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elrhiarhodanI was lucky enough to snag a ticket to last night's advance screening of Rocketman (apparently this is a thing with Fandango - they had one for Shazam, too, which I hadn't known about).
In short, the movie was fucking awesome. At length ...
First off, the casting was perfect. The boys who'd played Elton at 8 and 14 looked enough alike that they could have been brothers. The younger boy had an aching sweetness and wounded charm that made you want to give him all of the hugs. But he had the glint of the devil in him, too - you could see this kid growing up to be Elton. The teenager was a strong choice, too, he was able to show Elton's already wounded soul, yearning for love and approval and music in equal parts.
I wouldn't say Taron Egerton is typecast, but before Rocketman, all of his big-screen roles have variations on the student-mentor theme. Eggsy, of course is Harry Hart's (Colin Firth) protege in Kingsman; Michael (Eddie) Edwards is Bronsan Peary's (Hugh Jackman) student in Eddie the Eagle, and in Robin Hood, Robin is schooled in the way of the bow (and revenge) by "Little John" (Jamie Foxx).
Rocketman is the first movie where Taron's character stands on his own, rises and falls and rises again, on his own strengths and weaknesses. While Elton is aided and abetted in his addictions by John Reid, his lover and manager, their relationship is not mentor and student, but addictive personality and blood-sucking enabler.
Physically, Taron fits the bill far more than Tom Hardy. Tom may have a similar softness to Elton in his facial features, but Taron's height and body make him a much more convincing Elton, particularly during the younger years.
Richard Madden (my newest blue-eyed brunet obsession), best known for his heart-stopping turn as PPO David Budd in the BBC series, Bodyguard (currently on Netflix), and Prince Charming in Disney's live-action Cinderella, is the Scotsman, John Reid. Reid had managed Elton during his rise and rise to superstardom, through '98. He was also Elton's first male lover, and from the way the movie presents the relationship, Elton had truly loved Reid, but Reid - after the contracts had been signed and he'd thoroughly corrupted Elton - only cared about the money. (BoRhap fans might recall the character of John Reid, who'd also managed Queen for several critical years.)
Jamie Bell who plays Bernie Taupin, Elton's long-time collaborator (the words to Elton's music), is also perfect. Jamie, who'd gotten his start in Billy Elliot, conveys a sweetness and love that makes you believe in Elton and Bernie's lifelong friendship.
A number of advance reviews (the movie premiered "out of competition" at Cannes last week) make much about the sheer number of songs - twenty - that are used in the two-hour movie.
The music serves multiple purposes - and how can Elton John's life be told without the music, when the music is a pure reflection of his life? Some songs, like "Tiny Dancer" and "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" are sung as part of the narrative. There are others are sung to show the creative process - Elton taking Bernie's words and creating the music ("Your Song"). There are the concert performances, like "Crocodile Rock" (which every musically savvy reviewer has pointed out could not have been played at Elton's inaugural performance at The Troubadour, since it had been written two years after the even. But as the movie is billed, this is a music fantasy, and just as Crocodile Rock couldn't have been performed at The Troubadour, people didn't rise into the air, either.
And then there are the songs that are part of the fantasy - the set pieces like the opening number "The Bitch is Back" and "Saturday Night's All Right For Fighting" with intensive choreography that puts the movie directly into the category of "musical".
The singing is incredible. This isn't a studio mix of Taron's and Elton's voices, it's all Taron Egerton, but you really do forget that, especially in the "big" numbers. One of the advance reviews slights Taron's singing, especially in "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road", and notes that Jamie Bell, who can't sing, does a better job than Taron. What the reviewer is ignoring is that this is the moment when Elton realizes that if he doesn't change his life, he's going to die. In the language of AA and similar 12-step programs, this was where Elton had fallen to rock bottom. His voice was breaking, he could not go on. The cracked quality of the singing in that moment was part of the emotional weight of the movie. Whatever else Elton had lost, he always had the music and his voice, and in this moment, he was losing it.
The only criticism I have with the music isn't really about the music. The movie ends with "I'm Still Standing", but the director, Dexter Fletcher, had chosen to use the actual MTV music video (this was the '80s and it was a seriously '80s video) with Taron green-screened into the original. It didn't work for me. Didn't ruin the movie, but it just felt a bit too much, and green-screening like this never looks right. It's also an odd choice (other than for the lyrics), because Elton had not yet found sobriety, and had pretty much trashed his hotel suite in a drunken/drugged out episode (see Wikipedia).
The costumes were incredible. They weren't seam-for-seam recreations of the originals, but until the end credits, where they show side-by-side pictures of Elton and Taron, you would swear that the movie raided some hidden storeroom (Bob Mackie did most of Elton's more outrageous costumes). Even the street clothes are spot on - the '50s and '60s and 70s vibe is perfect.
