Did Rami Malek Deserve An Oscar for Bohemian Rhapsody?

I've been wanting to write a post about this topic for a while but was worried about the community's reaction. The movie 'Bohemian Rhapsody' was terrible and failed to capture the real psychological struggle of Freddie Mercury. Rami Malek's performance, to put it mildly, was comical and bore no resemblance to Freddie Mercury. There, I said it... Rami Malek did not deserve the Oscar he won. God forgive me... But why am I saying this?

I consider myself one of the biggest Queen and Freddie Mercury fans in the Middle East and Arab world. I believe that in the last fifty years, there have been two talents that stand out from the rest: Freddie Mercury and Michael Jackson (side note: I was thrilled to find out they actually made three songs together: 'There Must be More to Life Than This,' 'State of Shock,' and 'Victory,' which was never released). When I admire an artist, I devour every piece of information available about them.

Back to the subject... Anyone who really knows Freddie Mercury knows that his pain was the source of his art. He was never 100% okay, and despite his public acceptance of being gay, growing up in a Muslim country (Zanzibar) surely left him with a sense of guilt about his choices. Just for context: a few years ago, Zanzibar wanted to issue a commemorative stamp for Freddie Mercury as a local boy who became one of the world's biggest stars, but the government had to backtrack due to the Islamic community in Zanzibar rejecting the honor because of his sexual orientation. It's said that 'Bohemian Rhapsody' is unclear to listeners, especially since no one in Queen has explained it, but assuming it speaks about his childhood and youth in Zanzibar, all the song's meanings become clear. Consider the verse:

Bismillah! No, we will not let you go

(Let him go!) Bismillah! We will not let you go

(Let him go!) Bismillah! We will not let you go

(Let me go) Will not let you go

(Let me go)(Never) Never let you go

To me, there's a clear reference here to the psychological and social pressure Freddie Mercury faced as a child. The entire song is filled with themes of preferring non-existence over life, expressing guilt over his very being to the point of accepting death as an alternative. Can we even imagine that level of pain? He wrote and sang this song as an adult, meaning the pain was still present.

Now, about the movie: instead of focusing on the main drama (very much like 'The Imitation Game'), it invented non-existent storylines (his quarrels with his bandmates, his manager) while ignoring the main drama of his self-acceptance that led him to live a life exaggerated in acceptance so loud it drowned out his inner voice. This conflict also involves his relationship with Mary Austin. The choice to start the movie in England was wrong because it ignores the most critical periods of his life. On this level, the film presents someone entirely different from Freddie Mercury.

And Rami Malek's performance? The same applies. I didn't feel any real sense of internal struggle or pain. I challenge anyone to find pictures of Freddie Mercury outside his performances with the number of smiles Rami had in the movie. The struggle with accepting his homosexuality was almost non-existent. His behavior as a form of psychological compensation wasn't clear. Rami Malek played a sweet role... but that role wasn't Freddie Mercury. Rami mentioned in an interview that Freddie Mercury's sister, Kashmira Bulsara, burst out laughing and walked out when she saw Rami playing her brother before the film was released, and Rami didn't understand why. Why do people laugh, Rami? They laugh when they see something funny... which is what you were, Mr. Rami.

Making a movie about a real person requires depth in understanding the person, and portraying their role needs more than just makeup. Understanding the psychological conflicts that shaped the person is essential for producing a good work.

Sorry Rami... sorry Bryan Singer... sorry Dexter Fletcher.