Bohemian Rhapsody
After a long break from writing, I am finally back! If there
was anything that would reignite my love for film, it couldn’t be anything
other than Bohemian Rhapsody! There are many things in life that I simply cannot
get over - the tragic death of James Dean, Jim Morrison, John Lennon and, of
course, the passing of Freddie Mercury. I often find myself wondering how
different our lives could have been if these people were still alive, if only
we were able to enjoy their talents much longer. Growing up, I was very lucky
to have been surrounded by great music, rock legends, countless vinyl, CD’s and
even cassette tapes. Music certainly is a passion me and my dad share and
something that I will always be grateful for. It was my dad who introduced me
to a whole new world, something of a great importance. I wasn’t always a fan. I
would have to be a liar to say that I have always been an outsider listening
to rock ballads while my friends listened to mainstream pop songs. Yet still,
even when I couldn’t fully grasp the concept of good music, the magnetic energy
of the likes of Mercury, Bowie and Jagger just overpowered me; I couldn’t fully
comprehend the idea of the art of music having such an impact on me. Being of such a curious nature, even as a child,
I loved reading about these remarkably famous and successful people; these people forever inspired me. I can’t recall the first time seeing any
live material of Queen - it must have been a typical Saturday night where my
dad and I would watch concerts on TV. What I do remember, however, is how
fixated I was looking at this immensely talented and captivating human, moving, singing, engaging
with the crowd; a human with super powers. What I also remember is thinking to
myself, how can someone be like this? And by ‘this’ I mean so self aware, dominating,
oozing in confidence and so liberated. It was extraordinary and unattainable
for most people to not only be watched by thousands, but to be in full
control. The boldness and confidence was
contagious and inspiring, and if you were to ask me then (or even now) what I wanted to be in life, I
would proudly point at Freddie, and say that this is how happy and in love I
want to be doing my job.
There hasn’t been a film this year, which I was just as
eager to see like Bohemian Rhapsody. I couldn’t wait to see the trailer, and
once it was released, I watched it over and over again! I was in awe and utter
shock at just how much of a resemblance there is between Rami Malek and Freddie
Mercury; it’s uncanny. Of course, the inevitable fear crept in, and I began to
wonder if the film will actually live up to the hype that the trailers were
able to create. One thing that stood out for me in the trailers was the immense
talent, passion and hard work of Malek. Boy, you could see that this guy dreamt
about this role! A good film not only consists of a good plot, vivid visuals,
but also music. As Lynch once said, films are 50% visuals and 50% sounds; often
sound overpowering the visuals. Therefore, the film was off to a good start
because you can’t go wrong with a Queen soundtrack. The trailers built up an appetite
in me and many more Queen fans, for sure! You can imagine the heartbreak I felt
upon seeing the reviews one day prior to seeing the film. I don’t tend to
listen to reviews; I mean it sounds pretty ironic that as a film reviewer I shy
away from reading about films. However, let me explain that as someone who is
passionate about films and dreams about pursuing a career in film reviewing, I
feel obligated to have an open mind, to engage in discussions, share opinions
and give constructive critics, yet, for some, film reviewing is a way of forcing
opinions down on the public, often very snobbish opinions and that honey, will
not do! Let’s face it, nothing could stop me from seeing this film. 
So, let’s begin! I must star with the obvious, which is the
cast. Starring Rami Malek, Ben Hardy, Joseph Mazzello, Gwilym Lee along with
Lucy Boyton and Aidan Gillen (who will always be Little Finger in my mind,
sorry) the audience are certainly in for a treat. As a big fan of the 70s and
80s fashion, I was happily surprised to see just how spot on the costumes were.
You would think that only Freddie Mercury could pull them off, right? Wrong. Here
comes Rami Malek, striding in, head held high, and darling, he is fabulous! Not only does Malek resemble Freddie visually,
his passion and love for the art definitely levels with Freddie’s. The
performance of Malek, is not only outstanding and powerful due to the fact that he resembles
Mercury, but because his performance is not a mere copy of the legend, it’s an
original and convincing take on this enigmatic character. While the role
required Malek to morph into Mercury and mirror his behaviour and quirks, it is
clear to see that Malek played the rock legend the way he saw him from a
personal level. There was no need to follow a distinct choreography in order to
portray Mercury, all that was required was the freedom to become the legend, to
improvise and not do what Freddie DID, but play him from the perspective of
someone who adored him as a fan. Freddie Mercury might have been a very
distinctive and original man, however, he was also very protective of his
personal life, he built a barrier around himself and didn’t let people in. Therefore,
in order to accurately portray him and depict his life, an actor must have a tremendous
imagination. Also, it is only fair to
praise Gwilym Lee and his take on Brian May... I mean, for a moment I could not
tell whether it was actual Brian May, or whether it was all just an illusion!