These have to be something of an inside joke. Taron, as Eggsy Unwin, in the first Kingsman movie, had notoriously worn a pair of Adidas winged trainers.
Now, onto what everyone really wants to know.
THE SCENE - THE SEX
It was beautiful and lovely and honestly, it is so not graphic that would pass for PG-13 if it wasn't with two men. I'll need to see it again, I don't remember if there was naked ass on the screen (how could I possibly forget naked ass).
For me, what gets this movie the R rating is the scene where Elton walks in on John getting a blow job from his assistant. And then not zipping up until he stands up, tucks his shirt in, does up his pants and belt right in front of the camera. And sadly, no dick is shown. In fact, no skin at all.
John Reid is a charming and gorgeous bastard. He is cruel and abusive - physically and verbally - and he fucks Elton and fucks him over. The scene where Elton tries to commit suicide, John's comment is "you selfish bastard" and not because he's worried about Elton the person, but because he's worried about his income stream.
There's something that struck me about John Reid and the costuming choice. Except for the first time we see him, where he's wearing just a white shirt, John is always in a dark suit and white shirt. Even sitting poolside, getting a blowie, he's wearing a dark suit and jacket and tie. Very master-of-the-universe shit, but also an excellent choice in comparison to Elton, who is/was catastrophically flamboyant.
Their first meeting at Mama Cass', after the show at The Troubadour
Early in Elton's career, before John is officially his manager - the first West Coast tour
John is now Elton's manager and telling him something unpleasant, probably at the three-year mark
John telling Elton that he'll still be collecting his twenty percent long after Elton's dead, and it's the mid-80s now
(As an aside, per Wikipedia, Reid managed Elton until 1998 and Elton sued to break the contract. Reid apparently had been spending Elton's money faster than Elton had been spending it.)
I really do need to see the movie again - it was A LOT to take in in just one viewing. And my anticipation (I've been hungering for this since the teaser dropped in the fall) made it hard to process the individual moments. There is one scene early on where I completely missed an important line of dialogue.
There is so much more I want to comment, but my brain is still processing. And to be honest, I don't want to spoil it for everyone. After I see it again, I'll revisit this review and add more thoughts.
But it was, in two words, fucking awesome. I actually said that to the elderly lady sitting next to me (the theater was packed), and then apologized for cursing. She said, "that's all right, it was fucking awesome".
In short, the movie was fucking awesome. At length ...
First off, the casting was perfect. The boys who'd played Elton at 8 and 14 looked enough alike that they could have been brothers. The younger boy had an aching sweetness and wounded charm that made you want to give him all of the hugs. But he had the glint of the devil in him, too - you could see this kid growing up to be Elton. The teenager was a strong choice, too, he was able to show Elton's already wounded soul, yearning for love and approval and music in equal parts.
I wouldn't say Taron Egerton is typecast, but before Rocketman, all of his big-screen roles have variations on the student-mentor theme. Eggsy, of course is Harry Hart's (Colin Firth) protege in Kingsman; Michael (Eddie) Edwards is Bronsan Peary's (Hugh Jackman) student in Eddie the Eagle, and in Robin Hood, Robin is schooled in the way of the bow (and revenge) by "Little John" (Jamie Foxx).
Rocketman is the first movie where Taron's character stands on his own, rises and falls and rises again, on his own strengths and weaknesses. While Elton is aided and abetted in his addictions by John Reid, his lover and manager, their relationship is not mentor and student, but addictive personality and blood-sucking enabler.
Physically, Taron fits the bill far more than Tom Hardy. Tom may have a similar softness to Elton in his facial features, but Taron's height and body make him a much more convincing Elton, particularly during the younger years.
Richard Madden (my newest blue-eyed brunet obsession), best known for his heart-stopping turn as PPO David Budd in the BBC series, Bodyguard (currently on Netflix), and Prince Charming in Disney's live-action Cinderella, is the Scotsman, John Reid. Reid had managed Elton during his rise and rise to superstardom, through '98. He was also Elton's first male lover, and from the way the movie presents the relationship, Elton had truly loved Reid, but Reid - after the contracts had been signed and he'd thoroughly corrupted Elton - only cared about the money. (BoRhap fans might recall the character of John Reid, who'd also managed Queen for several critical years.)
Jamie Bell who plays Bernie Taupin, Elton's long-time collaborator (the words to Elton's music), is also perfect. Jamie, who'd gotten his start in Billy Elliot, conveys a sweetness and love that makes you believe in Elton and Bernie's lifelong friendship.
A number of advance reviews (the movie premiered "out of competition" at Cannes last week) make much about the sheer number of songs - twenty - that are used in the two-hour movie.
