User Reviews

Although classical music and opera is more my cup of tea/forte, that has never stopped me from having always admired Elton John and loving most of his songs. "Your Song", "Something About the Way You Look Tonight", "I'm Still Standing" and pretty much all the songs in 'The Lion King' are especially great, one of the few exceptions being "Crocodile Rock". He is/was also a quite interesting man, both stage persona and personal life, and the period that is primarily focused on is a very compelling one and worthy of being told on film.

'Rocketman' was not a perfect film, but on the most part it was thoroughly enjoyable and at its best dazzlingly executed when seeing it in the cinema earlier this year. As far as films released in 2019 goes, 'Rocketman' is to me in the better half. Even if accuracy and the chronology can be called into question, it still makes John and his personal life, detailing his childhood, early career and how it came to be and the troubled period of his career, quite fascinating. As well as being worthy of a lot of admiration in its own right.

Not everything works. For my liking, the last twenty minutes or so are executed too tidily.

While John and Bernie Taupin are well rounded and fully realised characters, the other characters, despite being well acted by particularly Bryce Dallas Howard, felt like underdeveloped caricatures (i.e. the parents' cold behaviour towards Reggie not being explained).

However, 'Rocketman' has so many things working in its favour and more so than the bad. First and foremost, Taron Egerton. A totally committed and quite brilliant performance full of confidence, swagger, flair, subtlety and nuance, not to mention a great singing voice, treating John with respect without impersonating him. The scene where he opens up to his mother and his reaction to her cold response was heart-breaking in particular. Jamie Bell is the other performance worthy of note and the relationship between John and Taupin is handled beautifully, with the right amount of intensity but also taste. One can tell how well they clicked and feel their mutual affection and it really drives the film and at times the heart of it.

It looks great too, beautifully photographed and John's flamboyant costumes are a sight to behold, one of the bigger examples being that unlike-anything-you've-seen-before one in the therapy. The songs are as magnificent as one expects and staged with a lot of brio and confidence without being overblown. The very moving "Your Song", performance and the understated staging, being a big standout in this regard, another powerful part being with what is done with the opening of "Yellow Brick Road", done so truthfully and mirroring what is going on at that present moment without spelling it out too much and showing how much Taupin cares for John. Heck, the film even manages to make "Crocodile Rock" tolerable in one of the film's more exuberant moments.

The script manages to be both entertaining and sincere, underneath all the flashiness there is depth too. There may be conventional moments in the story (a lot of biopics though are like that), but the scenes showing off John's unique showmanship are difficult to look away from and the story detailing John's troubled personal life at the time is powerful. A great job is done showing who John is, what he is and how his mind worked when dealing with troubles and when he was writing and performing. Dexter Fletcher's direction is adept.

Summing up, a very, very good and often great film that just misses out on being brilliant. 8/10

It's going to get very mixed reviews. I predict many will love it, and many will revile it. I was caught somewhere in the middle. Without giving any actual spoilers away, consider this:

1. If you absolutely HATE musicals, save your money. This is the John/Taupin equivalent of a Rodgers & Hammerstein. It is not presented as a straightforward biopic in the same manner as BOHEMIAN RHAPSODY. 2. Much as I love Elton John, this "rock & roll fantasy" of his life treads a little too far into campy territory for me, with 2, maybe 3 very (thankfully) brief moments in the film that can only be described as cringeworthy. ("Oh, come on, guys--seriously?" moments.) There were times when I genuinely felt this was going to end up as the Ken Russell version of TOMMY for the new millennium. 3. Never, at any point in the film, is Paul Buckmaster mentioned or acknowledged. This infuriated me! For those who don't already know: in the early days of EJ's career, Paul was the orchestrator who provided EJ with the BEAUTIFUL, lush string accompaniments that added so much to EJ's early music (classic example: EJ's soundtrack to the 1971 French film, FRIENDS) and, IMHO, could have been a big player in his success as a burgeoning artist, firmly introducing/establishing The Elton John "Sound." He SHOULD have been a part of this film--even a small one, if deemed necessary--but for him to be utterly omitted from the story mystifies me. Maybe someone in the know can enlighten me on this.

