Rocketman (film)

Elton John and husband David Furnish tried to produce a film based on his life for almost two decades. The earliest efforts dated back to the 2000s, when development started at Walt Disney Pictures. Photographer David LaChapelle was set to direct the film after his work on the video for John's 2001 single, "This Train Don't Stop There Anymore", which featured Justin Timberlake as a young John.[5] However, the project languished for nearly two decades.[5] In an article written for The Guardian, John said that he struggled to get the film off the ground due to studios wanting it to be toned down to a PG-13 rating instead of an R.[6]

In January 2012, John announced that he had named Timberlake as his top choice to play him in the film. Lee Hall was set to pen the screenplay.[7] In March 2013, Michael Gracey was hired to direct, with Tom Hardy cast in October to play John and FilmDistrict (and later Focus Features) acquiring the U.S. distribution rights.[8] Filming was initially planned to start in autumn 2014.[9][10] However, creative differences between John and Focus, along with budget issues, led him and Furnish to take the project elsewhere.[11]

In July 2017, it was announced that Hardy was no longer involved, and Taron Egerton entered negotiations to replace him.[11] While editing Kingsman: The Golden Circle, Matthew Vaughn learned about the project and took interest in producing the film on the condition that Egerton played John.[11] Vaughn then picked Dexter Fletcher, who had replaced Bryan Singer during the production of the Queen biopic Bohemian Rhapsody, to direct the film since Gracey was busy with The Greatest Showman and was later credited as one of the executive producers on the film.[11] The producers then filmed a sequence of Egerton as John performing two of John's songs, and presented it to Jim Gianopulos, who had worked with Vaughn on the Kingsman franchise at 20th Century Fox and was now the CEO of Paramount Pictures.[11] Paramount and New Republic Pictures agreed to finance the film in exchange for worldwide distribution rights.[11] It was reported that Egerton would sing the songs in the film himself, produced by Giles Martin, who was brought on as music producer for the project.[12] In an interview at CinemaCon, Egerton stated the film would be a lot more of a visually stylized epic musical-fantasy rather than just a traditional straightforward biopic.[13][14]

In April 2018, Taron Egerton was officially cast to play the musician in the film. Egerton had previously appeared with John in the 2017 film Kingsman: The Golden Circle, and Egerton, as Johnny the Gorilla, sang John's song "I'm Still Standing" in the 2016 animated film Sing. In June, the role of Bernie Taupin was given to Jamie Bell.[15] In July, Richard Madden entered negotiations to play John Reid, and Bryce Dallas Howard was cast to play John's mother.[16][17] Gemma Jones was announced as being cast in the film in October.[18]

Production began on 2 August 2018.[19] In October 2018, it was announced the film was shooting in London.[20] Filming commenced at Bray Film Studios near Maidenhead, Berkshire.[21] Additional filming occurred at Pinewood Studios and Shepperton Studios.[22]

The soundtrack for the film was released by Virgin EMI (UK) and Interscope Records (US) on CD and digital formats on 24 May 2019 and was also released by Interscope Records on vinyl on August 23, 2019. The album contains 22 tracks of several hits performed by the cast of the film and a newly written award-winning track "(I'm Gonna) Love Me Again" featuring vocals by Taron Egerton and Elton John together.

A commercial success in terms of sales, the soundtrack reached the Top 40 chart level in multiple English-speaking countries such as Australia, Switzerland, and the United States, including the production's own United Kingdom.

Rocketman grossed $96.4 million in the United States and Canada, and $98.8 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $195.2 million, against a production budget of $40 million.[2]

In the United States and Canada, the film was released alongside Godzilla: King of the Monsters and Ma, and was projected to gross $20–25 million from 3,610 theaters in its opening weekend.[34][35] The film made $9.2 million on its first day, including $1.8 million from Thursday night previews and including and $580,000 from its 18 May paid-advanced Fandango screenings, for a preview total of $2.3 million. It went on to debut to $25.7 million, finishing third, behind Godzilla: King of the Monsters and Aladdin.[36] The film dropped 46% in its second weekend to $14 million, finishing in fifth,[37] and then made $9.4 million in its third weekend, climbing to the fourth position.[38]

