Post by Rob W. Case on Aug 21, 2019 22:57:10 GMT -6
The Story:
Before he became known to the world as pop superstar Elton John, he was known in smaller circles as Reginald Dwight. Raised by his parents Stanley (Steven Mackintosh) and Sheila (Bryce Dallas Howard), Reginald grows up with complications from both of them. Stanley is cold, unfeeling, and very distant towards his son. His mother Sheila is very sharp tongued, bitter towards her husband, cold, and excessively self-centered. Yearning for love and affection from his parents and finding none, his love is redirected towards music, as he comes to discover that he has a talent for playing the piano and, being able to play it by ear. From there, Reggie takes piano lessons and learns that his piano teacher thinks he has what it takes to get a scholarship at the Royal Academy of Music. One day while walking home, Reggie finds his mom fooling around with another man. The act leads to Stanley leaving Sheila, which causes Reggie to live with her.
For his birthday, Reggie receives an Elvis Presley record, a record that excites him and inspires him. With his talents for piano and his love for rock and roll, Reggie takes things a step further and plays at a nearby pub. Reggie spends the best of his Saturday nights playing at pubs, and joins a band called Bluesology. One night, Bluesology is asked if they could play backup for an American soul band. The band’s singer gives Reggie a little bit of advice. He tells Reggie, “You got to kill the person you were born to be, in order to become the person you want to be,” and suggests to him that he write some songs. So Reggie reinvents himself, begins writing songs, and changes his name to Elton John (Taron Egerton).
Elton starts writing music for British music label DJM Records, and its manager, Ray Williams (Charlie Rowe), introduces Elton to a songwriter by the name of Bernie Taupin (Jamie Bell). The two instantly hit it off and become friends. It is through their friendship and ever evolving closeness that Bernie learns that Elton is gay. Even though Bernie is not gay himself, Bernie is not deterred by it or repulsed by him. In fact, they rent an apartment together to write their songs. After writing “Your Song” Dick James of DJM Records arranges for Elton to play at the Troubadour nightclub in West Hollywood, California. Here Elton plays his song “Crocodile Rock”, which brings down the house. After being invited to a party at Mama Cass’s house, Elton encounters feelings of loneliness and abandonment as Bernie separates from him to pursue a woman who expresses an interest in him. It is then that Elton is approached by John Reid (Richard Madden), a British music manager who is attracted to Elton. Reid and John begin a relationship together, but his relationship with Reid isn’t exactly what Elton had it mind.
As Elton John enjoys ongoing success in his career, he finds that his personal life is suffocating profusely. After John Reid is hired to be Elton’s manager, Elton comes to discover that Reid doesn’t really love him the way that he thinks he does. Elton comes home only to find Reid in an encounter with another man. Elton visits his father, who now has two boys with his 2nd wife, and even asks for his autograph. But while showing affection towards his two sons, Stanley continues to withhold affection from him. At the same time, Elton’s mother wants a piece of the pie from Elton’s success, which results in a falling out between them. This sets Elton in a down spiral where everything around him costs him something, drains him emotionally, adds constant aggravations and frustrations, and leaves him sad all of the time. This is where a descent into drugs, alcohol, high risk behavior, and sex creates a series of problems for him, as he hits rock bottom. As he reaches his lowest point, he attempts suicide by taking a bunch of valium, washing them down with hard liquor, and throwing himself in the pool at a party in front of friends and family. It is at this point, Elton has to choose whether or not he really wants to die, or actually pursue rehabilitation, confront the roots of his insecurities, and "stand back up" again. These numerous factors, the music, and the drama is what makes this movie so fascinating and so real on a variety of levels.
My Take:
When I initially saw this movie in the theater (a few days after its release date), I did not know it was a musical, in the sense that it was not only a biopic of a musician which always results in musical numbers be it through gigs, recording sessions, and concerts, but adding to those other attributes it was a musical like Grease replete with choreographed musical numbers, random outbreaks of song and dance, and so forth. What I found most innovative and creative about this movie is that the musical format that it adopted incorporated many of Elton John's songs into his life story as though they are a part of the events themselves, rather than the traditional method of songs being written and inspired by those events. In other words, you see Elton John experience the realities of the songs he wrote as they happen, not in hindsight.
Here’s a quick sample….
And so, as many of these trademark songs become a part of his story as they happen, other songs are incorporated through gig, concert, or in a recording studio. It was very unconventional in this sense, but if you are a fan of Elton John’s music, then you are going to like how everything in this movie was arranged and came together. And together with the music, the art, the drama, the empathy that you feel towards Elton John, and the struggles that he encounters, the movie keeps you engaged in the story, and I like movies that do that.
Elton John was the executive producer of this film, and Taron Egerton sang himself for this film. There was no heavy dependence on lip syncing Elton John's recorded works.
All in all, out of 4 stars I give Rocketman 3 stars.
The film is rated R and runs 2 hours and 1 minute.
To view a trailer for the movie, please click on the “Play” button below.
Teaser Trailer:
Official Trailer:
Rocketman is now available to own or rent on 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray, DVD, and multiple streaming services. It is also available to rent at Redbox kiosk machines everywhere (as of August 27th).