These 3 things, however, are about my only problems with the film. Credit must be given where it's due:

1. Taron Egerton is actually pretty amazing. Some might see his acting as occasionally over the top, but frankly and for all we know, maybe EJ really did act that "extremely" at times, considering his anger issues. His singing, most of the time, is virtually spot-on, catching EJ's lilting singing style quite well. 2. The supporting cast: Jamie Bell (Bernie Taupin), Bryce Dallas Howard , Richard Madden (EJ's agent & self-centered 1st lover), Stephen Graham (Dick James), Tate Donovan (L.A.'s Troubador Club manager Doug Weston), Gemma Jones (Ivy, EJ's grandmother, I think...? Or friend of the family?) & Steven Mackintosh (EJ's cold, uncaring father)...and all others in the film, essentially faultless. ESPECIALLY Jamie's portrayal of Bernie. Wow. 3. You can't really find fault with the staging and choreography of the musical numbers. Very professionally done. 4. You will learn many things about EJ's life in this film that you may not have known before...I know I did. 5. Have a few Kleenexes handy. Enough said. 6. Don't leave right away after the credits roll.

So, is it worth seeing? My criticisms aside (and we all know what they say about opinions), it really comes down to this: if you're a fan--and especially a DEDICATED fan, like me, who's followed him from his humble beginnings in America in the summer of 1970--go see it. Decide for yourself if my gripes hold any water.

He was AMAZING in the spirit of an fabulous Elton John biopic musical.... and Jamie Bell was awesome.. as usual!

First things first, Elton John being one of the most famous artists in the world, with a career of about half a century and 300 million albums sold, a biopic was then more than legitimate and was even eagerly awaited. This film is conceived like a musical based on the songs and the life of Elton John, from the 50s to the early 80s, the selected songs being representative of the manifold events of his life, the ups (his life as an accomplished artist mainly) and the downs (his whole private life according to the movie), since his childhood during which he quickly turns out to be a natural born musician until his first sentimental disappointments and the first cures of detoxification (alcohol, drug, ... and tutti quanti). The movie ends with the punchy « I'm still standing », song written in 1983 after a bad patch and foreshadowing a frantic recovery of his life, the lyrics being written by his friend Bernie Taupin.

One of my favorite scenes among many others is the meeting at the Royal Academy of Music, with the third movement of the Sonata Piano No. 11 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart played twice. I do not know if it's true but, if so, this child is ingeniously bluffing!

The costumes are superb and the actors are fabulous. The realization is ingenious especially with the appropriate and relevant insertion of the songs in the film, like in a musical. As a synthesis: 7/8 of 10.

This is not a movie about a rock star with their music simply part of the facts of the story. It is a musical in the truest sense, that uses his own music to show his tribulations through the eyes of a man during the troubled years of his life. The movie is not always chronological and in some cases is more figurative than historical. In this way it can convey Sir Elton John's life and struggles in a way that the viewer may understand on a more personal level. The acting, writing and singing are superb. The star did not try to truly imitate Elton but instead preforned the pieces in his own style that he molded as closely as possible to the original. It sounds odd, but it works. As always you can never sum up any life, book or story in a 2 or so hour movie, but this comes close. You leave feeling like you really got to know the real, yet flawed, human Elton John. Overall a wonderful movie.

Rocketman decides to focus on Elton John's character evolution more than anything else, chronicling his life from when he was a wee-little boy to his glory days as the colorfully decorated, piano-playing, musically blustering star. One detail I must address that really hoisted the exploration of John's life was, in reality, the "R" rating.