The whole cast was chosen exceptionally well. Queen was a family as Freddie
would often highlight, and the cast was able to translate that onto the screen
as they had superb chemistry, which can clearly be seen in their interviews;
these guys really understood each other’s visions. One thing which I must also
add, is that the film deserves admiration and recognition due to the fact that
it did not attempt to whitewash Freddie Mercury, instead the film enables the audience
to see just how much of a hard time Freddie had not being a typical, English
white man. Casting Rami Malek was not only a good choice due to his artistic
abilities, but also because he is a man of a foreign descent and that further
honours Freddie Mercury for who he truly was , instead of trying to make him
into someone he was not. The sorrow not only comes from Freddie’s illness and
death, but also from all the racism that he had to endure, something that I
personally can relate to as someone who came to this country as a little girl.
Today, Freddie will always be remembered as a British icon of rock,
nevertheless, the unfair treatment and prejudice that he faced should not be
forgotten. What comes to mind is the famous saying regarding Andy Murray, he’s
British when wins, but Scottish when he loses.
I just cannot praise Malek
enough for his hard work, and I can’t imagine a better person chosen for such a
challenging and demanding, but also very rewarding role. Watching interviews of
Malek before the premier of Bohemian Rhapsody, it is clear to see that not only
has Malek contributed to the legacy of Freddie Mercury, but playing the role
has enabled this reserved man to become more confident in himself. I came to know
Malek as an actor, probably during the Night at the Museum era where he played
Ahkmenrah, and what stood out for me were his unique and enigmatic
characteristics, the unconventional and exotic handsomeness, but most
importantly, his contagious energy as an artist. One of Malek’s
most defining features, that as an audience we get to see through his work, is
the way he puts his whole heart and soul into his characters and that
translates beautifully onto the screen. As previously mentioned, the role of
playing the legendary man that is Freddie Mercury, is rather challenging, what
made Freddie such a great performer and such a likable man was the way he
performed WITH the crowd and not for the crowd. The persona of Freddie
Mercury, or at least the one he tried to maintain, was a fabulous, lavish, flamboyant,
yet still, a very masculine one, however, never has he approached his career, or most
importantly the fans, from a superior position; another thing which both Malek and Freddie
have in common, humbleness. Rami Malek wanted to do Freddie proud, there’s no
doubt about that, and I can assure you, he certainly did! What Malek achieved
was not only of great importance artistically, but also culturally as through
his magnificent performance, he enabled the new generation to get to know the
legend that Mercury was, is and always will be. As many are aware, Sacha Baron
Cohen was also considered for the role, however, I doubt that anyone would have
been able to translate the soul of Freddie, the real Freddie, just like accomplished
by Malek. What comes into question is the fact that while Sacha is an extraordinary
performer, a very talented actor and many may not realise, a very intelligent
man, his vision of the film differed from the director’s intentions. As shown
in the film, many tried to exploit Freddie, use him, his kindness and sadly
also his loneliness, for their own gain and benefit, therefore I don’t think the
audience would have been happy with the entire narrative of the film solely relying
on the wild aspects of the rock star’s life.
The reviews read along the lines of ‘’certainly not Queen’s
greatest hit’’ ... but aren’t greatest hits a collection of pivotal, important
and best songs, therefore if we accept this definition of such a casually used
phrase, then that’s exactly what the film offers to it audience; a collection of
essential and crucial moments of the band and its members. Furthermore, this
makes me wonder about the expectations of the audience; what did we, as fans,
as cinephiles, or simply as cinema goers expect to see, or learn. Surely, no
one goes to the cinema for a history lesson. So, how much of the film is an accurate
recreation of real life events? Well, there has been a broad discussion, with
some claiming that the film carries some inaccuracies, but the question to ask
here is whether the film’s intention was to simply educate the viewer, or to
entertain, and through that honour an immortal legend, to keep him alive in a
new generation, and I think that the latter has far greater value than anything
other. The band was formed in 1970, Freddie
Mercury died on November 24th, 1991, the famous Live Aid concert
happened on July 13th, 1985. So just by looking at these 3 significant
dates, we can see the greater scope of things and begin to question just how
much a 2 hour film will be able to convey. The bigger question is however, just
how much as an audience do we want to see, what aspects interest us the most.
