Bohemian Rhapsody: Rami Malek steals the show in electric Freddie Mercury biopic
Capturing the life of Freddie Mercury on celluloid is a daunting task. And yet, Bohemian Rhapsody takes it on with enough ease, and an electric Rami Malek channels the timeless Freddie with all his vigour and flamboyance in what could be one of his greatest acting performances of all time.
Bohemian Rhapsody portrays the life of Freddie Mercury and the journey of his band Queen, from its inception to its rise to Rock n’ Roll stardom. In a limited time frame of Freddie Mercury working as a baggage handler at Heathrow to Queen’s Live Aid concert in 1985, the biopic throws in the struggles of Freddie’s personal life, his isolation, his confused sexuality and his contraction of AIDS, often failing to focus on a single aspect to lead the movie on.
A complex movie
The primary conflict in making a biopic about Freddie is that it demands a lot on one of the greatest bands of all time, Queen, when the journey of Queen is, quite frankly, devoid of dramatic bumps. From small college gigs to rocking the stage on world tours, Queen’s stardom was shot to the sky within only a few years of time. Queen’s theatrics used to lie more in their extravagant performances on stage rather than behind the scenes drama.
But the Queen frontman Freddie’s life was the opposite. From his insecure teenage years as a Persian-Indian immigrant in the UK to his long struggle with his sexual identity, Freddie’s life was marred by drama. And one must find oneself in deep waters trying to cram all of his life into a single standard runtime Hollywood biopic.
Brilliant Rami Malek!
Bohemian Rhapsody plays it safe with its script. It doesn’t take risks, unlike the man upon whose life the movie is based on. However, if not for Rami Malek, Bohemian Rhapsody would have been a rather bland attempt at capturing the versatile life of an iconic star.
Rami Malek absolutely steals the show. Bohemian Rhapsody was all about him. And he nails the role of the iconic rockstar down to the last detail. From his walk, his extravagant style, his singing; Rami does it all with a fine touch of expertise as if Freddie himself were alive on the screen. Rami’s expert portrayal of Freddie is what makes Bohemian Rhapsody so very enjoyable.
Goosebumps!
What else makes Bohemian Rhapsody a beautiful movie-going experience is its score as it features almost all of the greatest Queen classics. We witness the birth of the iconic track, Bohemian Rhapsody, itself; tap our feet with the classic beats of We Will Rock You; and left in goosebumps as Rami and the team performs the entire Live Aid Concert of 1985 with an electric energy on the screen. Bohemian Rhapsody is, if nothing else, the finest example of a Rock n’ Roll movie that never falls short on content.
The verdict
Bohemian Rhapsody isn’t the greatest biopic of all time. But the energy that Rami channels into his portrayal of Freddie Mercury is sure to touch you as an audience and a Queen fan.
Even if you’re not a fan, Bohemian Rhapsody will leave you awestruck with its terrific cast and rocking music.
A solid 4/5, bohemian rhapsody is a stomping celebration of queen, their music and their flamboyant frontman, freddie mercury.
Originally published at https://api.hifipublic.com on November 8, 2018.