Bohemian Rhapsody is a biopic about Freddie Mercury and the legendary
rock band that he fronted for, Queen. Focusing
on the period from 1970 to 1985, the film explores the band’s inception, their
rise to fame, the creative processes behind some of their greatest
hits (most especially “Bohemian Rhapsody”), Freddie’s relationship with his
family and lovers, and a few other storylines, which then culminates with their
iconic Live Aid set.
Queen is one of my all-time
favorite bands, and thus, this film is immediately fascinating to me. I love how this film depicts the foursome as
a true team – a family. Although there
are conflicts and egos that arise, their friendship and passion for music ultimately
prevail.
In relation to this, it has one
of the most impeccable castings I’ve ever seen in a movie. Rami Malek, Gwilym Lee, Ben Hardly, and Joe
Mazzello are uncanny, nigh mirror images of Freddie Mercury, Brian May, Roger
Taylor, and John Deacon, respectively. Their
performances in all fronts – dramatic, lip syncing, and pretend playing of instruments – are pretty compelling, too. Malek, in particular,
rightfully deserves the recognition he’s getting this awards season.
As a drama revolving around people in the music
industry, it doesn’t have the same depth that A Star Is Born has. But it’s also not
as tragic either. Even though it touches
on some mature and dark themes, Bohemian
Rhapsody is ironically feel-good. With
its sanguine tone, it’s apparent that, above anything else, the intention of
the film is to be a celebration of Queen and their beloved music. Now, I’m sure that in order to bring
this vision about, it had to opt for some significant historical inaccuracies. And that’s fine. After all, it’s not meant to serve as a documentary anyway.
All in all, Bohemian Rhapsody is a terrific film that should please most movie
and Queen fans.
No comments:
Post a Comment