Directed by Dexter Fletcher
“You gotta kill the person you’re born to be to become the person you want to be.”
I can’t deny that I’m still absorbing ‘Rocketman’ two days after seeing it. But I also can’t deny that it’s different from last year’s controversial biopic ‘Bohemian Rhapsody.’ Different in a way that ‘Rocketman’ is well-written and more emotional in terms of story but the thing is, I can’t fully connect with its songs. ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ on the other hand, lacks a solid story and storytelling but showcases songs that are more catchy and more infectious for me.
We go to the movies for the story, but watching a musical movie is different. At least for me.
The film takes us to the personal journey of Elton John. The ups and the downs, how talented he is as a pianist and how career took his normal life. What made the film extra special is its fantasy take on some of his journey. You see, if Bohemian Rhapsody uses Queen’s songs for performance sequences, Rocketman makes the story of Elton John a musical. And some of it takes us beyond our imagination. It really goes out with a bang, taking Taron Egerton to dance in a carnival, float like he’s on space, and dress as though he doesn’t care what others will think.
But as Elton John’s career took off, his connections to the ones he love, his family and dearest best friend Bernie took the other turn. He didn’t have a normal childhood, he was not loved as much as he wanted to be. But what the film also tells us is that we also have a choice of how we take the love we have and the love we can’t have.
‘Rocketman’ has a colorful and character-driven story with performances that will touch and wow you.
4 OUT OF 5 STARS
‘Rocketman’ is now showing in Philippine cinemas from United International Pictures, distributed locally by Columbia Pictures. Rated R-13 by the MTRCB.