Saturday, November 24, 2018

Bohemian Rhapsody


Carol, Ben and I saw Bohemian Rhapsody on Thanksgiving Day.

Queen was the first band I ever called my favorite, starting from the day my best friend in grade school brought over their masterpiece, A Night at the Opera. I loved Queen up through junior high school but sometime in the early 1980s, I lost track of them. Their music went in a different direction, I was introduced to Rush, and I stopped buying their albums.

Still, I was really happy when, after Live Aid in 1985, all anyone could talk about was Queen. That performance is still regarded as one of the, if not the best, rock performances of all time. I had a big case of "I liked them before they were cool" that summer.




The movie, named after Queen's classic song, covers the band and a collection of their inner circle, with a particular focus on Freddie Mercury, from the genesis of the band to the 1985 Live Aid concert. In many ways, this is a standard rock bio film, with the early days, the first big hits, up and downs, clashing personalities, a break up and a reunion. But one of the remarkable things about Queen is that they always got along and, despite what the movie says, never came close to breaking up. The filmmakers thought to interject some conflict into the movie to spice it up.  They didn't need to, though, because more than anything the movie's about the characters.

Rami Malek as Mercury is amazing, capturing every nuance of Mercury's movement and style. Mercury's story is exhilarating and tragic, and Malek nails his immense, mesmerizing talent. I really think Malek's going to be nominated for an Academy Award. The rest of the cast is great as well and the music is Queen. Enough said.

If you like rock bios, or movies about compelling historical figures, go see it. If you like rock and roll or just good movies, go see it.

In other words, go see it.



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