This biopic on Freddie Mercury and Queen, headed by the guitarist and the drummer of the group, announced itself badly: departure of the actor Sacha Baron Cohen, ousting of the director Bryan Singer during filming.
But he betrays neither his subject nor the viewer. Do not expect to dive into the crazy intimacy of Mercury, whose taste for bacchanalia is summed up in a few lines and a scene as decadent as a dinner at Stéphane Bern’s. However, the film evokes AIDS with a welcome modesty.
It gives pride of place to the genesis of the big hits and the scenic power of the singer, camped by a too puny Rami Malek who knows how to raise the mercury. With mainstream ambitions, this rhapsody about gay bohemian Farrokh Bulsara (Mercury’s real name) turns his tragedy into feel good movie musical.
Wednesday January 18 at 9 p.m. on Paris Première. American musical biopic of Bryan Singer (2018). With Rami Malek, Lucy Boynton. 2h15. (Multicast and On Demand).