You get to see a respectful and psychological turn in his persona, you get to witness the heartbreaking "addictions" that he constantly forces himself into, you get to view the uncut collision of him dealing with his sexuality, and you even get to feel that loss of love that Elton had felt when he persistently questioned his relationship with peers. All of these affairs are dispensed without and blockades or any desires of censorship and I must commend the filmmakers for going about this risky decision.

And sure, Rocketman is arguably quite the corn-fest at times, but the movie is able to take these cheesy elements of the typical rockstar biopic and format it into a creative fashion that characterizes more charismatic and less repetitive exhibitions. Which brings me to my next point...

I am so pleased that Rocketman turned out to be a nearly full-on musical? I mean, it had to find some way to be different from Bohemian Rhapsody, right? Whenever a musical note comes on it's not just there for Elton John fan-a-holics. The songs always pertain to the presented events transpiring on screen. The methods they use to present the songs as well, offer some more than compulsive and devouring visuals. I also appreciated how they redid all the songs to fit the scenes in a more appropriate manner. It makes the film seem less like a compilation of Elton's original greatest-hits and more like a rendition of what each song means to the story.

Now, Taron Egerton's performance in this is...wow, wow, wow, wow, WOW. He is just bleeding with range and chaotic pizazz in this encapsulation of a contrasted human individual. If someone is worthy of an Oscar nomination this year, it's this guy.

Rocketman doesn't entirely rely on nostalgia like most of its kind does-that implying that sometimes it does, however-and most of its misfit adventures proved about in the story seem earned rather than glossed over at a maximum pace of negligence. Definitely check this one out, especially if you're an Elton John fan!

Taron Egerton's portrayal of Elton John is superb and only heightened by the producers allowing Taron to sing his own versions of many of Elton John's classic hits. It would be impossible to capture all aspects of Elton John's life in the 2 hours provided in this musical/biographical film, so instead the producer/writer/director concentrated on Elton's early childhood which helped shape his destiny when he first met his partner in song writing the great Bernie Taupin played by Jamie Bell.

There were far too many other excellent performances from the supporting cast members to mention them all but I have to mention two in particular who were top notch. Bryce Dallas Howard plays Elton's irresponsible (wife cheating) mother, and Richard Madden who plays John Reid one of Elton's early but serious lovers remained Elton's manager for decades after their sexual relationship ended. Both of these actors added a lot to the films depth in the one area that focused on Elton's tormented soul and led him to binge drinking and pill popping which is the area this film reflected.

I hope we don't have to wait for Elton John to pass away (God forbid) before some producer realizes that Elton John and Bernie Taupin whose lifestyles and personalities are so diametrically opposite that they deserve their life stories to be developed into a (minimum) ten (10) hour TV Mini-Series to cover a heck of a lot of both of these musical genius's personal lives as well as their successes with their musical portfolios.

Rocketman is well worth seeing and rates a perfect 10 out of 10 in my version of Elton John's quasi autobiography book.

What a disappointment. Bad writing. Pitiful representation of EJ. I couldn't stand the musical portions and ended up FFW past them. And how do you screw up concert/show dates with when the actual song was created? Casting was great and Egerton nailed his role, but he should've lip-synced the music and had the actual EJ songs played. Not saying his voice was bad, but basically I just saw a 2 hour pity party played/sung by a cover band musical. This film would have been much better as an actual biopic. Compared to Bohemian Rhapsody, this film was a huge flop for me. It's a generous 6/10 mainly for Egerton's great performance.

Elton John is one of the greatest contemporary artists of the world, no doubt. However, this highlight of his life is a terrible overrated film, without any emotion and an exploitation of Elton John as a needy alcoholic and drug addicted gay. He is needy because of his one-dimension parents that are never developed and the viewer never knows why they treat the boy that way. His gay side is also poorly developed and more exploited. In the end, the film is lost between a shallow drama and a boring musical. The performance of Taron Egerton in the role of Elton John is the best this movie can offer. My vote is six.