In the United Kingdom, it debuted to $6.4 million, finishing second behind fellow new release Aladdin.[39] The following week, the film was projected to gross around $20 million from the international markets it was released in alongside the U.S.,[35] and ended up making $19.2 million from 39 non-U.S. countries over the weekend.[40]

Taron Egerton's performance as Elton John garnered widespread acclaim from critics and audiences, as well as from John himself.[41][42]

Rocketman received a largely positive response from critics, with some calling it one of the best films released in 2019, as well as being considered the best reviewed musical movie of the year and one of the best reviewed British releases of the year, praising Egerton's acting and vocal performance, the costume design, soundtrack, and the musical sequences.[43][44][45] On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 89% based on 401 reviews, with an average rating of 7.6/10. The website's critics consensus reads: "It's going to be a long, long time before a rock biopic manages to capture the highs and lows of an artist's life like Rocketman."[46] On Metacritic, it has a weighted average score of 69 out of 100, based on 49 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[47] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A−" on an A+ to F scale, while those at PostTrak gave it an average 4 out of 5 stars and a 69% "definite recommend".[36]

At its Cannes Film Festival premiere, the film received a standing ovation.[48] It also received a standing ovation from Oscar voters at the Academy screening.[49] Steve Pond of TheWrap said, "It's all grand and fun and corny; a musical fantasy that reaches for the sky and gets there often enough to make it diverting."[50] The Guardian's Peter Bradshaw gave the film three stars out of five, saying Egerton performed a "good impression of the flamboyant musician," and writing, "Rocketman is an honest, heartfelt tribute to Elton John's music and his public image."[51] In the same newspaper, Mark Kermode gave the film five stars, writing that "Fletcher is the real star of this show, a director whose enthusiasm for musical storytelling shines through every frame."[52] Chicago Sun-Times critic Richard Roeper also greatly enjoyed the film, giving it three-and-a-half stars out of four and praising its "almost documentary-level eye for detail when it comes to re-creating historic chapters such as the sold-out shows at Dodger Stadium in 1975 when Elton wore a sequined Dodgers uniform and belted out one hit after another to the adoring masses."[53]

Christy Lemire of RogerEbert.com had mixed feelings about Rocketman, awarding it two-and-a-half stars out of four and stating that the film is a "formulaic, paint-by-numbers biopic."[54]

The timeline of Elton John and Bernie Taupin's friendship and career is altered to an extent, as the first song they wrote together after they met in 1967 was "Scarecrow", while "Border Song" was not written until 1969. John and Taupin also spent two years working as staff songwriters for Dick James, beginning in 1968, and created tracks for artists such as Roger Cook and Lulu, with the first album of the pair's music being 1969's Empty Sky.[78][79][80] Regarding the affirmation that John and Bernie never had an argument, the liner notes for the 1975 album Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy features a 12 January 1969 diary entry written by John that reads, "Had row with Bernie."[81] In a 2011 interview, Elton could not remember what they had a row about.[79]

Dick James was the one who encouraged then-Reggie Dwight to choose a stage name, and on 7 May 1972, he legally changed his name to Elton Hercules John; however, John is shown auditioning for James by playing "Daniel" and "I Guess That's Why They Call It the Blues", but the songs were not written until 1972 and 1983, respectively.[78][82][83]

While Elton John adopted his first name from a Bluesology bandmate (saxophonist Elton Dean), he did not change his last name while glancing at a photo of John Lennon: the last name was inspired by Elton's early mentor and friend, Long John Baldry, who had hired Bluesology as his backup band in 1966. Elton John admired Baldry as one of the few people in the music scene who were both openly gay and highly esteemed.[81][84][85]

Elton is shown to have dated a landlady named Arabella, but he actually dated a secretary named Linda Hannon (née Woodrow) for two years, and was engaged to her in 1969. John ended up sinking into a suicidal depression due to stress faced with the prospect of living a domestic life in the suburbs, and attempted to kill himself in his kitchen from inert gas asphyxiation, but failed to do so (leaving the kitchen windows open, and being found by Bernie Taupin). Less than a month before the wedding, John suddenly broke off their engagement on the advice of Long John Baldry. Elton and Taupin ended up writing the song "Someone Saved My Life Tonight" based on the failed engagement and Baldry's advice.[86][81] Hannon revealed her disappointment for not being mentioned in the film.[87]

