Using “Don’t Stop Me Now” in Visual Media: The Umbrella Academy vs. SHAZAM!

This post features SPOILERS for both Season 1 of The Umbrella Academy and the DCEU film SHAZAM!.

I’ve started noticing that Western visual media really likes using Queen’s “Don’t Stop Me Now” for high-energy sequences. It’s popped up in no less than two TV commercials that I’ve seen since the release of Bohemian Rhapsody last November. One commercial featured the people in the ad singing it while walking, running, or doing other high-energy things, while the other one used the original recording with Freddie Mercury’s vocals. It’s also apparently showed up in works like Shaun of the Dead for action scenes. My new favorite Netflix obsession, The Umbrella Academy, uses it for an action scene in this way, while the new DCEU film SHAZAM! uses “Don’t Stop Me Now” for a comical superhero training montage. I bring this up because I think one of these two uses of the song works better than the other, and I want to talk about why that is.

First of all, which characters do these scenes involve, and what are they doing?

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I just watched the Golden Globes and…

Things that are Big Moods right now:

Glenn Close’s face when she won.
Rami Malek’s feelings about Freddie Mercury: “I LOVE YOU, YOU BEAUTIFUL MAN!!!”
Both Lupita Nyong’o and Emily Blunt wearing reading glasses while presenting awards.
Anytime a movie that I actually saw won an award.

Also, I imagine that in the afterlife right now, Freddie Mercury is parading around in that big red furry cape and that enormous crown while David Bowie just rolls his eyes and waits for his inevitable biopic.

A Few More Thoughts on Bohemian Rhapsody

Since my last post, I’ve calmed down and I’ve been able to overthink about the reactions to Bohemian Rhapsody that I’ve seen, and I’m going to set my thoughts down in a series of numbered points.

That said, we need an image for this post, so…here’s some shirtless Freddie Mercury!

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Is This the Real Life?: Bohemian Rhapsody, Film Reviews, and Liking Mediocre Movies

Last week, I finally got to see Bohemian Rhapsody, the first-ever biopic* about Freddie I Mercury, First of His Name, King of the Virgos and the September Babies, God of Rock Music, Father of Epic Rock Logos, Immortal Gay/Queer Icon, The Great Pretender, Mr. Fahrenheit.