An epic musical fantasy about the uncensored human story of Sir Elton John’s breakthrough years.
Rocketman is directed by Dexter Fletcher (who took over for Bryan Singer for the tail-end of shooting on Bohemian Rhapsody and also directed Eddie the Eagle, of which Taron Egerton also starred). Despite being involved in the Queen biopic, Rocketman is its own separate beast.
[That being said, do prepare for a few comparisons to Bohemian Rhapsody]
Looking at the synopsis, I can't help but think there would be less confusion if the wording was restructured; this is not so much a "musical fantasy", instead "fantasy musical" would be much more accurate. The film itself is much less focused on the concert experience, choosing to go by another route and focus more on the emotional human story; the transition from the shy child, Reggie Dwight, to Elton Hercules John, the world-famous superstar. Rather than give a literal reenactment of a concert experience, certain Elton John songs are adapted to fit into his backstory, creating a more theatrical stage musical vibe.
In fact, the film often breaks into a song-and-dance involving all main and supporting cast as well as extras in the production each time. It feels like it was developed specifically for theatre, but decided to shoot it for the silver screen instead, without making any changes to the script. It adds a higher level of flair to the proceedings, even though it does admittedly reduce the trustworthiness of the narrative rather significantly. When you watch "five-year-old" Reggie belting out an Elton John song, it makes you question how much of the remainder of the film has been changed for dramatic effect.
Rocketman does rely on dramatics to drive the story forward, but it does so in a very cohesive way. The story jumps from one period to another, using a musical number to bridge that gap between scenes or times, and it keeps the pace flowing beautifully. The focus on the drama and human side of things do mean that it places a lot of emphasis on substance abuse and homosexuality (unlike Bohemian Rhapsody) and it doesn't shy away from these topics visually nor thematically.
Despite the film being a highlight reel of Elton John's life, the script is well-written and executed, brilliantly portraying the relationships, whether it be the brotherly love between Elton and Bernie Taupin (played by Jamie Bell) or the disdain between Elton and John Reid (played by Richard Madden, a.k.a. Robb Stark if you watched Game of Thrones). It sets up protagonists and antagonists very well, and with minimal effort.
Taron Egerton is an amazing Elton John. The fact that he actually sings the songs himself is an added bonus and you can tell he puts everything into his performance. Every part of his role is well done, from developing his backstory with his family to the flamboyant and extravagant costuming designs to his commitment to the substance abuse and gay scenes, and his dry, self-deprecating sense of humour is on-point. Admittedly, I did find his vocals to be a tad over-husky at times and it lacked that deeply resonant timbre that Elton John has. That being said, I can't think of another actor that could have done a better job (if I had to pick a role that Taron Egerton's voice would suit better, I would definitely put his name forward for a Robbie Williams biopic).
With some gorgeous cinematography and fantastical design choices, there is a lot of appeal to the film. The portrayal of Elton's home issues with his broken family and his struggles with his identity is something that many will find incredibly relatable. And in this day-and-age, such an honest unabashed portrayal is incredibly empowering to those that have been through similar experiences.
Personally, I would have loved to have seen more instances of watching songs being written and worked on (as was the case for Your Song) but the music was supplementary to the story, not the focus, and it worked well with this style of narrative. Chock full of energy, Rocketman keeps you immersed and your toe tapping.
Rocketman will be in cinemas 30th of May 2019.