“Bohemian Rhapsody is a foot-stomping celebration of Queen, their music and their extraordinary lead singer Freddie Mercury. Freddie defied stereotypes and shattered convention to become one of the most beloved entertainers on the planet. The film traces the meteoric rise of the band through their iconic songs and revolutionary sound. They reach unparalleled success, but in an unexpected turn Freddie, surrounded by darker influences, shuns Queen in pursuit of his solo career. Having suffered greatly without the collaboration of Queen, Freddie manages to reunite with his bandmates just in time for Live Aid. While bravely facing a recent AIDS diagnosis, Freddie leads the band in one of the greatest performances in the history of rock music. Queen cements a legacy that continues to inspire outsiders, dreamers and music lovers to this day” – Official Synopsis
Bohemian Rhapsody is based on the true story of Queen’s journey to fame. The film starts out by showing a scene of Farrokh Bulsara, better known as Freddie, working as a baggage handler at an airport in London. Freddie lives with his parents and goes out with his friends to listen to music at night. One night, Freddie and his friends attend a performance by a band by the name of “Smile”. At the end of the show, Time Staffell, lead singer of the band, approaches the other members of the band, Brian May and Roger Taylor, and tells them he no longer wants to be part of the band. Freddie approaches Brian and Roger to condemn their performance. Freddie begins to sing to them, which impressed them, so they ask if he wants to be their new lead singer of the band. Nearly a year goes by and they are performing across England. Freddie has been dating Mary. The band’s van breaks down one day and Freddie recommends they sell the van to record their very first album. This is when the band starts to go by the name “Queen”.
In 1975, Freddie proposed to Mary and she says yes. John Reid, who is their manager, has booked the band a tour of the U.S. The band then meets with EMI’s record producer Ray Foster to produce their upcoming album. The band has several disagreements regarding their next big hit. Eventually, they decide to crease “Bohemian Rhapsody”. The band plays the song for Foster and he immediately doesn’t approve. He suggests different names, thinks the song is too long, and the wording needs to be changed. Freddie takes “Bohemian Rhapsody“ to DJ Kenny Everett and the song is now released to the public. The song becomes one of Queen’s biggest hits.
The date is now 1980 and Queen’s comes up with their next biggest hit “We Will Rock You”. Freddie is offered a solo deal, which would make him have to leave the band. Freddie isn’t a fan of this idea, so he denies the offer. Freddie’s behavior starts to get worse. Later on, Freddie confesses that he has signed a $4 million solo contract with CBS Records. This deeply upsets the other band members. In 1984, Freddie moves to Germany to record his first solo album titled “Mr. Bad Guy”. Freddie gets in touch with Beach to encourage the others to join Live Aid. Queen gets the go to perform. Shortly after, Freddie tested positive for AIDS. The film ends with Queen performing at Live Aid and their performance is absolutely incredible.
Overall, I thought Bohemian Rhapsody was phenomenal. I found the film to be very inspiring and made me realize how much talent the band Queen truly had. Through the ups and downs, the band found their way back together and put on an incredible show at Live Aid. The film gave me a love for Queen that I didn’t have before watching. The cast was incredible, and I don’t think could have been any better than what it was. I highly recommend watching this film.