This article brought to you by Rim Chiropractic
By Nathan Hurlbut
Elton John is one of the best-selling musical artists of the past fifty years. Between 1969, the year he released his debut album “Empty Sky,” and 1976’s “Blue Moves,” he released a staggering eleven albums in a mere seven years. That demanding work ethic, along with his prodigious musical talents, ended up making him a household name and an international musical superstar.
Part of the reason many consider these to be his peak recording years was the consistency of his collaborators. He had the same crack team of musicians for most of that period, with guitarist Davey Johnstone, bassist Dee Murray, and drummer Nigel Olsson giving John the kind of virtuoso musical backing most artists would kill for. He also recorded every album during that time with producer Gus Dudgeon at the helm, who gave his releases a sparklingly immediate, state-of-the-art sound. It showed off the details of the incredible musicianship on hand and made the songs burst out of radio speakers and directly onto the charts.
Perhaps most importantly, though, every one of those albums featured lyrics by John’s life-long creative collaborator, Bernie Taupin. Incredibly, the now-legendary artistic partnership between Taupin and John was the result of a chance encounter through a newspaper advertisement, making for a truly amazing story.
Which makes it no surprise that a biographical movie about John’s life would eventually come to pass. So, we now have “Rocketman” in theaters to tell the tale of John’s wild and reckless roller coaster success story.
The film starts off with a bang, as John walks off stage and down a long corridor in one of his trademark flamboyant and colorful costumes (complete with horns and wings). As he opens the double doors at the end of the hall, he walks directly into a group therapy meeting and sits down. It’s both a surprising moment and a telling sign that the movie is not going to be a glamorized bit of rock star idol-worshipping, opting instead to focus on exploring the man himself.
In an inspired narrative strategy, the details of John’s life subsequently unfold as he relays them to his therapy group. The more John talks about and explores the issues of his life, the more he physically removes his extravagant costume until he is left wearing a drab gray bathrobe. It proves a pointed metaphor for the unloading of his emotional baggage, and brilliantly illustrates the life events that made him seek such attention-grabbing showmanship in the first place.
Speaking of showmanship, the story later proceeds into its first musical number, revealing that the movie is indeed a musical. However, it proves to be one with a more unconventional approach to John’s music that is also integrated unusually well into the story. The chronology might not always be accurate, but the format is such an appropriate move for someone like Elton that it becomes easy to forget it isn’t actually John who is singing these songs.
Rather, that would be the extraordinary vocal talents of lead actor Taron Egerton, who does an impressive job of bringing Elton John’s character to life. Die-hard Elton fans may find the absence of John’s actual voice occasionally disappointing. However, Egerton plays the role with such emotional conviction and soaring vocal ability that it’s a hard to find fault there. Plus, the re-interpreted songs are executed by director Dexter Fletcher with a fetishized degree of Baz Luhrmann-like spectacle. It makes the musical numbers pop onscreen and ensures you will never be bored.
Meanwhile, the screenplay by Lee Hall unflinchingly plumbs both the depths and peaks of John’s unchecked superstardom in a way that is less gossipy tabloid rag and more interrogative character study. The film makes clear that John’s meteoric success only exacerbated the emotional issues at the core of his personality, the result of a seriously dysfunctional childhood.
Fortunately, the story doesn’t shy away from these darkest parts of the journey, making the eventual successes that much more emotionally satisfying. To that end, “Rocketman” ends up having the best of both worlds; wrapping an inspiring tale of overcoming personal demons in an inventive and endlessly entertaining rock star biography. Sir Elton John himself must be impressed.
Rated R.