Film Review: 'Bohemian Rhapsody'

Directed by: Brian Singer (X-Men) Written by: Anthony McCarten (Theory of Everything, The Darkest Hour) Starring: Rami Malek (Mr. Robot) Length: 134 minutes

“BOHEMIAN RHAPSODY”, directed by Brian Singer, is a loose biography of “Queen”, one of the most revered band in history, and its controversial frontman, Freddie Mercury, depicting the band’s formation, Freddie’s loose-cannon personality, the band’s success and downfall, as well as their famous Live-Aid performance, hailed by many as the greatest live performance ever.

For such out-of-this-world material, one would be severely disappointed by the film’s choppily-edited and sanitized version of “Queen”. Yet for all of its flaws, “BOHEMIAN RHAPSODY” remains a pompous, entertaining look at the band, bolstered by an epically committed Rami Malek, and is sure to win over both veteran fans and newcomers alike.

The positives:

- Rami. Said. Malek. If not evident through his role as Elliot in “Mr.Robot”, his portrayal as Freddie Mercury has undoubtedly put Rami Malek on the map as one of the most unique actors working today. ————————————————————— With a personality like that of Queen’s frontman, the most sinful thing “Bohemian Rhapsody” could have done was to play it safe and cast a hollow shell for the role. While it is fascinating to see what Sacha Baron Cohen could have brought to the icon in his planned version of “BR”, Rami Malek more than delivers as a free-willing, uninhibited version of Mercury. Every time Malek appears on screen, he utterly disappears into the role; from Mercury’s offbeat, one-of-a-kind demeanor on stage, to his four-front-teeth look and dialogue, Malek sells the controversial figure like no one could have.

You will not see Mr.Robot on screen; this is Freddie Mercury, living and breathing. An Oscar should be in the conversation. ————————————————————-

- The musical numbers:

Should “Bohemian Rhapsody” become a 120-minute montage of the band concocting every song on their albums, I would give this a straight A+.

Every musical-related sequence in the film stands out due to the sheer magnitude of Queen’s musical presence. Each note, each bass line, each lyric…sent a shiver down my spine (I am so sorry); and the titular song earned its name with a montage so fun, so outrageous, that you would be singing the classic for days on end if not familiar. Other standouts include “We Will Rock You” and the heart-aching anthem “We Are The Champions” at Live-Aid.

Speaking of which… —————————————————————

- THAT 10-MINUTE SCENE

If you’ve seen the film, you know what I am talking about If you haven’t, it is worth the price of admission alone. A show-stopping scene displaying everything good about this film. Experience it.

—————————————————————

The negatives:

- Bryan Singer’s direction and the film’s editing

Throughout a notoriously troubled-production, which included multiple verbal altercations between Malek and Singer, the director showed his hand as rather ill-suited and became an uninspired choice for the film, despite his clear love for the subject matter. ————————————————————— The results showed: Ill-suited and uninspired direction greatly interfered with the film’s flow. Dialogues are back-and-forth reverse shots. Scene selections are wide, dolly, close-up. The film’s color tone is all over the place, going from drain-cold to over-saturated bright. The running time is rushed-yet-butt numbing. Hampered even more was the awful, OCD editing; the inability to hold a shot for more than 5 seconds reduced the film to more sickness-inducing than cheekily fast paced. A more outside choice, that of Taika Waititi, would have proven to be more suitable, and it’s just embarrassing for Singer to prove so lacklustre for the film. —————————————————————

- The screenplay It’s mediocre, to say the least.

Which is the worst thing anyone could have done to someone like Freddie Mercury.

We get the by-the-numbers biopic that most dreaded, no less dialed down by the PG-13 rating; we have the love interest that falls out after the singer gains popularity; we get the band’s rise and break due to Freddie wanting to break the mould; we get the clear villain in an otherwise morally-ambiguous figure; we get the redemption performance.

From the word “Go”, we saw where the film was going. An unpredictable figure like Freddie would have strongly disapproved this sanitized, inaccurate version of the band (even with the other members’ consistent praise).

And for all those wondering, no, the film doesn’t “straightwash” Freddie. It’s simply confused about its identity: does it want to live up to Freddie’s outlandish legacy, or does it want to honor the legend’s appeal without tainting it? The answer was middle-of-the-road to say the least.

Overall: B Formulaic, but goddamn is it and Rami Malek entertaining.