As a dazzling star in the history of the world music scene, Queen and its lead vocalist Freddie Mercury's brilliant and outstanding musical career is nothing short of legendary. However, when it comes to Freddie Mercury personally, his unrestrained and unconventional lifestyle is more captivating than his fame. Despite this, due to Queen's careful image protection, the tumultuous "Bohemian Rhapsody" seems to have little connection with the real Freddie Mercury. Throughout the entire story and character portrayal, it appears excessively conservative. Nevertheless, no one would argue that "Bohemian Rhapsody" lacks musical passion.
As a biographical film centered on music, especially following the success of both critics and box office for "Straight Outta Compton," "Bohemian Rhapsody" is undoubtedly disappointing. However, at the same time, with the change of lead actor from Sacha Baron Cohen to Rami Malek, and the change of director from Bryan Singer to Dexter Fletcher, compared to the series of mishaps in the production of recent commercial films—"Justice League," "Solo: A Star Wars Story," "All the Money in the World," and even the R-rated turned PG-13 "Venom"—"Bohemian Rhapsody" at least excels in music and performance.
"Bohemian Rhapsody" boasts high watchability and entertainment value thanks to its iconic hits and Rami Malek's charismatic performance. However, the film falls short in capturing the groundbreaking and charismatic essence inherent to Queen and Freddie Mercury themselves. It seems that for the producers, delivering a biographical film of this complex nature using a formulaic and standardized approach might have been considered a significant accomplishment, despite its limitations.
Looking at the script composition, "Bohemian Rhapsody" is written by the experienced Peter Morgan and Anthony McCarten, both with good credentials in British period dramas, skilled in capturing and constructing complex interpersonal relationships. However, due to the change of director—from the grand-scale expert Bryan Singer to the more focused Dexter Fletcher ("Eddie the Eagle")—the film does not fully live up to its potential. Perhaps someone more seasoned, like Ron Howard, would have been a better choice as the director.
In terms of biographical films, "Bohemian Rhapsody" falls short in many aspects: the story often lacks coherence, is episodic, and very superficial, avoiding any narrative complexity, appearing more like a behind-the-scenes featurette of a concert than a biographical film. The 1970s temporal background is blurred, sidestepping the subtle situations faced by the LGBT community at that time. However, simultaneously, the film offers a refreshing portrayal of the emotional relationship between Freddie Mercury and his significant partner, Mary Austin. This, almost alone, makes the entire film feel more like a love story than a biographical film.
This self-contradiction runs through the entire "Bohemian Rhapsody." At times, it gets you ecstatic, brings tears to your eyes, is humorous and carefree, effortlessly emphasizing the connections between characters in both the script and improvisation. The musical sequences are incredibly infectious and persuasive (mainly due to the original recordings of Queen's music, with some parts dubbed by Rami Malek); but at crucial moments, it deliberately self-regulates, refusing any possibility of in-depth exploration, and the actors' performances are simplified. Considering the well-calibrated chemistry among the main cast, "Bohemian Rhapsody" wastes too many opportunities for intensified conflicts and dramatic elevation. A clear example is the growing autocracy of Freddie Mercury in the later stages, which seems to drop out of the sky without making the audience truly feel the impact of this individual behavior on cohesion or the potential threat to Queen's fate.
However, similar to Tom Hardy in "Venom," Rami Malek almost single-handedly saves "Bohemian Rhapsody" with a soulful performance. His imitation of Freddie Mercury's spirit and temperament surpasses the latter's iconic prominent teeth—especially in performance scenes. Keep in mind that while Rami Malek is a few centimeters shorter than Freddie Mercury and has a more compact physique (without Freddie Mercury's long legs), as soon as he puts on the stage costume, he transforms into an extraordinary likeness.
With such a remarkable performance, why couldn't "Bohemian Rhapsody" elevate itself to a better film? It's difficult not to draw parallels with the two biographical movies about Steve Jobs: one resembling it visually but lacking in narrative depth in the 2013 version, and the other, the spirited and even overshadowing 2015 rendition. It begs the question: why couldn't these two films merge their strengths to create a more distinctive and intimate movie experience?
"Bohemian Rhapsody," despite its thrilling theme, falls into the category of a middle-of-the-road, safe, and somewhat lackluster traditional biopic. Rather than deeply immersing the audience in the protagonist's experiences, it merely outlines Freddie Mercury through disconnected events. The film's portrayal of Mercury's personal life, encompassing themes of sexual identity anxiety, pain, loneliness, and recklessness, comes across as shallow and devoid of the raw reality it should have embraced.
In essence, "Bohemian Rhapsody" approaches its subject matter from a perspective that mirrors that of an ordinary fan. However, this is precisely the angle a biographical film should strive to avoid. The movie falls short in providing a more nuanced and in-depth portrayal that transcends the surface-level admiration typically associated with fan perspectives.
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