[usr 5]
A chronicle of the years leading up to Queen’s legendary appearance at the Live Aid (1985) concert.
They said it was going to be just another biopic but here we are with a $50 million dollar weekend debut. This is the story of a band of misfits that came to be loved by other misfits. Most of the film shines on Mercury’s personal life but they do touch a lot on how the band came to be. Through fights, tours, and recording, Queen became legends.
Rami Malek does an exceptional job portraying the man himself, Farrokh Balsora. It must have been so difficult to play the truly unique Mercury. According to IMDb, Rami worked with a dialect coach and choreographer to nail Freddie’s voice and moves. Ben Hardy, Gwilym Lee, and Joseph Mazzello also did a great job of playing Roger, Brian, and John.
Despite the director Brian Singer being fired halfway throughout filming, this movie is put together well. Dexter Fletcher finished the job but all rights still go to Singer. Roger Taylor and Brian May were also producers and promised to make it as factual as possible.
If you love to sing Queen, then you will love this film. There are many performances with Freddie’s voice dubbed that will have you singing along. Not only do we hear classics like “We Will Rock You,” and “Another One Bites the Dust,” but we see exactly what they were thinking when they wrote the lyrics and created the riffs. I truly hope that the making of the song Bohemian Rhapsody was just as fun as they portrayed it to be. At one point, Malek bursts out into tears while writing a lyric and I couldn’t see Freddie doing anything less.
Mercury’s life was full of spontaneity and inspiration but the film shows his true insecurities. He was a man that always had people around him yet felt very alone. His story with the “love of his life” Mary Austin (Lucy Boynton) is also very heartbreaking. His struggles with sexuality are harsh but he clearly had a sharp tongue. It seems that Mary was the one who made him come to terms to who he truly was.
The Live Aid concert plays a huge part of the film with it being Freddie’s last huge performance. The benefits of this concert went to families in Ethiopia. His father always wanted him to do a good deed and that’s exactly what he did. Just days after he was diagnosed, he lit up the stage and showed the world just how legendary Queen was.
Now playing in theaters nationwide
