Tom Augustine enjoys an Elton John biopic, marvels at John Wick 3 and picks DocEdge films.
Despite a now-infamous awards campaign that saw last year's Bohemian Rhapsody come dangerously close to a Best Picture Oscar, the film is as likely to draw deep hatred as kindly notices from the average cinephile. It was with some trepidation, then, that I headed into Rocketman (dir. Dexter Fletcher, Rating M), expecting another fusty, historically questionable biopic playing it entirely too safe.
And it's true, Rhapsody's co-director Dexter Fletcher sticks pretty close to the now-rote biopic mould of Walk the Line or Ray in his exploration of the life of the great Elton John. Rocketman succeeds where Rhapsody failed, however, in its embrace of the fantasy of the biopic structure.
There's no way to truly, accurately, depict the life of a great artist in the space a film framework, and life rarely conforms to the three-act rise and fall of a traditional story narrative. To counteract this, Rocketman largely plays out as a classical musical - layering Elton's iconic songs into the key stages of his life - growing up in working class England, partying hard in Los Angeles, grappling with addiction and rehab.
It's an incredibly effective ploy, weaving the winking fantasy of Elton's work into the fabric of his story and allowing Fletcher to stretch his creative muscles in muscular dance sequences and trippy dream sequences. Highlights include a spirited rendition of "Rocket Man" that takes place at the bottom of a swimming pool and a passionate, high-energy performance of "Saturday Night's Alright (For Fighting)" that takes the title very literally.