Is it the beginnings of the band, their friendships, first tour, or perhaps do
we want to see more of Freddie as Freddie, not as a Queen front man. Well, the
answer isn’t straight forward, you can never please everyone. Critics have made
claims that the film fails to accurately illustrate the tours and doesn’t live up
to the hype. If you want to know more about their tours, watch their concerts.
The film is a medley of melodies, memoirs, feelings, nostalgia, loss, happiness
and betrayal. The initial belief that the film is about Queen is not incorrect;
however, the film IS about Freddie Mercury, as it could not have been any other
way. Brian May, has admitted that the idea behind the film was to honour
Freddie, to create something that will make him proud, something that he would
have enjoyed. As bold and extravagant as Freddie was, or seemed, there was more
to him than meets the eye, and that is one aspect that the film did very well
in terms of showing and not exploiting Freddie’s
delicate nature, his struggle with his identity, sexuality, appearance and not
belonging. Not many will suspect this, I definitely did not, but Freddie
Mercury, or Farrokh Bulsara, was not always the daring and fearless man that he
was while on stage performing to millions of people. It’s as if he
compensated for his insecurities and flaws by his dominating persona. As
Freddie once said, he was a musical prostitute, and he gave us, the audience
and the fans, his soul, passion and talent. What one can learn watching this
man in action is how he proved people wrong, how no one believed in him, but he
believed in himself.
One thing is for sure, the film does give us a ‘taste’ of
the outrageous life that Mercury, along with the whole band lived. I refer to
it as a ‘taste’ as the film attempts to cover a wide spectrum of events, from
the beginnings of the band, to Freddie’s home life, his relationships and
struggles, the bands troubles and ,of course, Freddie’s tragic illness which lead to his death. I have to admit that the narrative of the film focuses on some
of these aspects more than others. For example, we first meet Freddie as
Farrokh, living with his parents, facing discrimination based on his ethnicity,
however more could have been covered in terms of Freddie’s family life and how
the tension between him and his traditional father, affected Freddie and is
career .The film however, does not disappoint and the family drama, as one
would call it, is somewhat resolved. As mentioned previously, there has been an uproar
in regards to an apparent misrepresentation of Freddie’s sexuality, as the film
heavily focuses on the relationship of Freddie and Mary. However, whether
people like it, or not, Mary was an important figure in Freddie’s life, not
only did they have a romantic relationship, their friendship lasted throughout
Freddie’s whole career, and while they both took different paths in life, there
is simply no reason as to why the film should ignore the influence of Mary on Freddie’s
life and his story; what purpose would this serve? Showing that Freddie loved a
woman, by no means is an attempt to stigmatise, or deem his homosexuality inappropriate.
For many, Freddie Mercury is a gay icon; however, he was more than his sexuality.
Therefore, in order to do this man justice, by telling his story, we must
accept his choices as they are and not pick and choose what we like, or
dislike, what we agree, or disagree with, as that simply is none of our
business.
As a whole, the film visually stimulates the audience by its
colourful and time appropriate colour palette, iconic costumes and makeup, and
most importantly, an epic soundtrack! The film is well put together, and
while it’s still a conventional biopic, it has the gift of a very
unconventional star, Rami Malek. What some don’t understand is that there isn’t
a film long enough, that would enable us to truly see the unimaginable lives of
these extraordinary people. A film cannot compare to the real Freddie, in fact,
nothing compares to the real Freddie Mercury, yet still, the film and its whole
cast deserves respect for even attempting to enter the world of such a remarkable
man. What biopics offer its audience is the humanisation of their characters;
these films portray real people, not robots who perform and entertain, but real
people with real struggles, relatable and just like us. Lastly, I would like to
add that if the band is happy with the film and how it gave insight into their
lives, most importantly Freddie’s life, then that’s all it should matter; pleasing
everyone is impossible. As much as we think we knew the legend, no one knew him
quite like his own band mates, not even hardcore fans. Therefore, if the remaining band members are
happy, then we should be too, happy to see the man we adored, loved and
admired, still being a part of our culture.
If you haven’t seen the film, then PLEASE go and watch it! No
matter how many concerts I go to, nothing will ever fill the void of not being
able to see my hero, Freddie Mercury, performing live in all his glory. Sadly,
or perhaps, fortunately, all our generation has left is the marvellous records,
countless music videos and films, just like this one! So let’s enjoy and appreciate
what we have!
Anna Gaszkowska
