WHAT’S IT ABOUT
Rocketman is an epic musical fantasy about the incredible human story of Elton John’s breakthrough years. The film follows the fantastical journey of transformation from shy piano prodigy Reginald Dwight into international superstar Elton John.
MOVIESinMO REVIEW
Just when you thought they were running out of celebrity stories to tell, along comes Sir Elton John’s Rocketman. Other than being named after Elton’s 1972 song of the same name, this film has nothing to do with space, neither literal or metaphorical. This is a factual telling of the early years of Elton John’s life told as only he could envision it. Instead of boring us with the usual “humble beginnings” story like some of those other bio-flicks, Rocketman is told in flashbacks by a very flamboyant Elton John speaking at his drug rehab meeting over the tune The Bitch is Back (1974). The songs in the movie are used to help tell his story on a musical and emotional level. This means not every song is heard in its chronological order. Once you understand that, the story of the movie is much clearer and the songs used have a more special meaning and personal connection to Elton’s life. You learn that his parents were real A-holes. You also realize Elton was/is a prodigy considering how fast he learned and how well he played the piano. His ability to write music around Bernie Taupin’s lyrics was and still is very impressive. The story is very fluid and straightforward, and unlike Bohemian Rhapsody, Rocketman never loses its primary focus – Reginald Kenneth Dwight or Elton John as we know him today. His story is told in an exciting way that appeals to people that either don’t know or don’t care about his music. If you are an Elton John fan, listening to his music is a definite plus. In the end, Elton’s life was very turbulent and filled with problems starting with the lack of a loving relationship with his parents to his sexual orientation that most people didn’t care about. This caused his severe drug problem because of his inability to cope with his issues on a more nondestructive level. Like Freddie Mercury’s Bohemian Rhapsody, you cheer for the artist’s triumphs as you empathize with their pain.
OUR RATING – A POSITIVLY FLAMBOUYANT 8
MEDIA
- Genre – Comic Book
- Street date
- Digital – August 6th 2019
- DVD/Blu-Ray – August 27th 2019
- Video – 1080p
- Screen size – 2.39:1
- Sound – English Dolby Atmos
- Subtitles – English SDH
Extras
- Extended Musical Numbers with Introduction by Dexter Fletcher
- Deleted and Extended Scenes with Introduction by Dexter Fletcher
- It’s Going to Be a Wild Ride: Creative Vision
- Becoming Elton John: Taron’s Transformation
- Larger Than Life: Production Design & Costuming
- Full Tilt: Staging the Musical Numbers
- Music Reimagined: The Studio Sessions – Behind the scenes in the recording studio with Taron & Elton
- ROCKETMAN Lyric Companion: Sing-Along with Select Songs (English only)
- ROCKETMAN Jukebox: Jump Straight to the Music