Nerds That Geek Movie Review: ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

​The bio-pic is and will forever be a risky gambit for filmmakers, for so many reasons. The first one being, you only have two hours to tell a complete tale about someone’s life, and that often means that corners will be cut, important moments will be omitted or shuffled around to maximize dramatic effect for the audience and well, that juggling act is no easy task. Sometimes though, it works out in spades and the changes made to a person’s life on the silver screen go unnoticed and audiences enjoy the powerful and inspiring story that plays out before them.
 
But when fans have poured over a person’s life, or they are iconic enough that just about everyone knows their story, well…that’s when disaster strikes for these particular films because so many can and will point out the flaws and inaccuracies and one such motion picture that has taken some serious flak, with good reason, is Bohemian Rhapsody, a movie that focuses on the life and times of musical legend Freddie Mercury and the band Queen and well, this is a film that does make some glaring mistakes when it comes to Freddie’s life, the kind that are wild enough to potentially remove the audience from the experience and ruin the film, yet…those unfortunate goofs can be overlooked because this story offers so much more for the audience.
 
Case in point, the fact that it puts a homosexual man squarely in the spotlight and handles his sexuality with class and grace, even going so far as to give the audience a fine understanding of Freddie’s struggles in discovering his sexuality, and this is just wonderful to see. Because films that take the time to present LGBTQ characters or historical figures as human beings are in short supply, and I truly appreciated that Freddie was presented as a man instead of a gimmick here, and that his life-long battles with some powerful demons was showcased as well, and taking the time to examine Freddie’s lack of self-worth and desperate desire to be loved makes him supremely relatable in this tale since let’s be honest, we’ve all battled those problems at some point in our lives.

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​Which brings us to what exactly makes this film such an inspiring experience. Because despite Freddie’s flaws, and firm belief that he mattered to no one, he still went out and lived his dream and inspired others and made them feel special and as though they belonged and seeing Freddie realize the impact that Queen’s music had on people and how so many people did in fact love him definitely gives the audience pause when watching this film because it forces the viewer to take a moment and reflect upon their own lives briefly and take inventory on similar matters and well that was an unexpected surprise to find in a bio-pic, but fitting when all is said and done.
 
Of course, none of this works without a solid cast and a rockin’ soundtrack since it would be a crime to not include Queen’s iconic music in a movie that features the band and thankfully, the film delivers on those fronts as well. Because you’ll definitely find your toes tapping as some of Queen’s greatest hits play over key scenes and quite frankly, you’ll be blown away by Rami Malek’s performance as Freddie Mercury simply because, Rami just becomes Freddie. From his mannerisms to the look, he just embodies the man and he steals every single scene in the movie he’s in and well, Rami needs to be nominated for just about every award imaginable because this is a performance for the ages.
 
And his portrayal of Freddie is another reason why you need to see this movie as soon as possible. It’s simply a magnificent story to watch and while it has its flaws, those are all easily forgotten thanks to the amazing story that unfolds, one that celebrates the life of one of the greatest rock stars to ever take the stage, one that reminds just how amazing a band Queen really is and one that quite frankly, leaves you with your spirits soaring when you walk you out of the theater. Because if Freddie can ignore the odds that were against him in order to live out his dreams, what’s our excuse? And if by chance you’re not looking for anything that deep at the multiplex, see it anyways just because this movie is a blast, and you will laugh, and cry and dance in your seat, because this is just a fine story, about a wonderful human being.  

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