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The new film by Elton John Rocketman never pretends to be a traditional biopic. It's an imaginary musical from the point of view of an exhausted and drug addicted Elton who reflects on his wild life in a rehabilitation facility in the early 1990s. The characters often go into choreographed songs and routines. carefully, songs are played long before he writes them, chronology is often absent and facts are ignored in favor of creating a captivating narrative and capturing the emotional truth of Elton's life .
"What's important is to capture cinematographic and musical moments", Rocketman director Dexter Fletcher said Rolling stone. "I have to take an artistic license, and that's what Elton said I should do. She is a creative and artistic person and that's what we did. "
Given all this, checking the film may seem like an unfair exercise. But many people will see him with only a pbading acquaintance of Elton's life and will come out of the theater curious to know what was real and what was fictional. Here is a very incomplete list of film moments that are not quite accurate historically.
1. Bernie Taupin did not write the lyrics of "Border Song" in 1967
In real life and in the film, Ray Williams, a Liberty Records executive, introduced his long-time lyricist, Bernie Taupin, to John. But the film shows Williams transmitting Taupin's words to "Border Song" even before the two meet. This song would not be created before two years. You see briefly a manuscript for "A dandelion dies in the wind", which is indeed an air of 1967.
2. Elton did not take his last name from John Lennon
As the film shows, Reginald-born man Kenneth Dwight shot the first part of his stage name from Bluesology teammate Elton Dean. But the "John" does not come from John Lennon. He came from Long John Baldry, one of the pillars of the 1960s London rock scene who was one of his early mentors and discovered Rod Stewart.
3. Elton did not audition for Dick James playing "Daniel" and "I guess that's why they call it blues"
Ray Williams was impressed by Elton John from the start, but his boss, Dick James, was much more skeptical. In RocketmanElton tries to impress him by playing pieces of "Daniel" and "I guess that's why they call it blues." But we are in 1967 and these songs will only be written in 1972 and 1983.
4. "Crocodile Rock" was not played in Elton's American debut at Troubadour
The most crucial evening of Elton John's career took place on August 25, 1970, when he made his American debut at the Troubadour and blasted the audience. Rocketman recreates the evening in every detail, but they show him singing "Crocodile Rock" while Taupin and he were about to write it. (We could also be incredibly fussy and point out that the series was on a Tuesday and not a Monday, as the movie says.)
5. Neil Young did not play the Troubadour a week before Elton
When Elton arrives for the first time at the Troubadour and is surprised at his small size, the owner, Doug Weston, tells him that Neil Young played two weeks earlier and that he filled his place. Young had just finished a tour of the CSNY and was playing with rooms much larger than the Troubadour. He played for the last time at the Troubadour well over a year before Elton's debut in the US and has not done any show there since.
6. John did not meet his group that night
Movie Elton was very nervous when Dick James told him that he had booked concerts at the Troubadour because he did not even have a band yet. Ray Williams says he'll take care of that and meet the musicians when he arrives at the scene. In real life, Elton played with drummer Nigel Olson and bbadist Dee Murray all over England since April 1970, four months before they left for Los Angeles.
7. He did not have a guitarist in 1970
Elton played Troubadour cooked only by Murray and Olsson. There are no tapes of this night, but you can hear their sound on this incredible live album 17.11.70. A guitarist will not join them before Davey Johnston until 1972. Murray died in 1992, but Olsson and Johnstone are still on tour 49 years later.
8. John Reid did not enter his life that night
In the film, Elton and Bernie go to a party at Mama Cbad after the Troubadour. Bernie goes out and leaves Elton alone, but a Scotsman introduces himself and introduces himself as musical director John Reid. This is an important moment since Reid became Elton's lover for a few years and his director until 1998. But they did not meet that night. This took place at a Motown Christmas party later that year.
9. 1971 to 1990 is not a drop of amorphous time
After this breakthrough at the Troubadour, it is very difficult to follow the chronology of the life of the movie Elton. We are witnessing a rapid editing of newspaper titles and gold records before the sudden arrival of 1976, and he recorded with Kiki Dee "Do not break my heart". But a little later, it's 1975 and he plays at Dodger Stadium then in 1979 and records. Victim of love wearing a sequined hat that looked like him 10 years later. It's pretty funny, but Elton remembers his life in a rehabilitation facility in the years to come. It is therefore understandable that his memory works in this way.
10. He did not marry Renate Blauel until 1984
The film shows him the recording of the Victim of love title in 1979 and falling for the sound engineer Renate Blauel while they sing together "Do not let the sun go down on me". He is so desperate by a real human connection at this point that he marries her although he is homobadual and the marriage is doomed to failure. They cut from the studio to their wedding, but that did not happen until 1984.
11. He did not have an extended separation with Bernie Taupin
The film says that John and Taupin "never quarreled" shortly before showing them that they have a few small mouths. At the end of a particularly bitter episode, Bernie goes wild singing "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road". This implies that they worked separately for years. There was a period in the late 1970s when Elton worked with Gary Osborne and other lyricists, but it only lasted a few albums and the duo worked together almost exclusively from the beginning of the eighties.
12. "I'm still standing" was written years before he was incarcerated
The film ends with kicks, alcohol and alcohol in rehab and the writing of "I'm still standing" in a festive moment where he recognizes that He can always create good music while remaining sober. But the song was released in 1983 and he finished his rehab in 1991.
Again, none of these things really matter and if you want the strict truth about Elton John's life, you will find many books and documentaries on the subject. (May we humbly recommend Tantras and Tiaras and Elton John: me, me and me.) They will not see Elton enter reeducation dressed as giant red devil or singing "Rocket Man" at the bottom of a pool duet with his childhood character. They will not be as fun as Rocketman.
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