The music serves multiple purposes - and how can Elton John's life be told without the music, when the music is a pure reflection of his life? Some songs, like "Tiny Dancer" and "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" are sung as part of the narrative. There are others are sung to show the creative process - Elton taking Bernie's words and creating the music ("Your Song"). There are the concert performances, like "Crocodile Rock" (which every musically savvy reviewer has pointed out could not have been played at Elton's inaugural performance at The Troubadour, since it had been written two years after the even. But as the movie is billed, this is a music fantasy, and just as Crocodile Rock couldn't have been performed at The Troubadour, people didn't rise into the air, either.
And then there are the songs that are part of the fantasy - the set pieces like the opening number "The Bitch is Back" and "Saturday Night's All Right For Fighting" with intensive choreography that puts the movie directly into the category of "musical".
The singing is incredible. This isn't a studio mix of Taron's and Elton's voices, it's all Taron Egerton, but you really do forget that, especially in the "big" numbers. One of the advance reviews slights Taron's singing, especially in "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road", and notes that Jamie Bell, who can't sing, does a better job than Taron. What the reviewer is ignoring is that this is the moment when Elton realizes that if he doesn't change his life, he's going to die. In the language of AA and similar 12-step programs, this was where Elton had fallen to rock bottom. His voice was breaking, he could not go on. The cracked quality of the singing in that moment was part of the emotional weight of the movie. Whatever else Elton had lost, he always had the music and his voice, and in this moment, he was losing it.
The only criticism I have with the music isn't really about the music. The movie ends with "I'm Still Standing", but the director, Dexter Fletcher, had chosen to use the actual MTV music video (this was the '80s and it was a seriously '80s video) with Taron green-screened into the original. It didn't work for me. Didn't ruin the movie, but it just felt a bit too much, and green-screening like this never looks right. It's also an odd choice (other than for the lyrics), because Elton had not yet found sobriety, and had pretty much trashed his hotel suite in a drunken/drugged out episode (see Wikipedia).
The costumes were incredible. They weren't seam-for-seam recreations of the originals, but until the end credits, where they show side-by-side pictures of Elton and Taron, you would swear that the movie raided some hidden storeroom (Bob Mackie did most of Elton's more outrageous costumes). Even the street clothes are spot on - the '50s and '60s and 70s vibe is perfect.
These have to be something of an inside joke. Taron, as Eggsy Unwin, in the first Kingsman movie, had notoriously worn a pair of Adidas winged trainers.
Now, onto what everyone really wants to know.
THE SCENE - THE SEX
It was beautiful and lovely and honestly, it is so not graphic that would pass for PG-13 if it wasn't with two men. I'll need to see it again, I don't remember if there was naked ass on the screen (how could I possibly forget naked ass).
For me, what gets this movie the R rating is the scene where Elton walks in on John getting a blow job from his assistant. And then not zipping up until he stands up, tucks his shirt in, does up his pants and belt right in front of the camera. And sadly, no dick is shown. In fact, no skin at all.
John Reid is a charming and gorgeous bastard. He is cruel and abusive - physically and verbally - and he fucks Elton and fucks him over. The scene where Elton tries to commit suicide, John's comment is "you selfish bastard" and not because he's worried about Elton the person, but because he's worried about his income stream.
There's something that struck me about John Reid and the costuming choice. Except for the first time we see him, where he's wearing just a white shirt, John is always in a dark suit and white shirt. Even sitting poolside, getting a blowie, he's wearing a dark suit and jacket and tie. Very master-of-the-universe shit, but also an excellent choice in comparison to Elton, who is/was catastrophically flamboyant.
Their first meeting at Mama Cass', after the show at The Troubadour
Early in Elton's career, before John is officially his manager - the first West Coast tour
John is now Elton's manager and telling him something unpleasant, probably at the three-year mark
John telling Elton that he'll still be collecting his twenty percent long after Elton's dead, and it's the mid-80s now
(As an aside, per Wikipedia, Reid managed Elton until 1998 and Elton sued to break the contract. Reid apparently had been spending Elton's money faster than Elton had been spending it.)
I really do need to see the movie again - it was A LOT to take in in just one viewing. And my anticipation (I've been hungering for this since the teaser dropped in the fall) made it hard to process the individual moments. There is one scene early on where I completely missed an important line of dialogue.
There is so much more I want to comment, but my brain is still processing. And to be honest, I don't want to spoil it for everyone. After I see it again, I'll revisit this review and add more thoughts.
But it was, in two words, fucking awesome. I actually said that to the elderly lady sitting next to me (the theater was packed), and then apologized for cursing. She said, "that's all right, it was fucking awesome".
