20th Century Fox released two new photos of Rami Malek as Freddie Mercury in the upcoming feature of Bohemian Rhapsody and I still don’t see it. Part of the reason why we are still listening to Queen, 26 years after he died is because he was a larger than life personality.
His voice stood out in a crowd. He stood out in a crowd. Mercury had such a presence that nothing could overshadow him. Whether it was him on video or just in a picture. So far, we have only seen Malek in photos as the legend and he gets lost in them. For example, in the first photo, I am more drawn to the actor playing Brian May than him. In the second one, I had to squint to see him.
That is the thing about Malek, he blends in. Which is a good thing, but a bad thing when you are playing someone like Freddie Mercury.
I know the critics will eat him up just like they do Mr. Robot. Just because he is good on that show, does not mean he is going to be good as the legendary musician.
Freddie Mercury is an idol to me, and I don’t think this movie is going to capture his essence. An essence that has lasted 5 more years and counting than he had a career.
What do you think? Are you going to ride your bicycle to see it on November 2nd?
