Monday, December 17, 2018

Bohemian Rhapsody: Nothing Really Matters






Hype is a word we often associate with films. The hype of an impending release date, the hype of the initial critical reception, and even the hype of potential award nominations. Heightened anticipation is a key part of the modern movie experience, especially here in the United States. Bohemian Rhapsody (2018) is a film that some may argue has overstayed its hype. Between the countless years of lingering in development hell and the heated behind the scenes discourse between director Bryan Singer and star Rami Malek, the film stopped becoming about the legacy of an immensely influential band and started to be seen as a glorified cinematic cock-fight. Somewhere in the middle of it, all, fact seceded itself to fiction and believability superseded actuality. Bohemian Rhapsody tells the tale of queer icon Freddie Mercury as he discovered a musical and spiritual kinship with three starving rock n' roll artists working towards their chance of becoming musical champions. It details the highs and lows faced by the band and Mercury as the lust, vanity, and greed within the entertainment business attempted to eat away at the band's very soul like an infection. Of course, in time a very real kind of infection overtook the lead singer himself. The movie is very much a biopic on Mercury and does a fine job of not sanctifying his sometimes questionable artistic and moral choices throughout his time with the band while reminding us all that while Freddie Mercury was quite "out there" so much of what he truly was remained inside himself. While the other band members most definitely play second fiddle, the actors portraying them go to decent lengths to make them three-dimensional dynamic players in this epic tale of superstardom. The concert sequences, many of which are done through psychedelic montages, invoke the wild and liberated spirit that Queen unearthed in the '70s and '80s through their music and performance art. Malek portrays Freddie in all of his flamboyant European charm, though at times the dialogue makes it sound as though Freddie believed himself to be the love child of Jesus Christ and Shakespeare. What is the film's biggest flaw then...

Well, most of it is not remotely true.

While many biopics are forced to take on a revisionists approach to history in order to condense real-life occurrences into a relatively two and half hour timespan, Bohemian Rhapsody toys with the truth so much, one must wonder if the writers simply felt that reality wasn't good enough for a man as bizarrely unique as Freddie Mercury? Facts become fiction without any semblance of reason or justification. Upon research, I found that many of the ways these situations played out, in reality, are far more cinematic than the way they were dramatized for the film. Take Freddie's marriage proposal to Mary- Austin as a small example. In the film, he proposes to her in bed as they enjoy some mushy post-coital chatter while in reality, he proposed on Christmas using a box hidden within several other boxes, his playful demeanor always present even in such a big life moment. This may seem trivial and some of the changes are just that, but the vast alterations begin to add up to such a degree that you can't help but wonder if you paid to see a movie about a legendary band or a film simply "based off" a legendary band. The differences between the two as wide as Freddie's vocal range.

The film's first half is in such a rush to get the boys together and on the road to rock history, it spends little to no time exploring their interpersonal bonds which allowed Queen to blossom into what it became in the long run. In a blink of an eye, they are signed to a record company and we gain "access" to scene after scene illustrating the inception of another of their classic hit songs, in haphazard chronological order I might add. When the film isn't messing with time, it's suffocating under a lack of subtlety for the more delicate themes at play. Freddie's sexuality is treated at times like a bad habit rather than an inherent part of who he was. Throughout the film we are privy to Freddie's intimate life experiences, both real and fictionalized, and yet I found myself still feeling somewhat at arm's length of him as the credits rolled following the grand recreation of their memorable Live Aid performance. I wasn't sure if I got to know Freddie Mercury or just the filmmaker's conception of him. Granted that argument can be made of any biopic, especially when the lead character is long deceased, but the countless falsities at play throughout this film make that assessment feel particularly justified. The film spins reality to such a degree that the conclusions feel irrelevant and you're left feeling undeniable gratitude for Queen and for Freddie, but not for truly compelling and honest cinema. Biopics can do better storytelling than this, it is not about bending the truth but rather finding the dramatic core inside of it and replicating that core on screen. Bohemian Rhapsody succeeds in this at some points, but fails far too often, especially in its third act containing a faux separation/reconciliation of the band prior to Live Aid. Queen will rock you, Freddie is somebody to love and this film a solid dose of radio gaga; entertaining and emphatic in its overstuffed tomfoolery.