Bohemian Rhapsody

[SistersOfHearsey]

Went to see this last night and just wow. Don't think I've ever say through a movie that gave me chills quite like that did.
Would love to know how they time travelled Brian May and John Deacon for this because they were outstandingly good.

Anyone else seen it and loved it?

@BalloonSlayer

Nope!!! I only understood that reference when I read it online!!!

I found the film quite emotional so wasn't at my most rational self.

I enjoyed it because of the brilliant casting and the music, but I found the liberties taken with Freddie’s story fairly gross. Every major change from real life was in favour of the remaining Queen members and at the expense of Freddie, and the changes are much duller than the real story so it wasn’t done for dramatic purposes.

I’m not sure why people are suggesting the critics didn’t like it because it doesn’t delve into his personal life. It does, massively. A third of the film is about his personal life. The film just presents it in a very shallow and false way. It spends a lot of time on his sexuality, but rather than acknowledge he didn’t fit neatly into any box it labels him solely as a gay man. It makes a mess of his relationship with Mary, and the whole Paul saga is largely a fabrication to make it look like Freddie was led astray and didn’t have good reasons for wanting a break from Queen. His relationship with his family and connection to his culture is also massively simplified for no good reason.

If the film had just been about the band and the music, that would be one thing, but to spend so much time on his personal life and get so much so wrong is insulting to the man’s memory. Freddie wouldn’t have minded made up stories about his life, but he’d have wanted them to be wild, extraordinary lies. Not safe and sanitised versions of reality.

Sorry for bringing this thread back to life but only just seen the film myself. I thought it was great. Got goosebumps watching the Live Aid concert, Queen totally ruled that audience of 80 odd thousand people watching!
I’ve been watching the actual Live Aid performance on YouTube, fantastic how the film got it near perfect to the real thing. The actor Rami played Freddie so right. Watching it from 1985 it’s so hard to believe that footage is from 33 years ago and the group would look so different now.
I’d imagine Roger Taylor and Brian May had a big part in its production, even though it seemed to have time inconsistencies.

I think my mum would have loved the film. She died a month ago but was a huge, huge fan, especially of Freddie. She did, however, shut her ears to any idea he was gay, only going as far as to mutter that he was bi so that part may have been a trial for her.

I was a teen when Live Aid was on, I recall sitting with her watching it at home. And Queen were electrifying. And when Freddie died, I recall that the day before he died, it had been announced he had AIDS. Which probably ties in to the bit in the film where Freddie is telling the rest of them he wanted to keep it quiet and concentrate on the music. The announcement must have been timed to the last moment.

I called mum the morning Freddie's death was announced and Dad answered and said she wasn't up yet, hadn't heard the news. This bit will out me. Mum came to the phone and I asked her if she'd heard about Freddie. "Yes", she said, "he's got AIDS". "Not any more, Mum", I said, "he died overnight". Bang! She slammed the phone down so hard. I hadn't intended to say it like that, it slipped out. She was cross with me for a while, don't blame her really.

I loved it too. My DD had texted to say how fab it was and that everyone in the cinema she saw it at cheered and clapped at the end, so I was all prepared when we saw it but nobody did in our cinema - boring lot. We were lucky enough to see Queen at Wembly stadium on the Kind of Magic tour in '86. Freddy was magnificent, obviously.

So sad that Freddie Mercury died of a horrible illness, but I can’t imagine him now being in his 70s, if he was alive today. Better to remember him being the icon he was.
A true legend who came from humble beginnings and brought happiness to slot of people.
We will never again see a group perform like Queen did at Wembley stadium back in the 80s.