Elton Rules

Rating: 8/10 (11 July 2019)

Rocketman is the story of Elton John's life set to music. It's starts from his childhood and ends with his comeback after rehab. We get everything we want and need in this film. An insight to his crazy rock and roll lifestyle, the over the top sequined costumes and the great music he created in the '70s. Amongst the fun, we get an insight look at his struggles. His fight for self-confidence and acceptance but mostly his need to be loved
After the last music biopic, we were holding our breaths about the release of Rocketman. I am happy to report it was worth the wait. This reviewer loves Elton John and was familiar with his life story, but this movie taught me some new things. Mainly how he and Bernie met. We also learned how challenging his parents were. It is said that that through great pain comes great art. If that is true, his parents set him up for a catalog of greatest hits.
I wasn't surprised with Elton John's honesty just the sheer darkness he experienced at the height of his success. The hardest scenes to watch are the ones where his father reject him and the manipulation, he endured at the hands of John Reid played excellently by Richard Madden.
I enjoyed that they made this more of a musical than a biopic. Don't misconstrue Rocketman is still about John's life, but the music drives this film. We are rooting for Elton. We want him to stop feeling inadequate. There's are parts of us that are silently whispering you're good enough.
Taron Egerton did a fantastic job as Elton John. Elton has an incredibly soulful voice, and Taron did his songs justice. Jamie Bell is lovable as John's longtime writing partner Bernie Taupin. Their scenes together show a genuine love between two very different men bound by their dreams of rock n roll success.
It's not easy to make a movie about someone that is such an icon, especially when he's still alive. Director Dexter Fletcher managed to make a film that utilizes John's extensive catalog while intelligently inserting the up's and downs of his life story. The audience is treated to a movie filled with music but learns that success doesn't fix childhood wounds. We walk away humming the songs and to quote Elton "He's still Standing after all this time".
Scale: We give this movie an 8 for fun.