared with Freddie Mercury in “Bohemian Rhapsody”, Elton seems underexamined ,and therefore, more shallow.

The character with depth is Bernie Taupin ( Jamie Bell ). Taupin is the lyricist, who for fifty years supplied Elton with the grist for his themes. Elton composed the music and and added the accoutrements of performance art. Be it feathers, outlandish glasses, sequins, or platform shoes. Twenty some songs wend their way through the film: “Crocodile Rock”, ” Don’t Go Breaking My Heart”, “I’m Still Standing”, “ I Want Love”, “ Hercules”, “ Don’t Let The Sun Go Down On Me”, ‘Rocketman”,“Goodbye Yellow Brick Road”, “Pinball Wizard”, “Honky Cat”, “ Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest”, “ Border Song “, and my favorite, “Your Song”. Others  like “ Candle In The Wind” are given a few lines and chords. It is quite a song fest of adulation.

Jaime Bell’s Taupin is a great foil to the self-serving new manager and pretend-lover, John Reid (Richard Madden). I loved the scene where Taupin and Elton collaborate on a park bench. Bernie later tells Elton that he doesn’t have to put up with the unfaithful John. John is vehement and tells Elton that his 20% of the profit will stay long after Elton kills himself. Elton feels “ frozen on the ladder of life”. At 28, Elton is back in re-hab and soon after marries an Italian studio producer named Renata. They sleep in separate bedrooms, and the marriage does not last long. “Rocketman” ends on a positive note with pictures of his now partner, David Furnish, and their two sons.

This saga of mega-celebrity is channeled beautifully by Taron Egerton. His frenetic energy owns the film.

“Bohemian Rhapsody”

“Bohemian Rhapsody” is a perfect film and a lovingly rendered bio-pic. The alternating use of close-ups and panoramic views seem to distil the essence of the man/boy and performer, Freddie Mercury. Don’t miss this paen to the band “Queen”.

From his cats to his arm waving stage prance, we get to know the young graphic designer as he writes song lyrics and sings his heart out. Born Farrokh Bulsara in Zanzibar, like any twenty-something, he seeks freedom to be who he is. This means a gentle, parental rebellion, and later an admission of his bi-sexuality.

Actor Rami Malek deserves an Oscar for his role as Freddie Mercury. Passion for music and connection pulses through every frame. “ Can Anybody Find Me Someone To Love”, “We Are The Champions”, and of course, “Bohemian Rhapsody” enthrall. “Love Of My Life” as tender as you will see it done.

Malek is supported by a superb cast. The band: guitarist Brian May (Gwilym Lee), drummer Roger Taylor (Ben Hardy),and bassist John Deacon ( Joe Mazzello) are developed just enough for you to care about them. Their frustration is understandable; their anger palpable, and their love for Mercury raises this film to a true legacy piece, even as one band member reverts to Shakespearean insults like “ You treacherous piss flap”. I, also, appreciated the “angry lizard look” costume comment.

Lucy Boynton, as Mercury’s forever girlfriend, develops a Mary Austin one can believe in. The scene at the dinner table with her deaf father is memorable. On the other end of the spectrum, the same goes for the villainous Paul, played by Allan Leech. Paul is known as the snake who tried to break up the “Queen” family. His attempted isolation of our star has Freddie blaming himself and calling Paul a fruitfly that feasts on rotten.

Mercury’s mixed genres and refusal to revert to a formulaic core shows both his genius and the joy of creating. His world tours are flashed on the screen: Rio, Osaka, Perth etc…When Mary is left alone and asking what Freddie wants from her, we sigh at his answer: “Almost Everything.”

Writers Anthony McCarten and Peter Monyan have done a good job distilling twenty some formative years into a musical bio-pic. I loved the close-up of the Rolls-Royce hood ornament, the mic, and rings and studs. Directors Brian Singer and Dexter Fletcher show Mercury’s flaws, but focus on his revolutionary soul~ a real plus. John Ottman is an editor who knows how to pace both action and emotion.

The depth of character displayed was more than I was looking for. Mercury’s aside to Mary, “Being human is a state that requires anesthesia” was enough explanation. Jim Hutton, Mercury’s lover, seems like the embodiment of Freddie’s father’s mantra of “good thoughts, good words, good deeds”. His “Come and find me when you decide to like yourself” rocked for our rock star. Dead from AIDs at forty-five, Queen’s “Carry on, Carry on” will have tears rolling down your face. “ Bohemian Rhapsody” ranks in my top five films for 2018.