Movie of champions

“Bohemian Rhapsody” pays perfect tribute to Queen

Being an avid Queen listener and Freddie Mercury fanatic ever since I was a young girl, I was obviously ecstatic when I heard the movie “Bohemian Rhapsody” would be coming to theaters. Going to see that movie was one of my top priorities this past weekend, but I will have to admit I was a bit worried about how the movie would play out.

I have pretty much read every biography and seen every documentary surrounding Queen. I’m not lying. There was a period of time, probably my freshman year, when I wouldn’t listen to anything but Queen. It was an odd addiction. I hoped the release of “Bohemian Rhapsody” would live up to my expectations and paint Queen in a good light.

The story “Bohemian Rhapsody” follows the band Queen, consisting of lead singer Freddie Mercury (Rami Malek), guitarist Brian May (Gwilym Lee), drummer Roger Taylor (Ben Hardy) and bassist John Deacon (Joseph Mazzello), and their rise to stardom. It styles itself to be a sort of rock documentary, but has the feel of a regular cinema movie. The movie captures the origins of the band, its fame and the various inner struggles each of the members face having to deal with the spotlight.

“Bohemian Rhapsody” particularly focuses on Mercury and him coming to terms with his sexuality. It highlights the stressful and busy lifestyle Mercury lived and how trying to cope with his identity, especially in the 70s and 80s, took a large toll on him, which caused him to engage in a drug-fueled and reckless lifestyle. The movie ends in reenacting Queen’s Live Aid concert and revealing that Mercury has AIDS and very little time left to live.

For starters, casting Malek as Mercury was a wise choice. They look alike, and Malek did a fantastic job adopting Freddie’s persona, language and quirks. The actors portraying the other band members also did a phenomenal job. Their outfits perfectly encompassed the era and, along with the timeline of the music, did a nice job of conveying what was “in” during the decades. The transition between rock to disco, and everything in between, made the movie enjoyable.

After watching the movie, I was satisfied. It definitely lived up to my expectations, and it is probably something I’ll watch again one day just for fun. Obviously Queen itself is incomparable, but “Bohemian Rhapsody” did about as good of a job as a movie can do trying to accurately portray the important events of Queen in a timely order. Even if someone doesn’t know Queen, the movie itself is enjoyable and (obviously) has a great soundtrack, so you can’t really lose.