We took up most of the row in the cinema. Nine pals who remembered when Rock was young, hoping for the biggest kick we ever got…Okay, I’ll stop now with the Bernie Taupin lyrics, except lawdy mama; what happened to the second half?
Rocketman is a great ride. It’s a better ride than the current incarnation of Aladdin, now beating Rocketman at the box office. Don’t you dare come at me for going to see Aladdin either: it has a magic carpet and 🎵 A Whole New World 🎵and that’s enough for me (and my young pals who joined me when I asked, Will you take your Auntie Anne to the movies?)
Rocketman begins with a full list of confessions. Elton John listing all of his addictions and we’re off, watching little Elton Sad Boy become big Elton Star Boy through a trippy set of brilliant musical sequences. At some point, little Elton (known as Reggie then) and Big Elton meet one another in this musical mirage and Little Sad Boy asks Big Star Boy for a hug. Right there, we are in the zeitgeist proper, and nobody can quibble with therapy and all of its attendant hopeful outcomes. Nor can we fault the soft lens on a long friendship: Elton John’s celebrated partnership with lyricist Bernie Taupin is the film’s heart. These two talents worked separately. How they collaborated is one of the film’s more accurate and intriguing threads. The star blessed this film, signing on as executive producer, and his evident pride in that rare showbiz jewel of a union shines brighter than anything else here. Except for the music. Oh yes, the music. We didn’t break into full-out karaoke, although tempted I was at points. This was our early tweendom’s soundtrack, so B-B-Benny me back, baby.
Parts of the film are utterly generic. We have seen these rock narratives before and know of their properties. What makes this one beat are dizzying music sequences with their own aesthetic ( and conveniently muddled timelines- songs are presented to fit the film, not the reality). The guy who punches life into every one of them is Welsh actor Taron Egerton. Here he is, showing off his pipes at a recent Aids Foundation auction.
The twenty-nine-year-old joins actor Jamie Bell, who is also a dancer (remember Billy Elliot?), and Richard Madden as a trio of stellar talent; reason enough to go. Madden is hot hot hot these days as
If you’re like me, you might wonder at the sudden end of the film. I promise no spoilers, but there’s a chunk of life history smushed at the film’s conclusion into a few photos and information graphics, all equal in the redemptive narrative possibility to the wild tale preceding it. This musician has raised $450 million for AIDs research, after all. It’s a minor quibble, but this fan wanted to see more of that real-life second chapter’s potency. And for all the whiners dissing jukebox musicals, there is this: music as we know it will never be like this again. It will continue to morph and produce wondrous sounds as it has, but we are now in a time of ephemeral shapeshifting: never has it been harder for artists to reach this kind of international success. The best moment in this film is one of gorgeous levitation. I won’t spoil it for you, but this moment captures the giddiness of hearing magic. I dare you not to smile. Or cry. Eventually, this kind of film and this well-trodden genre will die out, but the music? It lingers on, and we will all sing until we have lost our voices. Look for me this summer, roaring around town, belting out Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters in one never-ending loop.
🎵 And I thank the Lord
And finding more excuses to wear floppy hats. Wore them then. Still wearing them now, without the spitting gap.
What is your
7 Comments
I’m an early-years Elton John fan. After the mid 70s he gets boring, eventually becoming a sell-out. But in the early years, he was IT! Will always associate his early 70s music with tween parties, in platforms and bell bottoms.
I’m with Emily – Tiny dancer, it will always make me think of that scene in Almost Famous!! But I also love Your Song, one of the best love songs of all time.
You can’t resist singing along to Tiny Dancer! It reminds me of that epic scene in Almost Famous (one of my favourite films) where they break out into song on the tour bus!!!!
For me it’s a tie between Saturday Night’s Alright and the duet with Kiki Dee, Don’t Go Breaking My Heart- always associate those tunes with my tween years. Elton’s 1976 greatest hits album was the first record that I ever bought! I treasured it! I wonder these days if kids can remember the first ever song they downloaded – I doubt it.
I’m Still Standing for sure! It’s a hymn for resilience. I listen to it when someone has given me a punch. It gives me just enough swagger to swallow my pride and move on.
Yes!!!! In the movie they invent a story around that song which drives that home further.
Come Down in Time I love. In the quiet silent seconds I, I turned off the light switch….while some leave you counting the stars in the night :). Good night.