Elton's 1970 performance at the Troubadour was actually well over a year after Neil Young's last show at the venue (Young has not done another concert there since), and Elton's show, on 25 August 1970, was actually on a Tuesday (as opposed to the Monday in the film). Elton is shown playing "Crocodile Rock" at the Troubadour, but the song was written in 1972 and is also seen meeting his backing band on the night of the show, but he had been touring with bassist Dee Murray and drummer Nigel Olsson all over England since April 1970, four months before they went to Los Angeles. The guitar player at the Troubadour concert is fictional: Elton did not have a guitarist until Davey Johnstone in 1972.[78]

Elton is seen meeting John Reid at Mama Cass's house in Los Angeles, but they actually met at a Motown Records Christmas party in London in December 1970.[88][89]

Elton's concert at the Dodger Stadium happened in 1975, one year before the recording of "Don't Go Breaking My Heart",[78] and while Elton met Renate Blauel while she was working as a sound engineer on one of his albums, it was on 1983's Too Low for Zero, not 1979's Victim of Love. He proposed to her on 10 February 1984 in Australia, and they married in Sydney on Valentine's Day of the same year.[90] They officially announced their divorce on 18 November 1988.[91]

Although Elton cancelled a concert at the Madison Square Garden in New York, this was in 1984, and because he had a viral flu.[92] John actually checked into rehab in 1990 at the Advocate Lutheran General Hospital in Chicago a few months after a young friend, Ryan White, had died from AIDS, and after a visit to his boyfriend at the time, Hugh Williams, in a rehab facility in Prescott, Arizona.[93][94]

"I'm Still Standing" was not written while Elton was in rehab, nor was the music video filmed after he had left: the song was recorded in 1982, and the song and the video were released a year later.[95][96][84]

Elton's half-brother Geoff Dwight disputed the characterization of John's father, Stanley Dwight, stating, "My dad was kind and gentle. He spoke his mind but encouraged us all, including Elton, to do what we were good at. As a boy, when he started supporting Watford, it was my father who took him to the matches."[97] In a previous 2010 interview, Geoff recalled, "When I was growing up, Elton was always there and we had a lot of fun on family holidays and things like that".[81] John's stepmother, Edna, told biographer Philip Norman for 2001's Sir Elton: The Definitive Biography that "Stanley's been made out as an overbearing monster. But it's just not true. He was a lovely man, a good father, and a loving husband." She added that, far from discouraging his son's musical talent, Stanley bought him a piano in 1963, showing Norman the receipt.[81] He also wrote a letter to congratulate Elton on winning a scholarship to the Royal Academy of Music.

On the other hand, the portrayal of Elton's mother, Sheila, was seen as being far more accurate. She did not allow him to get an Elvis Presley styled haircut, though Elton idolized the American's look.[98]

The depiction of Dick James was disputed by musician Caleb Quaye, who was a member of Elton's former band Bluesology. Quaye described James as "a gentleman," and criticized him being shown in the film as a boorish, foul-mouthed cockney. "He wasn't cockney. He was an old-school music man but was smartly dressed, you never heard a cuss word out of him. He was like a father, he gave us an opportunity to learn our craft. I don't understand the fantasy of depicting him like that because he was nothing like it."[99] Dick's son, Stephen James (who helped discover Elton and encouraged Dick to sign him up to his music label DJM Records), also criticized the film's portrayal of his father, calling John "basically a coward" and claiming that he wanted to destroy "everybody who was helpful or good" during the early days of his career, adding, "I don't understand why he seems to feel the need to try to destroy everybody who helped him. We only ever tried to do the best for him and to promote his career. I really am very upset that he has turned on people in this way. They basically depict my father in the film completely opposite to the way he was in real life."[100] Beatles historian Mark Lewisohn also criticized the depiction of James in the film, calling it "utterly outrageous and really disgusting."[101]