BOHEMIAN RHAPSODY – “It will, it will rock you (stomp stomp clap)!”
RATING
DIRECTOR
Bryan Singer (X-Men – 2000)
STARRING
- Rami Malek as Freddie Mercury, lead vocalist of the rock band Queen
- Lucy Boynton as Mary Austin, Mercury's girlfriend
- Aaron McCusker as Jim Hutton, Mercury's boyfriend
- Gwilym Lee as Brian May, Queen lead guitarist
- Ben Hardy as Roger Taylor, Queen drummer
- Joseph Mazzello as John Deacon, Queen bass guitarist
- Mike Myers as Ray Foster, an EMI executive
SYNOPSIS
The film traces the meteoric rise of the band through their iconic songs and revolutionary sound, their near-implosion as Mercury's lifestyle spirals out of control, and their triumphant reunion on the eve of Live Aid, where Mercury, facing a life-threatening illness, leads the band in one of the greatest performances in the history of rock music.
REVIEW SUMMARY
Like Queen's epic musical anthems, this movie will rock you! Bohemian Rhapsody, while not perfect, is undoubtably a glossy bit of eye and ear candy. Be warned though, this is not a tell-all tabloid film about what went on behind Freddie Mercury's closed doors. Instead, it's more about the band's powerful music and unique style. The story itself is actually pretty standard and by the numbers throughout. In fact, the "cliché card" is annoyingly played very frequently. However, it's Rami Malek's epic performance as Mercury that gives this film its magic - and then some! His onscreen work in the final scene (the Live Aid concert) is nothing short of goose-bump worthy. In spite of those well publicized behind-the-scenes production problems, this film is a highly enjoyable crowd pleaser.
BOX OFFICE TOP 5
6
Mufasa: The Lion King
$23.8 million
8.5
Nosferatu
$13.2 million