Before he became known to the world as pop superstar Elton John, he was known in smaller circles as Reginald Dwight. Raised by his parents Stanley (Steven Mackintosh) and Sheila (Bryce Dallas Howard), Reginald grows up with complications from both of them. Stanley is cold, unfeeling, and very distant towards his son. His mother Sheila is very sharp tongued, bitter towards her husband, cold, and excessively self-centered. Yearning for love and affection from his parents and finding none, his love is redirected towards music, as he comes to discover that he has a talent for playing the piano and, being able to play it by ear. From there, Reggie takes piano lessons and learns that his piano teacher thinks he has what it takes to get a scholarship at the Royal Academy of Music. One day while walking home, Reggie finds his mom fooling around with another man. The act leads to Stanley leaving Sheila, which causes Reggie to live with her.
For his birthday, Reggie receives an Elvis Presley record, a record that excites him and inspires him. With his talents for piano and his love for rock and roll, Reggie takes things a step further and plays at a nearby pub. Reggie spends the best of his Saturday nights playing at pubs, and joins a band called Bluesology. One night, Bluesology is asked if they could play backup for an American soul band. The band’s singer gives Reggie a little bit of advice. He tells Reggie, “You got to kill the person you were born to be, in order to become the person you want to be,” and suggests to him that he write some songs. So Reggie reinvents himself, begins writing songs, and changes his name to Elton John (Taron Egerton).
Elton starts writing music for British music label DJM Records, and its manager, Ray Williams (Charlie Rowe), introduces Elton to a songwriter by the name of Bernie Taupin (Jamie Bell). The two instantly hit it off and become friends. It is through their friendship and ever evolving closeness that Bernie learns that Elton is gay. Even though Bernie is not gay himself, Bernie is not deterred by it or repulsed by him. In fact, they rent an apartment together to write their songs. After writing “Your Song” Dick James of DJM Records arranges for Elton to play at the Troubadour nightclub in West Hollywood, California. Here Elton plays his song “Crocodile Rock”, which brings down the house. After being invited to a party at Mama Cass’s house, Elton encounters feelings of loneliness and abandonment as Bernie separates from him to pursue a woman who expresses an interest in him. It is then that Elton is approached by John Reid (Richard Madden), a British music manager who is attracted to Elton. Reid and John begin a relationship together, but his relationship with Reid isn’t exactly what Elton had it mind.
As Elton John enjoys ongoing success in his career, he finds that his personal life is suffocating profusely. After John Reid is hired to be Elton’s manager, Elton comes to discover that Reid doesn’t really love him the way that he thinks he does. Elton comes home only to find Reid in an encounter with another man. Elton visits his father, who now has two boys with his 2nd wife, and even asks for his autograph. But while showing affection towards his two sons, Stanley continues to withhold affection from him. At the same time, Elton’s mother wants a piece of the pie from Elton’s success, which results in a falling out between them. This sets Elton in a down spiral where everything around him costs him something, drains him emotionally, adds constant aggravations and frustrations, and leaves him sad all of the time. This is where a descent into drugs, alcohol, high risk behavior, and sex creates a series of problems for him, as he hits rock bottom. As he reaches his lowest point, he attempts suicide by taking a bunch of valium, washing them down with hard liquor, and throwing himself in the pool at a party in front of friends and family. It is at this point, Elton has to choose whether or not he really wants to die, or actually pursue rehabilitation, confront the roots of his insecurities, and "stand back up" again. These numerous factors, the music, and the drama is what makes this movie so fascinating and so real on a variety of levels.
My Take:
When I initially saw this movie in the theater (a few days after its release date), I did not know it was a musical, in the sense that it was not only a biopic of a musician which always results in musical numbers be it through gigs, recording sessions, and concerts, but adding to those other attributes it was a musical like Grease replete with choreographed musical numbers, random outbreaks of song and dance, and so forth. What I found most innovative and creative about this movie is that the musical format that it adopted incorporated many of Elton John's songs into his life story as though they are a part of the events themselves, rather than the traditional method of songs being written and inspired by those events. In other words, you see Elton John experience the realities of the songs he wrote as they happen, not in hindsight.
Here’s a quick sample….
And so, as many of these trademark songs become a part of his story as they happen, other songs are incorporated through gig, concert, or in a recording studio. It was very unconventional in this sense, but if you are a fan of Elton John’s music, then you are going to like how everything in this movie was arranged and came together. And together with the music, the art, the drama, the empathy that you feel towards Elton John, and the struggles that he encounters, the movie keeps you engaged in the story, and I like movies that do that.
Elton John was the executive producer of this film, and Taron Egerton sang himself for this film. There was no heavy dependence on lip syncing Elton John's recorded works.
All in all, out of 4 stars I give Rocketman 3 stars.
The film is rated R and runs 2 hours and 1 minute.
To view a trailer for the movie, please click on the “Play” button below.
Teaser Trailer:
Official Trailer:
Rocketman is now available to own or rent on 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray, DVD, and multiple streaming services. It is also available to rent at Redbox kiosk machines everywhere (as of August 27th).