Rocketman

 

Rocketman 2019

• Director: Dexter Fletcher
• Seen by this director: Sunshine of Leith
• Based on the book: no
• Cast: Taron Egerton, Jamie Bell, Richard Madden, Bryce Dallas Howard, Gemma Jones, Steven Mackintosh, Harriet Walter
• Personal “oh yeah him/her” reaction, i.e. have seen this actor in:
• Taron Egerton – Legend, Testament of Youth
• Jamie Bell – Skin, Fantastic 4, Filth, Snowpiercer, Jane Eyre, The Eagle, Defiance, Jumper, Hallam Foe, King Kong, Dear Wendy, Undertow, Billy Elliot
• Richard Madden – Cinderella
• Bryce Dallas Howard – The Help, Terminator Salvation, As You Like It, Manderlay
• Gemma Jones – Unforgotten, Last Tango in Halifax, Merlin, Hysteria, Harry Potter, Longitude, Wilde, Sense and Sensibility, The Devils
• Steven Mackintosh – Robot Overlords, The Thirteenth Tale, Underworld etc, Our Mutual Friend, Twelfth Night, Prick Up Your Ears
• Harriet Walter – London Spy, Star Wars the Force Awakens, Simon Schama’s Shakespeare, From Time to Time, Young Victoria, Atonement, Babel, Bright Young Things, Keep the Aspidistras Flying, Sense and Sensibility
• Why? Elton John
• Seen: 2 April 2021

             Elton (Egerton) tells his life story at an AA/NA meeting in the form of a musical. It’s quite a tragic story.  How much is accurate is hard to say but Elton produced it so it tells us what he wants us to believe. This has been difficult for some viewers to swallow but it works for me. There may be just a tad too much self-pity and wallowing in misery but it’s a gripping film. Egerton is a convincing Elton with a great voice and Jamie Bell can do anything, even in long hair.

 

 4 * of 5