Rocketman

First things first, Elton John being one of the most famous artists in the world, with a career of about half a century and 300 million albums sold, a biopic was then more than legitimate and was even eagerly awaited. This film is conceived like a musical based on the songs and the life of Elton John, from the 50s to the early 80s, the selected songs being representative of the manifold events of his life, the ups (his life as an accomplished artist mainly) and the downs (his whole private life according to the movie), since his childhood during which he quickly turns out to be a natural born musician until his first sentimental disappointments and the first cures of detoxification (alcohol, drug, ... and tutti quanti). The movie ends with the punchy « I'm still standing », song written in 1983 after a bad patch and foreshadowing a frantic recovery of his life, the lyrics being written by his friend Bernie Taupin.

One of my favorite scenes among many others is the meeting at the Royal Academy of Music, with the third movement of the Sonata Piano No. 11 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart played twice. I do not know if it's true but, if so, this child is ingeniously bluffing!

The costumes are superb and the actors are fabulous. The realization is ingenious especially with the appropriate and relevant insertion of the songs in the film, like in a musical. As a synthesis: 7/8 of 10.

I have been waiting for weeks to the premier and Taron's performance blowed me away. I can't tell it was going for a movie about Elton John or going to a premier of a concert where Taron singing and performing and telling his life story from the screen (or from the stage cause it's a premier). His voice is precious, is emotional and is skillful. He got that powerful voice yet that soulful and soft that I am sure that he is the right person, the PERFECT person for those songs and for this film. Such a perfect actor, with a gifted voice. His acting was outstanding and his eyes told things. I can felt his thoughts and feelings, his sadness, disapointment, his emptyness. Just, breathtaking. And Jamie Bell did great, Richard Madden also, such a wonderful compilation of these three talented and professional actors. Love their charisma and their chemistry together. Thank you very much for a great movie. Really enjoyed it.

Taron Egerton's portrayal of Elton John is superb and only heightened by the producers allowing Taron to sing his own versions of many of Elton John's classic hits. It would be impossible to capture all aspects of Elton John's life in the 2 hours provided in this musical/biographical film, so instead the producer/writer/director concentrated on Elton's early childhood which helped shape his destiny when he first met his partner in song writing the great Bernie Taupin played by Jamie Bell.

There were far too many other excellent performances from the supporting cast members to mention them all but I have to mention two in particular who were top notch. Bryce Dallas Howard plays Elton's irresponsible (wife cheating) mother, and Richard Madden who plays John Reid one of Elton's early but serious lovers remained Elton's manager for decades after their sexual relationship ended. Both of these actors added a lot to the films depth in the one area that focused on Elton's tormented soul and led him to binge drinking and pill popping which is the area this film reflected.

I hope we don't have to wait for Elton John to pass away (God forbid) before some producer realizes that Elton John and Bernie Taupin whose lifestyles and personalities are so diametrically opposite that they deserve their life stories to be developed into a (minimum) ten (10) hour TV Mini-Series to cover a heck of a lot of both of these musical genius's personal lives as well as their successes with their musical portfolios.

Rocketman is well worth seeing and rates a perfect 10 out of 10 in my version of Elton John's quasi autobiography book.

Not really sure where I sit with this one. A gripping tale of one of music's biggest icons. While Egerton shines as the glorious John, all the surrounding characters seemed to be simple generic caricatures of staples from this kind of stories. And the story blazes by, many of the acts with little explanation of motives. It follows the basic by the numbers of the musical biopic, never really seeming to let the weight of one single action hit with the viewer before moving onto the next tragic act. While the characters and story seemed to ring a bit formulaic and hollow, Egerton's performance is able to carry the gravitas. And the music, oh the music. John's catalog is beautifully strewn throughout the film in all its glory, though Taron's vocals struggle in parts and he is outsung by his supporting cast at points. And in the end, the conclusion and resolution come, yet once again seemingly easily and out of nowhere as had the conflict earlier in the film. A great story of a great artist that just seemed to miss on a few points for me. Did I enjoy the movie? Yes. It just seemed like a cliff notes version of what could have been a deeper and more compelling story.

Rocketman decides to focus on Elton John's character evolution more than anything else, chronicling his life from when he was a wee-little boy to his glory days as the colorfully decorated, piano-playing, musically blustering star. One detail I must address that really hoisted the exploration of John's life was, in reality, the "R" rating.

You get to see a respectful and psychological turn in his persona, you get to witness the heartbreaking "addictions" that he constantly forces himself into, you get to view the uncut collision of him dealing with his sexuality, and you even get to feel that loss of love that Elton had felt when he persistently questioned his relationship with peers. All of these affairs are dispensed without and blockades or any desires of censorship and I must commend the filmmakers for going about this risky decision.

And sure, Rocketman is arguably quite the corn-fest at times, but the movie is able to take these cheesy elements of the typical rockstar biopic and format it into a creative fashion that characterizes more charismatic and less repetitive exhibitions. Which brings me to my next point...

I am so pleased that Rocketman turned out to be a nearly full-on musical? I mean, it had to find some way to be different from Bohemian Rhapsody, right? Whenever a musical note comes on it's not just there for Elton John fan-a-holics. The songs always pertain to the presented events transpiring on screen. The methods they use to present the songs as well, offer some more than compulsive and devouring visuals. I also appreciated how they redid all the songs to fit the scenes in a more appropriate manner. It makes the film seem less like a compilation of Elton's original greatest-hits and more like a rendition of what each song means to the story.

Now, Taron Egerton's performance in this is...wow, wow, wow, wow, WOW. He is just bleeding with range and chaotic pizazz in this encapsulation of a contrasted human individual. If someone is worthy of an Oscar nomination this year, it's this guy.

Rocketman doesn't entirely rely on nostalgia like most of its kind does-that implying that sometimes it does, however-and most of its misfit adventures proved about in the story seem earned rather than glossed over at a maximum pace of negligence. Definitely check this one out, especially if you're an Elton John fan!