Title (Brazil): "Rocketman"

The movie starts with a promising note but at one time, you start feeling that story is being dragged. The performance by the lead actor was amazing. He dived deep into the character and you can totally connect with him. Rest of the actors also nicely played their parts. The songs are nice and perfectly match the scenario shown in the movie. The editing and direction was also good. The problem I faced was with the pacing and the runtime. Pacing was uneven and the runtime could have been short.

Overall, the movie was a good watch and will be mainly loved by Elton John fans who admire him the most.

I've been an Elton John fan most of my life. My love for the music of Elton and Bernie literally shaped who I am. So I REALLY wanted to love this movie but I left the theater irritated and disappointed.

My biggest gripes were: 1.) Some of the musical numbers were corny and out of character (e.g. young Elton dancing through the streets, acting tough and singing "Saturday". The young Elton John actors/singers were not very good either. 2.) The "fantasy" aspects and creative liberties taken to distort facts were annoying. For example, the scene at the Troubadour. It was corny having Elton and the audience flying but I get that the filmmakers wanted to communicate that the concert was a surreal, life changing evening for everyone there. What made me MAD is that he was playing Crocodile Rock! That was absurd. He and Bernie didn't even write that until '72. Plus, that song is NOT why people would have been blown away with him performance. It's a catchy little ditty that got great airplay but is not one of the songs that make Elton & Bernie great. The real set list for the Troubadour was songs like "Your Song", "Border Song", "Take Me to the Pilot", "Burn Down the Mission". That's the amazing stuff he played that night that rocked people's worlds. Not radio pop "Crocodile Rock". I don't see how any real Elton John can be happy with that gross distortion of facts. How about him playing part of "Sad Songs" for Dick James in 1969? What? That song, one of their worst commercial pop songs, was written in '83. Decades after that scene. Do the filmmaker's think we are stupid? That's not fantasy - that's just wrong! 3.) The majority of the movie was about Elton's struggles with drug/alcohol abuse, sexuality/relationships, and Mommy & Daddy issues. While it was interesting to learn about him as a person, other than some great scenes about his early days writing with Bernie, there was almost nothing about the music and how it was created. The fact that he and Elton and his band (Davey Johnstone, Nigel Olsson, Dee Murray, Ray Cooper and others) recorded dozens of great albums in cooperation with producer Gus Dudgeon and arranger Paul Buckmaster and that the band performed thousands of concerts was completely omitted from the film. In fact, the movie suggested that Elton didn't enjoy performing concerts. Like the only reason he was there was because his manager propped him up and forced him onstage. Really? Elton must have spent a huge amount of time writing, recording and performing during the first decade of his career. Was he really a wreck who was constantly wasted and feeling sorry for himself the whole time? Were there no happy moments writing music, in the recording studio, onstage? If not then I feel I have wasted my time being a fan all these years. I thought he actually liked the music but the movie suggested that once he became famous it was all about sex, drugs and depression.

Were there things I liked? Sure. I really enjoyed the depiction of the early days in Elton and Bernie's relationship and particularly loved the scene with Elton writing the music to "Your Song". The Elton/Bernie relationship was well represented throughout the movie and the acting/singing of Taron Egerton was superb. Jamie Bell was fantastic. It made me like and admire Bernie even more than I already did. The recreation of scenes like Elton's childhood home, the Troubadour, Dodger Stadium, etc. were really well done with a ton of attention to detail. Which made it even more irritating that the filmmakers thought it was OK to distort other facts like claiming the Elton's last name was inspired by a picture of John Lennon. Sure, that would have been nice but they rewrote history. Elton has documented that it was because he liked Long John Baldry. Why change well documented facts? That's not being "fantastical" - that's just lying.

