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First screening of Bohemian Rhapsody delivers mixed reviews


Bohemian Rhapsody is all about Freddie Mercury and the band Queen and a select few have been lucky enough to finally watch it. 

The shared opinions of the select few give previous reports of Bohemian Rhapsody being saved by the performance reenactments more weight. 

The responses of the select few who were able to view the first screening of the film were shared by Dirk Libby on Cinemablend and the picture it paints isn't very positive.

Directly quoted from the article, Dirk reports on the following:

"Mike Ryan from Uproxx takes issue with the way the film portrays the lead singer while praising Rami Malek for the role, and also one very special cameo...

My biggest takeaway from Bohemian Rhapsody is how much the rest of Queen resents Freddie Mercury. But Rami Malek is outstanding. Also, the fact Mike Myers is in this movie is genius and insane.

Ryan goes on in a later tweet to say the third act of the movie "is not even close to accurate" which would seem to indicate that it doesn't paint Mercury in a good light and that the rest of Queen, who was directly involved in the production, might be the reason that's the case.

Eric Kohn from Indiewire had a similar response to Uproxx. He was clearly unimpressed by Bohemian Rhapsody overall. Although, he does call out one specific scene in the movie that was apparently quite impressive, the recreation of Queen's famous Live Aid performance.


Bohemian Rhapsody: That Live Aid performance gave me chills. The rest of the movie...

This is not to say that everybody has mixed feelings about Bohemian Rhapsody. Legion of Leia's Jenna Busch is unequivocal in her love for the movie. She also specifically praises Rami Malek's performance but also says the movie tells a great story and works really well as a concert film, which will likely be what makes the movie really work for many Queen fans.


Absolutely beyond blown away by Bohemian Rhapsody! Rami Malek is phenomenal. Gorgeous story, amazing concert movie...I don't have enough words!

On the opposite end of the spectrum, we have the New York Times, who gives Bohemian Rhapsody one if its harshest responses. While Kyle Buchanan still has good things to say about Rami Malek, he's not quite as complimentary as he appears, and the rest of the movie comes off even worse.


Bohemian Rhapsody is a glorified Wikipedia entry but Rami Malek plays Freddie Mercury (and wears his wonderful costumes) with incredible gusto

Claiming that Rami Malek plays Freddie Mercury "with gusto" isn't the same as saying he plays him well. It may mean that the actor gave the role his all, but it doesn't mean that the end result is necessarily successful.

In the end, the most accurate response to Bohemian Rhapsody may have come from Indiewire's Anne Thompson, who has correctly predicted that this film is going to get mixed reviews.


Bohemian Rhapsody is a straight-on biopic with plenty of Queen music and a strong performance by Rami Malek. It will get mixed reviews. It might play with audiences.

If the first batch of responses is true, then mixed reviews may very well be incoming. Of course, that doesn't mean the movie won't be a hit. Between the generally well regarded lead performance and what seems to be generally regarded appreciation for the use of Queen's music, we could still very well see the movie draw in huge audiences."

Many fans have responded positively to the idea of the movie Bohemian Rhapsody, but it seems the result is less than what was expected.

The movie is set to release on 30 November at Nu Metro in South Africa.