Editor’s note: This article was submitted for publication Fall 2018. This is a late upload.
By: MacKenzie Taylor
“Bohemian Rhapsody,” directed by Bryan Singer, was released on Nov. 2, 2018. This film follows the life and career of Freddie Mercury, lead singer of Queen. Mercury is played by Rami Malek. Gwilym Lee plays Brian May, Ben Hardy portrays Roger Taylor, and Joseph Mazzello plays John Deacon.
The movie begins with Freddie working at Heathrow Airport as a young college student before he joins May and Taylor’s band, Smile, after the lead singer suddenly quits. They recruit Deacon to their band and change the name to Queen as they set out to record their first self-titled album. The film revolves around Queen’s journey from the band’s beginning to their Live Aid performance at Wembley Stadium, but the focus is specifically on Mercury. The movie explores his relationship with Mary Austin, played by Lucy Boynton, as well as his ongoing struggle with his sexuality and substance abuse.
“Bohemian Rhapsody” made over $50 million in the U.S. during its opening weekend. It’s the second highest grossing music biopic after 2015’s “Straight Outta Compton.” Rotten Tomatoes scored the film at 62 percent, and the audience scored it at 93 percent. On IMDB, the movie averaged an 8.4 out of 10 stars. Metacritic gave it a score of 49 out of 100. “Bohemian Rhapsody” is currently the 17th most discussed movie of 2018.
I absolutely loved this movie. Malek killed it with his portrayal of Mercury. After I saw the movie, I looked up some of the Queen performances that had been recreated. The attention to detail that this movie displayed was honestly insane. You really believe that you’re watching Mercury, May, Taylor, and Deacon. I’m not even a die-hard Queen fan, but I’ve loved any song I’ve heard by them over the years. I am also always a sucker for musicals or concert centric movies, and the scope of this one felt so incredibly epic. I could feel the energy of both the band and the crowd through the screen in every single concert scene.
The Live Aid sequence was a standout moment for me. The scope of the crowd and the venue was captured so well, and the concert atmosphere felt genuine and real. Another element of the movie that I really enjoyed was the sense of family among the band members and between the band and the audience. At one point, Mercury is asked what makes Queen different from all the other wannabe rock stars. His response is, “We’re four misfits who don’t belong together. We’re playing for other misfits. To the outcasts right at the back of the room who are pretty sure they don’t belong either. We belong to them.”
