Bohemian Rhapsody is a Freddie Mercury biopic that won Best Film (Drama) at the Golden Globes but has had very mixed reviews. (If you’re wondering why it was in the drama category instead of the musical category given the subject matter, you’re not alone.)
Mercury was the lead singer of the band Queen and their incredible songs are done justice throughout this film. To be frank, I knew almost nothing about Mercury or Queen before I saw this film so I’m absolutely not in a position to reflect on how accurate it is. (Not very, according to this review.) However as a piece of entertainment alone, I enjoyed this film. It’s far from perfect and I don’t think it deserved a best picture award, nowhere near it, but I did enjoy it.
Rami Malek is Freddie Mercury and I think he did a terrific job but keep in mind I wasn’t familiar with Mercury - purists and fans may not agree! Speaking of purists, Mercury fans might be happy about the prosthetic teeth Malek wore to look more like him but by golly they were out there, literally and metaphorically. Accurate? Arguably. Distracting? Definitely. (This Fairfax piece has a funny take on them… “I’ve never seen such overacting by an overbite.“)
If you want to know more about the Queen story and what happens in the film, check out one or both of the pieces linked to above.
Bohemian Rhapsody is rated M and in cinemas now. Trailer here.