Fans of the legendary musician Elton John have wondered if an actor’s portrayal of the star “nailed” the performer.
Rocketman, the 2019 biopic of John’s work and personal life, was hailed at the time of release as a fantastic adaptation which blended touching moments with musical highs. Fans of the biopic and of actor Taron Egerton, who portrayed John on screen, have since wondered whether the biopic stands up six years on from its release. A post to the r/EltonJohn subreddit reads: “Did Taron Egerton nail it? I recently watched Rocketman again. It comes across as a Broadway musical, and focuses on many of the negative parts of Elton’s life.
“I think Taron nailed the part of Elton, maybe not physically, but he did look like him in parts. What do others think about the film, and Taron’s portrayal?” Fans of the film and of John’s work are adamant that Egerton nailed the role. His portrayal received praise from members of the subreddit. One user wrote: “Yup, he nailed it.”
Another added: “He absolutely crushed it, he was amazing in every way. And I’d much rather someone not resemble the person and a great job than vice versa. Besides, as you mentioned there are bits when he does bare a striking resemblance like the Pinball Wizard scene.”
A third wrote: “He’s the reason I’m an Elton fanatic now, so definitely! I also think it’s important to remember that Rocketman is an interpretation of Elton and his life and not an imitation. Taron always says that the one piece of advice Elton gave him before shooting was to not imitate him and just make it his own thing.
“Although I’ve read so many books about Elton at this point that I’d love if they did a limited series someday that focused more on his music! Also, in terms of looks, I think he captured a specific era of Elton perfectly and they mostly stuck with that. If you’ve seen footage from when Elton played the Hollywood Bowl in 1973 I think he looks remarkably similar in Rocketman.”
Others were not as glowing in their praise of Egerton’s performance, suggesting there was a little more to be desired from his role. One user wrote: “I honestly never bought into him as Elton John in that movie. Good performance but to me he wasn’t Elton.”
Another added: “After I saw the movie I went online and started watching all of Elton John’s old footage (amazing) and listening to his music (more amazing) so I credit the movie with making me want to listen to a lot of Elton John music that I didn’t even know existed such as what he’d done before Crocodile Rock and Daniel.
“I previously had no knowledge of the Elton John self-titled album, Madman Across The Water album and Honky Chateau album other than the song Honky Cat playing on the radio when it came out. So big credit to Taron for getting me much more interested in Elton John and Bernie Taupin, and their amazing careers.”
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