Farrokh Bulsara, more commonly known as Freddie Mercury and the lead singer of Queen, is referred to as one of the greatest singers of all time. His ability to sing in a four-octave vocal range and produce and write monumental, track-topping hits has led to him being known as a musical icon.
The film “Bohemian Rhapsody” hit theaters on Nov. 2 and had audience members and life-long Queen fans on the edges of their seats, clasping their hands together in awe as they watched Mercury’s career success culminate on the big screen.
Rami Malek acted the part of Mercury, sporting the legendary flashy outfits, short hair and iconic mustache. His portrayal of Mercury through the highs and lows of his life was inspiring to say the least, and audience members could recognize the huge amount of passion Mercury had for music.
The movie began and centered around Queen’s performance at the 1985 Live Aid show at Wembley stadium. Audiences were able to see how far Mercury had come by comparing the thousands of fans cheering his name at Wembley to the next scene, which showed a dozen people laughing at Mercury as he struggled with a microphone on a grungy concert stage in his early years as a performer.
As Queen began their rise to fame, the band members continued to impress on people their purpose purpose for creatng the music they do — they’re just misfits writing songs for other misfits.
Though the movie arguably does a great job of capturing the significant influence Queen had on the music industry, many devoted fans of the band were disappointed with some of the inaccuracies found in Mercury’s timeline, and the film’s inability to focus directly on his sexual experiences.
Other fans of Queen’s musical influence were happy to see the movie and listen to many of their hit songs such as “Killer Queen,” “Fat Bottomed Girls,” “Somebody to Love” and “Bohemian Rhapsody,” among others. Some people noticed that as the movie progressed through Mercury’s life, some of the major events didn’t correlate with the release of the songs they performed; however, the movie and music were enjoyable, nonetheless.
Rami Malek’s performance and delivery of Mercury’s life and work, specifically, was greatly visceral and reminded the audience of all of the emotional turmoil Mercury endured throughout his musical career.
As the movie concluded the same way it began, with Queen making their appearance at Wembley stadium, theater-goers were moved to tears as Mercury sang with intensity and passion in a moving performance. The crowd at Wembley and audience members in the theater could be heard singing along to the hit songs that will continue to move and inspire generations to come.
