Andrea Hammack
Staff Writer
Review
“Bohemian Rhapsody,” the new biopic on the rock band Queen, started playing in theaters Friday, Nov. 2, and rocked the box office, bringing in $50 million in its opening weekend in North America.
As a Queen fan, I was extremely excited to see the movie, and I had been waiting for more than a year for it to come out.
There were tons of things I automatically expected to see, so it was a nice surprise that I was still able to learn new things along the way.
The movie starts with Freddie Mercury’s immediate life before meeting Brian May and Roger Taylor at a Smile (May and Taylor’s previous band before adding in Freddie and bassist John Deacon) concert.
This is where Freddie’s true story truly begins. He changes his name from Farrokh Bulsara and re-creates himself as the person he always knew he was meant to be.
If you’re a true Queen fan, the entire soundtrack and music-centered parts of the film are enough to make you feel as if you were physically there.
I’m not going to lie, the scene where “We Will Rock You” is being discussed gave me chills.
Although the timeline was off (the track was released in 1977, as opposed to 1980 as it is represented in the movie), this had to be the first musical scene to bring tears to my eyes.
Once the scene transitioned from Brian teaching them the basic beat of the song to them in concert with the crowd stomping and clapping along, it hit me in a crazy, surreal way.
The Live Aid performance portrayed in the film really pushed everything further and allowed you to feel like you were really there. When the camera sailed over the crowd and the music came in, it was a feeling like no other.
Throughout the rest of the biopic, there are many ups and downs that Freddie experiences during a rough period in his life. It’s very easy to relate to his loneliness, conveyed perfectly by Rami Malek.
In essence, a lot of problems that are shown about Freddie’s life are based around his sexuality and learning to cope with his new feelings.
Also, being able to see the band go from getting into subtle arguments to breaking up and still coming out on top in the end was extremely fascinating.
The film really showed how the band was a family. In the end, family prevailed.
Besides Malek practically embodying Mercury himself, Joseph Mazzello (John Deacon), Ben Hardy (Roger Taylor) and Gwilym Lee (Brian May) were perfect in their portrayals.
Knowing Brian May and Roger Taylor worked on set and helped with music really makes you believe in the genuineness and accuracy of the movie.
May and Taylor were there, living those moments. With them being involved, I believe it added to the value of the experience of watching something that you hope will do the band and Freddie justice.
Some critics will say they only scratched the surface of Queen’s story, with the conclusion of the movie being the Live Aid performance instead of perhaps continuing until Freddie’s death.
The movie does an amazing job of providing this generation with more than enough information on one of the most influential bands and lead singers in the music world.
I’m sure Freddie would be proud. If that isn’t reason enough to go see it, then I’m not sure what is.
