Misses the mark

Rating: 6/10 (5 October 2019)

First up I'm a big fan of Elton John. He is a truely creative hugely talented composer, singer and entertainer. I have utmost respect for him. I was looking forward to getting to know more about how he became who he now is. The film in my view lacked authenticity. The story flipped flopped from one character to another without revealing any glimpse of the true character or motivations of the key people in his life. Why did his father and mother act as they did. Never explained. Everyone is two dimensional. Simplistic.Wooden. No depth. It inferred that Elton was in great emotional pain for a large part of his life but it wasn't clear why. As a result he came across as petulant and indulgent.
The story arc is confusing with glaring inaccuracies which is annoying when the movie is supposedly describing the life of someone so public.
It has of course gorgeous costumes and lots of big musical numbers. It is in essence a musical. As a musical it had the most potential, but Elton has a unique voice. Taron Egerton does a great job being Elton, really captures his look, but how could he be expected to reproduce the greatness that is Elton's performance. The film may have worked if we could have been swept along by Elton singing. What's wrong with miming. How uplifting that would have been. Instead we are treated to a karaoke. The movie falls flat and I grew bored. Disappointing.