The film, released next month, has received varied reviews so far. The Guardian’s Radheyan Simonpillai noted, external the impetus of telling the story now was that Sir Elton wants to largely retire from music, in order to spend more time with his husband and children.
“However, the film rarely lives in that space,” he continued in his two-star review, “because the film-makers, who understandably want privacy when it comes to their family, share so little of it. That leaves its emotional arc more assumed than felt.”
The film is “a competent but largely conventional look at John, which focuses on the most documented part of his life: His astronomical rise in the first half of the 1970s,” wrote IndieWire’s Esther Zuckerman., external
It’s true that the documentary arguably doesn’t shine much new light on Sir Elton’s life and career, and audio interviews the singer recorded for his memoir in 2019 are used as the film’s narration.
However, Variety’s Owen Gleiberman was more positive., external “We experience the staggering magnitude of stardom Elton achieved, the candy rapture of his music, right along with the anxiety and hollowness he was feeling,” he wrote.
And Alejandra Martinez of AwardsWatch said, external the “simple, well-made documentary” provides a “welcome look at and farewell to an unmatched voice in pop music”.
Sir Elton retired from touring following his string of shows, but has said he may still do occasional one-off live performances in the future.
