It is the showdown that many other people have already discussed: the story of the LGBTQ young man who became Freddie Mercury, who was the lead singer of the band Queen and the story of the LGBTQ young man who became Elton John. In comparing the two, I hope to provide a balanced review and not just laude Rocketman at Bohemian Rhapsody’s expense.
Well, that’s the kind of songs teenagers can crank up the volume in their car and bang their heads to. ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ will never be that song.
Do your worst. In fact, take me to court. You signed contracts with me years ago, so I’ll still be collecting my twenty percent long after you’ve killed yourself.
Criteria:
1. Music – Taron Edgarton (Elton John) sang, and did a great job. On the other hand, Rami Malek did not. There is nothing wrong with using the original music people loved.
2. Amount of cheesy dramatic irony jokes – The above quotation from Bohemian Rhapsody is an example of these jokes. When the studio exec allegedly said that to Queen there was no immediate punchline. It only becomes funny because of hindsight and audience’s knowledge. Rocketman did this too, like when Elton John wanted to change his name from Reggie to Elton Dean, which was the name of a bandmate of his. The audience knows he settles on Elton John, and that name has already been mentioned. It is still played for humor, but there is at least an edge to it. Both are guilty, but it’s somewhere Bohemian Rhapsody chooses to spend a lot of time. N.B. Thanks to my friend Jon for helping to name this criterion.
3. Title – Rocketman – makes sense. Bohemian Rhapsody – the name drags that song into the focus of the plot for a bit, but it’s really not the focus.
4. Costumes – Rhapsody was less absurd. But making the John therapy costume canon paid off.
5. Teeth – Wow.
6. Real & Stage Names – Reggie vs something way cooler than fn Reggie. Elton John vs Freddie Mercury. Obviously Freddie Mercury is cooler. Plus, Elton stole his, which was super rude.
7. A-Hole Abusive Manager/Love Interest – What a parallel. Rocketman’s was almost 2D, which makes him better than Bohemian Rhapsody’s abuser.
8. New Information – Elton John still works with Bernie Taupin. Freddie Mercury was of Pakistani descent!
9. Length & Pacing – Rocketman felt well paced and Bohemian Rhapsody felt out of sorts with time. On the whole though, both felt a bit rushed.
10. Compared to Amadeus – Just an excuse to mention an amazing film. It is not fair to compare these to that 5 star gem.
11. Editing – I saw a video criticizing the editing in Bohemian Rhapsody as unduly frenetic in low energy scenes. Whereas some of the transitions in Rocketman were phenomenal.
12. Lead Acting Performance – Rocketman incorporated its musical elements wonderfully, and Edgarton deserves a ton of credit for making them work. Whereas Rami Malek won for best actor in Bohemian Rhapsody? Seriously? I hope he’s better in No Time To Die.
The more I pile on my criticism of Bohemian Rhapsody, the clearer it becomes that I really preferred Rocketman and how disappointed I was with Bohemian Rhapsody. If you agree, feel free to tell me I’m right, and if you disagree, please tell me what I missed.
****½ for Rocketman; **½ for Bohemian Rhapsody
Jabrody's Movielog 