11/9/18
Is this a bio pick? If so Freddy Mercury was a giant asshat. Was Paul Prenter really that horrible? Too many questions coming out of a bio pick.
The pacing is just off, I don't fully know why, but it is. The end of the movie is a 20 minute re-shoot of the Live Aid performance in real time.
While Rami Malek does a great job acting, his FALSE TEETH are a CONSTANT distraction. Ok, I get it, Freddy Mercury had bad/extra teeth, but come on! This is like Ashton Kutcher spending a hundred hours perfecting Steve Jobs' walk, it doesn't help the movie.
Lucy Boynton as Mary Ausitn was great. Her portrayal is believable and she gets your sympathy. She is Freddie's only true friend, but also only puts up with so much. There is a scene where she talks about past heartbreaks. She seems a bit too young to have that many experiences before Freddie. It made me think and kind of pulled me out of her character a little. Having their reunion meeting in Germany be in the rain is too much of a trope. Plus the sound of the rain is way too high in the audio mix. It also isn't accurate, when standing near a car there is no change in the rain sound hitting the metal roof vs. it hitting the ground.
There are only a handful of shots devoted to Freddie's promiscuity. His drug habit just seems to magically appear. For something so important to his rise/fall/death not enough time is paid to it. You have to go into the movie knowing he slept with a ton of people at the height of the AIDs epidemic otherwise you could be lost.
The scenes around the band writing the album and having a supporting team around them was solid. That is probably the better part of the movie. I didn't realize how democratic the band actually was. Their creativity is on full display in the studio shots.
The concert scenes in the latest A Star is Born are better. Can You Ever Forgive Me is a better bio pick. There are many reasons this movie is under performing. Also it had two directors, never a good thing.
Mike Myers is in this movie and has a phenomenal in joke. Recognizing it is Mike is difficult though.
The Live Aid portion was shot in IMAX and you can tell even on a regular screen. I certainly wouldn't pay or make it inconvenient to see it on an IMAX screen. First Man is definitely a better IMAX movie and it isn't that great for IMAX. If you have a reasonable sound system at home, higher end sound bar with sub-woofer or a full 5.1, 7.2, etc. system, then skip the theater. Or just play Queen on your hi-fi.
This is an average movie that will probably disappoint Queen fans and won't win any new ones. Bio picks are hard and this is not a great example.
Cats Cats Cats, they are cute and I like the shots, but it is strange to just have so many cat shots.