I'm going slightly mad...?

Rating: 10/10 (27 April 2019)

With stellar performances from Rami Malek, Gwilym Lee, Ben Hardy and Joe Mazzello as Queen, musical numbers galore and an electryfing recreation of the legendary Live Aid set that makes you feel like you're in the crowd at that moment, Bohemian Rhapsody is... pretty good... and that's kinda sad...
Don't get me wrong, I love it, I have been waiting for this movie for a while now, and it did not dissapoint me... that much. Oh, God, that sounds so negative. I really loved it, I did... it's just... it's not Queen...
For me, Queen isn't just another rock band, it's THE rock band. They were, as the film puts it, experimental. They were never afraid to try something new. Listening to their music, no two songs sound the same. They might have similar styles, but not one song is like another... and that is the fundamental problem of the movie.
Even with heavy involvment from Brian May and Roger Taylor, the film feels very formulaic, very stiff, only ever shining when it comes to the song portions of it all. Are they to blame for this? It's classic rockstar-biopic affair: dude is different, joins a band who are skeptical at first, but he wins them over with his talent, nobody gives them the time of day at first, but then they get big and, years later, the dude gets tired and decides to go solo ( because of some character who has a bad influence over him ), things go haywire and he discovers how much his band means to him, they reunite and , in the end, they give out one incredible last performance that may or may not be driven by a diagnostic or a loss of some kind. Sound familiar? But it shouldn't. Because, most of what I just described, does not fit in with the puzzle that is Freddie Mercury's story ( and Queen's, for that matter ), nor did it actually happen in real life... unfortunately... here you will find more fiction than facts. Not even the songs are in right order, most of the time...
Still, even though it leaves me wanting more (and not in a good way), I cannot get past how amazing the final part of the movie is, and how much it elevates it's status...
I love it, darling.