Entertaining, yet flawed biopic of the legendary Freddie

Rating: 8/10 (30 March 2019)

My opinion on this film is about as mixed and conflicted as the critic and audience reviews out there.
I both loved it and disliked it. I think Queen's input was a large part of the problem - they were a dull band who happened to create awesome music and had a phenomenal (and interesting) front man. This creates a problem in a movie where band members have so much input and need to divide screen time up.
The music was a highlight, but I thought the "origin" scenes of certain songs had been done so much better in other music films. It was just a bit the same same over and over. Rami Malek delivered a really captivating and charismatic performance. Oscar worthy? I'm not sure, but he seems like a nice guy, so I'm glad he won.
It also felt kind of hypocritical at times - one second Freddie is delivering lines of not wanting to be a poster boy for AIDS etc, the next they're just lathering all the AIDS on real thick and steady. This film really tried to make Freddie out to be that poster boy for it, when it was only just a small part of the remarkable human being he was.
I wasn't expecting a comedy with "Bohemian Rhapsody", but it often felt incredibly serious (regularly taking itself too seriously) and devoid of many laughs. Despite this, it kept me glued and invested for its 2 hour run time which must be some testament to the film's entertainment value, right?
The Live Aid performance was a fantastic finale and great way to wrap things up. It has made me want to delve into my Queen albums and read up more about who Freddie Mercury really was.