‘I haven’t led a PG-13 life’ were Elton John’s words when questioned on the direction the film about his life and career would take. Musical biopics complete with rings of fire, rhapsodies and now electric boots are quickly seizing the cinema-going market and storming the box office, not to mention captivating a new generational fanbase of the artist(s) in the spotlight. It feels like only yesterday the Queen biopic was rocking out cinemas and setting the world foot-stomping to their greatest hits once again. Coincidentally, the director of ‘Rocketman’ Dexter Fletcher was brought in to save ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ from having the plug pulled on it after reports of erratic behaviour had Bryan Singer fired from the project. With barely six months between the cinematic release of both films and the same man at the helm, comparisons between the two are inevitable. Getting back to John’s words, they hint at a thematic angle that dares to be that bit racy and less tame than average biopics: the result is an electrifying symphony complete with sex, drugs and plenty of rock ‘n’ roll. So much so, I think it’s going to be a long, long time before another such bravely honest film is made about an icon.
‘Rocketman’ takes off with a successful but troubled Elton John stumbling into rehab dressed in a costume that makes him resemble some kind of retro-Maleficent. As he opens up about his life and addictions, the film rewinds back to John’s humble beginnings in Middlesex complete with a High School Musical-style song and dance number to ‘The Bitch is Back’. And so follows an appealing tale of a chubby, bespectacled underdog’s journey from Royal Academy of Music pupil to enjoying too much of his own success in outrageous parties. Kingsman star Taron Egerton dons the feathered wings and heart-shaped sunglasses as Elton John. Jamie Bell, best known as Billy Elliot all those years ago, plays John’s songwriter and collaborator Bernie Taupin, and Bodyguard heartthrob Richard Madden plays personal manager and lover John Reid.
As I alluded to before, what sets ‘Rocketman’ apart in the oversaturated true stories market is that is dares to do what the standard biopic only hints at but carefully avoids for fear of portraying its subject as anything less than one-dimensional. The Elton John we see in this film is at times self-centred and reckless, where it’s heavily suggested the cause of his insecurities are unresolved father/son tensions and the struggle to conceal his homosexuality from the lecherous press. I admire the lengthy focus on John reaching breaking point with the pressure of performing and eventually relapsing into addiction. Taron Egerton is superb in the leading role, juggling both the shy introvert Reginald Dwight and the charismatic showman Elton John with humanity and complete unselfconsciousness. It’s worth noting Egerton tackles the iconic songs with his own vocals which is very impressive (he did train at RADA after all). Second to the leading man, the best supporting presence in the film is Richard Madden who plays Reid with sly seductiveness and devilish handsomeness. The only performance that didn’t convince me was Stephen Graham’s, as he doesn’t bring much to the role of record label manager Dick James.
The central relationship of the film is John’s platonic friendship with Bernie Taupin. This aspect, along with the beautifully tender ‘Your Song’ sequence, I enjoyed watching the most, as Egerton and Bell have lovely onscreen rapport and work together very well. John’s real-life husband David Furnish doesn’t appear in the film at all, which is a shame as it would have been interesting to see his mother being forced to eat her own words that her son would never find ‘proper love’ on coming out as gay to her. In a similar way to ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’, the film enforces us to view John’s corruption through a moralistic lens as he becomes influenced by fame and fortune and spirals into a lifestyle of excessive debauchery. Dexter Fletcher is quite clear how he wants us to respond to each part of the film, however, the winningly upbeat musical numbers with their own personal significance to John are more than enough to win us over.
My only reservation with ‘Rocketman’ is the contradictions within the overall message we are supposed to take away from the film. The first half frankly argues that to succeed John must change his personality to fit a showbiz ideal, but in the second it goes on to show that holding onto what makes him special always prevails in the end. The conflicting morals aside, I loved the film from beginning to end and exited the cinema with a smile on my face and a song in my heart. Forget Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga: in Taron Egerton a star is born. I estimate we will be seeing a lot more of the talented Birkenhead-born actor on the big screen. On the whole, ‘Rocketman’ is a sequin-drenched, irresistibly upbeat yet humane look at the life of a legend that proves his legacy is still standing.
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