Bohemian Rhapsody movie review

RATING: PG-13

LENGTH: 134 minutes

Movie Review Mom GRADE: B+

TIPS FOR PARENTS:

You see a man and woman in bed, but no action.
Two men kiss. There is talk of bi-sexuality, but you don’t see Freddie in bed with another man.
Men wearing women’s clothes.
A surprising small amount of profanity, although there is 1 F-bomb.
Talk of AIDS and death.
Alcohol and drugs in several scenes.
Some fights and arguments.
Mary Austin’s father is deaf, but can read lips when Freddie talks about “shagging.”

IN A NUTSHELL: I loved growing up in the ‘80’s. We had the best music. I was a huge Queen fan, but then, who wasn’t? This biopic gives you sneak peek into the life of the legendary Freddie Mercury, lead singer of the rock band Queen. Rami Malek is FREAKING FANTASTIC as Freddie Mercury. Watching him and hearing some of Queen’s greatest hits make up for the few faults in the flick. I really enjoyed it and even learned some things I didn’t know about Queen.

THEMES:

“Don’t look back, only forward.” – Freddie (Rami Malek)
Family
“Fortune favors the bold.” – “Miami Beach” manager (Tom Hallander)
Loyalty, infidelity
“I decide who I am.” – Freddy
Greed
Forgiveness
Loneliness

THINGS I LIKED:

Rami Malek. He’s amazing. Fans are hoping he gets an Oscar nomination. I agree. His performance is career changing. He has mostly played minor characters in his career (mostly Egyptian because of his ethnic background), like in The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 2 and Night at the Museum , but he was recently in the remake of Papillon and I was so impressed with his growth as an actor. Then, when I saw this movie, I was blown away. He has become an incredible actor. In fact, he won an Emmy for his role in Mr. Robot. I’ve never seen it, but now I”m going to. I’m such a fan. You can watch the Pilot too.
Really great casting. For those unfamiliar with what the band members looked like back in the ‘80’s, you get to see pictures of them at the end of the movie. Then, you’ll really appreciate how spot-on the casting is.
I loved how the story started and ended with the Live Aid concert. Some say that was the pinnacle moment of Freddie’s stage performances. Believe it or not, the producers decided to film the Live Aid scenes on Day 1 of filming. Wow.
At 134 minutes long, it didn’t feel long at all. I wanted more.
I loved the scene where the band experiments with random objects to explore different sounds. I thought it was fascinating to learn how some of their songs were made, assuming what was shown in the movie is true.
Considering the movie is about a rock band in the wild ’80’s, the movie is fairly tame for family viewing.
Lucy Boynton plays a lovely Mary Austin. It was touching to see how devoted and loving she was.
Comedian/actor Mike Myers is in the movie. I’ve missed seeing him in movies. Look closely because you won’t recognize him. It was a clever not to Mike Myers’ Saturday Night Live hit character bit “Wayne’s World” where he and Dana Carvey sang “Bohemian Rhapsody” with appropriate head banging in their car. As a wink to the audience, Mike Myers’ character (Ray Foster) says, “No one is going to be head-banging in the car to Bohemian Rhapsody.” Excellent.
It seems like a minor thing, but I really like the movie poster.

THINGS I DIDN’T LIKE:

I would have liked to learn more about what inspired certain songs and their lyrics. There was some of that in the movie, but I wanted even more.
You watch Freddie Mercury evolve and experience character development, but the other band members are mostly side characters.
Some critics are saying that the movie glosses over details and even sanitizes them. That’s actually very true. The tricky thing about biopics is that they could either delve into the music, the band, the personal lives, or the road to success. Ultimately, it’s more of a “greatest hits” delivery in this film.

FUNNY LINES:

“I think it has potential.” – Freddie as he tinkers “Bohemian Rhapsody” on the piano
“There’s only room in this band for one hysterical queen.” – Freddie

INTERESTING LINES:

“Good thoughts, good words and deeds. That’s what you should aspire to.” – Dad

“Yes, and how has that worked out for you?” – Freddie

“No one knows what Queen means, because it doesn’t mean one thing.” – John Deacon (Joseph Mazello)
“We’ll call it ‘Night at the Opera.” – Freddie

“Are you aware that nobody actually likes opera?” – Ray Foster (Mike Myers)

If you’re a fan, you’ll love the soundtrack:

Bohemian Rhapsody (The Original Soundtrack)

Even better, get the greatest hits on your playlist:

Bohemian Rhapsody (Digital Remaster)

Be sure to check out my YouTube movie review of this movie at: https://youtu.be/c3kAySdX-yQ It would help me so much if you liked the video and subscribed to my new channel. Thanks!

@trinaboice