Not really sure where I sit with this one. A gripping tale of one of music's biggest icons. While Egerton shines as the glorious John, all the surrounding characters seemed to be simple generic caricatures of staples from this kind of stories. And the story blazes by, many of the acts with little explanation of motives. It follows the basic by the numbers of the musical biopic, never really seeming to let the weight of one single action hit with the viewer before moving onto the next tragic act. While the characters and story seemed to ring a bit formulaic and hollow, Egerton's performance is able to carry the gravitas. And the music, oh the music. John's catalog is beautifully strewn throughout the film in all its glory, though Taron's vocals struggle in parts and he is outsung by his supporting cast at points. And in the end, the conclusion and resolution come, yet once again seemingly easily and out of nowhere as had the conflict earlier in the film. A great story of a great artist that just seemed to miss on a few points for me. Did I enjoy the movie? Yes. It just seemed like a cliff notes version of what could have been a deeper and more compelling story.

I have been waiting for weeks to the premier and Taron's performance blowed me away. I can't tell it was going for a movie about Elton John or going to a premier of a concert where Taron singing and performing and telling his life story from the screen (or from the stage cause it's a premier). His voice is precious, is emotional and is skillful. He got that powerful voice yet that soulful and soft that I am sure that he is the right person, the PERFECT person for those songs and for this film. Such a perfect actor, with a gifted voice. His acting was outstanding and his eyes told things. I can felt his thoughts and feelings, his sadness, disapointment, his emptyness. Just, breathtaking. And Jamie Bell did great, Richard Madden also, such a wonderful compilation of these three talented and professional actors. Love their charisma and their chemistry together. Thank you very much for a great movie. Really enjoyed it.

I have to agree with an earlier review. I think the emotional effectiveness was lost with the sub par "musical numbers" in the film. The real emotions would have carried better had they simply done lip syncing to the ORIGINAL RECORDINGS. Don't get me wrong Taron Egerton CAN carry a tune, he has a really great voice and does an AMAZING job playing Elton. But everyime that the movie burst into music, the impetus was lost with these bland reworkings of Elton and Taupins great music. As for the story? Wasn't the worst I've ever seen, it just seemed rushed at certain points and it tended to be a bit maudlin overall. I wouldn't say it was a bad film, I would say watch it..and whenever you feel a musical number kick in? Pause the film and put on the original song. It may go down as a better viewing experience that way

Really good biopic, different to what I thought it would be, Taron Egerton was awesome , loved how the songs were integrated in film, give it a go you won't be disappointed!

Falls victim to many of the usual biopic cliches and the ending is a little too romantic but it's a nice musical anchored by the success of Egerton for a long time.

I've been an Elton John fan "since the beginning". What made him so great is his musical genius. That should have been the focus, rather than the Ken Russell-like garish portrayal in the film. It is also very disconcerting for me to see the many instances where the songs are glaringly out of sequence, the most striking example was "Crocodile Rock" used as John's opening number at the Troubadour in 1970 when the song wasn't even written until two years later.

I must admit that being a massive fan of Elton's Music, I was a bit apprehensive about this film, but I had free tickets! What I saw was the biggest load of rubbish I have ever seen ,and the top contender for the worst film of all time. Awful in every way ,acting, singing, script, tragic self pitying story line, music hall prattle, it actually made me angry it was so bad.

This movie was both excruciatingly beautiful and irritatingly tedious. I love the music. Egerton was exceptional! I hated the melodramatic whining. Complex and yet simple. A Boy with crappy parents, daddy issues and a need for attention, grows up to become a Superstar! Reginald Kenneth Dwight transformed to Elton Hercules John!

Very good biopic , with a stunning performance by Taron Egerton :the most successful artist of the first half of the seventies really comes alive ;many songs are included and it is a well-chose menu : they fit into the action quite well ,particularly "tiny dancer" and the title song ,perhaps the highlight of the whole movie . Jamie Bell gives strong support as Bernie Taupin and he has the most moving line of the script "yes I love you ,Elton,but not that way!"He's the sensible guy who hardly knows his good friend in his extravaganzas, his flashy costumes ,and he's the one who saved his life ,not only tonight as Elton sang in 1975 ,but later,when he made his descent into Hell. This is also a beautiful story of friendship.