“Real love is hard to come by,” says the artist formerly known as Reginald Kenneth Dwight (Taron Egerton) after walking out of a concert at Madison Square Garden to seek help for his drug and alcohol addictions at a rehabilitation clinic. To which he adds, shrink-wrapped in spandex and feathers, “So you have to find a way to cope without it.”

And the void he is trying to fill with shopping and fucking and popping pills and chucking drinks down his throat faster than the shooting star of his career which, like him, is in danger of imploding, stems back to the distant relationship he had with estranged father Stanley (Steven Mackintosh) from whom all he wanted was a hug.

Showing affection, dismissed as being “soft”. Having an interest in fashion, the preserve of “a girl”. Playing the piano, an unwelcome intrusion into the “frigid fucking life” he once shared with his fur coat and nae knickers mother Sheila (Bryce Dallas Howard) and doting nan Ivy (Gemma Jones). The former of whom accepted if not approved of his homosexuality and chided him for “choosing a life of being alone forever” during which he would “never be loved properly”.

As we know, after twenty-plus years of sobriety and a loving relationship with his husband David Furnish, a happy ending awaits for the young Elton (Kit Connor). And the ups and downs of his colourful life and remarkable career, described by his first manager Dick James (Stephen Graham) as “trans-fucking-atlantic”, are well-known. As is his back catalogue of hit songs written by Bennie Taupin (Jamie Bell).

But what makes this biographical musical, penned by Lee Hall (Billy Elliot, War Horse) and directed by Dexter Fletcher (Sunshine On Leith, Bohemian Rhapsody) stand out from the toe-tapping if run-of-the-mill crowd, are the way in which the songs are stripped back and toned down to the point that they are predominantly dramatic monologues offering a rare glimpse into the private world behind the public mask of not only Elton but those who clung to and swung around him. Including Richard Madden as his lover-turned-second manager John Reid.

Not only that, but they are subtly woven into the plot; propel the action forward, in some cases by decades; and are inventively staged. Saturday Night’s Alright For Fighting covering the period from young Reggie’s debut at a local pub to his name-changing transition in support of a touring American soul act. One of the musicians of whom Wilson (Jason Pennycooke) instructs: “Kill the person you were born to be in order to become the person you want to be.”

Other standouts being a suicidal plunge into the bottom of a swimming pool during which he performs the title track in a poignant duet with his younger self. And a literal euphoric rise during his debut at the legendary Troubadour club in which both he and the star-studded crowd not only rise to their feet but are lifted off them in a roof-raising rendition of I Remember When I Was Young.

The one-liners swing between tongue-in-cheek (“Don’t break your neck sucking your own cock”) and tragic (“For my next trick, I’m going to fucking kill myself”). And the ensemble who surround Taron Egerton’s star turn as the shy yet demanding Elton are perfectly cast and impressive. Particularly Richard Madden as his domineering manager John Reid whose Scottish brogue and hunky physique enticed him to embark on a “wild ride”.

Rocketman may be more camp and kaleidoscopic than wild – even though it never shirks away from the loneliness and frustration which fuelled much of Elton’s self-destruction –  but as the title suggests it’s a blast!

Director: Dexter Fletcher
Writer: Lee Hall (screenplay)
Stars: Taron Egerton, Jamie Bell, Richard Madden
Peter Callaghan
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