Rocketman review: A wonderful ride into the legend that is Elton John

Taron Egerton transforms into Elton John as Rocketman lift offs into a truly emotional musical biopic.

Rocketman hit theaters this weekend exceeding all expectation laid out. Its brilliant pace sets the tone early on, and the rise and somewhat “fall” of Sir Elton John is a truly amazing story.  A strong score right off the bat, Rotten Tomatoes gives it an impressive 91% in the Tomatometer off of 248 first reviews.

Facing a tough challenge ahead for Taron Egerton, especially after last year’s Oscar-nominated biopic Bohemian Rhapsody in which Rami Malek won an Oscar portraying the late Freddie Mercury, he faces it head on and nails it close to perfection.  The fact that unlike Malek’s Mercury in which he lips synced, Egerton actually sings in the movie. It’s his voice and his tone singing Elton’s songs.

Elton John, who oversaw every detail of the film serving as an executive producer, was so pleased and astonished with Egerton’s performance that he praised him stating he wasn’t watching Egerton sing, he was watching himself sing in the movie.

"“When I watch the movie, I don’t see an actor, I see myself, which is an extraordinary thing for an actor to do.  He’s extraordinary.”"

Elton John told IndieWire in an interview last year.

The story

Since Elton John was a producer on the movie, he made sure every moment was captured stemming from his childhood all the way to his dark turn leading him to rehab.  The surprise was that the storytelling never swayed even when the musical scenes separated us from reality.

The small facts that were inputted for dramatic purposes, besides the fantasy musical hits, didn’t disrupt the emphasis of the story.  Something that usually makes these biopics fall short. Rocketman made sure that wasn’t the case. It was a smooth and entertaining ride from start to finish and Egerton along with a magnificent supporting cast of Richard Madden, Jamie Bell, and Bryce Dallas Howard made sure the audience felt the story come alive on the big screen.

The ending, in particular, shines when you see the real-life comparisons to Elton John and witness exactly how accurate everything really was.  Director Dexter Fletcher delivered that in strides.

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The music

Taron Egerton already had a special connection with Elton John before donning the rockstar’s sunglasses. He noted he auditioned for drama school when he was younger with an actual song by Elton John. It was his famous ballad “Your Song” that dazzled in that audition, so no wonder he nailed practically every song he actually sang in the movie.

Rocketman‘s music is shown as a live musical with supporting cast and extras bursting into song in various locations as the movie progresses. It displays meaning into his life and the ride is joyous and pure vibrant fun.

Being R-rated it also isn’t afraid to show the emotions drawn from the music.  A musical could serve up its limits, but this one doesn’t follow those rules and shows it’s true colors.  You feel the electrifying energy Egerton brings into Elton John and you fall in love with the process.

An entertaining musical show, Rocketman is this year’s must-watch biopic and it will leave you longing for just a bit more.

Experience Rocketman on the big screen now!