Interview med Dexter Fletcher – instruktøren bag Elton John-filmen ‘Rocketman’

INTERVIEW: Hvis du ikke allerede har set den sprudlende film om Elton Johns mindst ligeså sprudlende liv i ‘Rocketman’, så har du muligheden, når filmen udkommer til hjemmebiografen på både dvd, Blu-ray og 4K Ultra HD den 14. oktober.

Som opvarming til filmens udgivelse, bringes her et interview med filmens instruktør Dexter Fletcher, der altså er manden, der fortæller den utrolige historien om Elton John og hans begivenhedsrige liv – fra de tidlige dage til både nedture og musikalsk succes.

Blandt andet er historiens fokus ikke kun på Elton John – der spilles af Taron Egerton – alene, men også hans musikalske partnerskab med Bernie Taupin. Så læs med her, når Dexter Fletcher fortæller om sit arbejde med filmen.

“What I did very early on with Julian Day, the costume designer, and to an even larger extent with Giles Martin, the film’s music producer, was to push back even though I was already happy with what they were doing. I wanted to elevate their work even more because I knew that the story and the character required it. I wanted Taron Egerton, who was personifying Elton, to be larger than life. I needed to set Taron that challenge to rise above.”

“I’ve done some other biopics and we had to create things that were effectively carbon copies. For ‘Rocketman’, we were allowed to have total creative freedom. There are very few projects where you are allowed, and encouraged, to be this creative, especially when you’ve got this larger than life character.”

“When you have a character like Elton, who has this fantastic array of stage garments alone, but then you’re told that they want it to be bigger, bolder, and better and just to go off and do it, to go as far as you can, that is incredible. And no one stops you because of the flamboyance of Elton John.”

“There were times when Taron, dressed as Elton, would walk on set and you’d hear people gasp or you’d see them say ‘Wow.’ I was genuinely quite taken aback how much people liked it.”

“There were several moments that gave me goosebumps when we were filming. When we first see Elton in rehab, he makes his initial speech about being a sex addict, a drug addict, and an alcoholic; it is just one shot that slowly pushes in on him. It’s so strong and so powerful.”

“One of the first things we filmed was the Troubadour scene where Elton’s lifted up in the air, and that was a magic moment. Then there was the big dance sequence for ‘Saturday Night’s Alright (For Fighting)’ which we rehearsed for six weeks, but when you see it for real, it just blows you away. The full version of it is on the Blu-ray and is incredible.”

“Making the movie, we all knew what was unfolding. Audiences have already seen the end result, but the behind-the-scenes stuff adds more layers to that and show it all off, piece by piece. Elton is an incredible performer.”

“When he gets out there in front of an audience, he is taken over by this incredible Elton John-like character, and that’s very much what I think Taron inhabits. He already had this incredible voice and this incredible acting ability. However, I don’t think he understood what the full breadth of his voice was, and he just continued to be more and more and more incredible.”

“Taron proves that when you’re brave, and you take chances, especially with your acting, the rewards are incredible. I think his performance in Rocketman is one-of-a-kind for this generation.”

‘Rocketman’ udkommer på dvd, Blu-ray og 4K Ultra HD den 14. oktober.