Event

ROCKETMAN on the BIG SCREEN

ROCKETMAN is an epic musical fantasy about the incredible human story of Elton John's breakthrough years. The film follows the fantastical journey of transformation from shy piano prodigy Reginald Dwight into international superstar Elton John. This inspirational story -- set to Elton John's most beloved songs and performed by star Taron Egerton -- tells the universally relatable story of how a small-town boy became one of the most iconic figures in pop culture. ROCKETMAN also stars Jamie Bell as Elton's longtime lyricist and writing partner Bernie Taupin,

121 heavenly minutes

"Doors are thrown open. Light fills the hallway. A demon appears in silhouette, striding with a swagger that radiates all the way from his enormous feathered wings to the soles of his platform shoes. The wild-child figure glistens with rhinestones, eyes framed by sequined hearts that assert him as king of spectacle, theatre, high-camp drama. He pauses. ... He addresses the rehab group that he has just interrupted. And then, looking straight to camera, he reveals his devil-may-care attitude as artifice. My name is Elton Hercules John and Im an alcoholic. He is also a self-confessed cocaine addict, sex addict, a shopping addict, and a fragile man whose difficulty finding and receiving love is the narrative impetus for the film. He is Rocketman, and his words set the scene for a movie that delivers on the sex and drugs always promised in stories about rock n roll.

With the group therapy session at the films core, Elton John (Taron Egerton) reflects on his transformation from suburban child piano prodigy Reggie Dwight into a global superstar. Encountering one another at pivotal moments throughout the film, young Reggie and world-weary Elton must help one another face parental abandonment, domestic abuse and the challenges of being a gay man in a homophobic world. At times poignant and affecting (this film comes with a tearjerker warning),
IN PERSON for Q&A Paul Ills