Can't believe the insane level of Photoshopping they used in that pic! Looks more like something out of Pixar than anything else.
That looks to be based on Freddy from 1980-1985. Supposedly, the movie only gets to the Live Aid performance and ends there, completely ignoring the last half decade of Mercury's life, declining heath and death.
This film is of minimal interest to me, as I don't like Queen. But there is an interesting film to be made about his final five years - starting with the Live Aid triumph and ending with his death. It need not necessarily be a 'downbeat' story, either (though some idiots will insist that a film that culminates in someone's death from AIDS can't be anything other than downbeat) but it would - probably - not be an obvious subject for mainstream filmmaking.
Sacha Baron Cohen went on Howard Stern and was asked what happened to the Freddie Mercury picture he had been attached to for a couple of years, and he basically sighed and said that the band (particularly Brian May) had iron-clad control over the screenplay and demanded that a lot of the movie be about them. In fact, he said that their primary changes from the script he was part of involved detailing how the band continued performing after Freddie's death. My impression was that they were not keen on exploring the more sensational aspects of Mercury's life and death. Cohen walked away when he realized it wasn't a movie he was interested in making.
To make a viable movie, you need the queen music. You need the sync rights for the compositions and the master rights for the recordings. You can be denied one or both and have no movie. That's why you're only going to get what d/b/a Queen wants on the screen.
I highly doubt Queen, L.L.C. authorized this made-for-TV movie, yet there's Queen music (and footage) all over it:
Is there? I see the live video for Bohemian Rhapsody, and another scene with (supposedly) some studio work on Bohemian Rhapsody, but almost no other Queen music. Near the end, they use the video of The Great Pretender, which is not Queen nor Queen publishing. Using the live footage would require the master rights from whoever owns that video footage (possibly not Queen LLC) and the publisher of that song--B Feldman. Since that song was written by Mercury alone, sync rights wouldn't require a sign off by the other members of Queen. The studio work on Bohemian Rhapsody sounds a bit off, and might have been played by a mimic.
I watched the whole thing about a month ago, and from memory they used the studio recordings of "Bohemian Rhapsody," "Play the Game," and "These Are the Days of Our Lives." I don't remember if there were others.
Maybe Bryan Singer was able to talk some sense into the remaining members of Queen - how this film will boost their legacy, revive interest in their music, and present their friend and band-mate sympathetically. That, or in the words of Krusty the Clown:
According to Billboard: The film, which comes out Dec. 25, 2018, documents the British rock band's formation in 1970 up to Mercury's AIDS-related death in 1991. In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Malek recalls his first time seeing himself in fulll hair and makeup. “When you’re able to open your eyes and see a different person staring back at you in the mirror, it’s a very affirming moment," he says. While honoring Freddie's dark story and resonant voice remains a central part of the film, Malek says that that the mere resemblance to Mercury has huge importance. "Resembling the legendary musician," he says, “only adds to the level of confidence that one would need to play Freddie Mercury." It doesn't sound like they're going to get to Live Aid and stop, although it will make a triumphant ending. It will probably start with his death, a la Gandhi, and be one huge flashback.
The actor resembles Freddy without make-up...I'm sure he'll look the part. Pic is hard to tell due to the angle...
Oh yeah...I am pretty sure that they have too much interest in presenting their idea of the story, rather than something that better approximates the truth. A movie that either ends in 1985 or else focuses in the second half on how Queen soldiered on and triumphed after Freddy died is clearly the work of someone looking to paint a certain type of fantasy.
That's supposed to say "the making of The Cosmos Rocks. I edited and fixed it last night, but it didn't take for some reason.
Sure. I'd also like to see a dramatization of the scene where the band is figuring out what bonus tracks to put on their early 90s CD reissues: May: So, mates, what do we put on the new CDs to get them to sell? Deacon: We could scurry up some unreleased stuff and tag it on... May: Get real. No one would care about that. Taylor: Well, we could get someone to remix a few songs and make them sound like right now and add those. May: Oooh, now you're talking. Let's do it!