"We are the champions, my friends..." You may have heard of the song “We Are The Champions” by Queen during the 2002 FIFA World Cup celebrations. The movie "Bohemian Rhapsody"_, featuring lead vocalist Freddie Mercury and the biography of the legendary rock band, is changing the atmosphere of the theater. In movie theaters where the basic manners are to be quiet, an unusual scene is taking place. Audiences applaud while watching this movie and even sing along in a loud voice. The Bohemian Rhapsody Syndrome is literally happening. When the movie ends, the audience applauds and the concert continues. Even if you are not a fan of Queen, there are many familiar songs. Queen's famous songs such as “Radio Ga Ga”, “Somebody To Love” and “Love Of My Life” are familiar because they are played around us and in various advertisements. The movie title is Bohemian Rhapsody, one of Queen's most iconic songs.

Bohemian Rhapsody brings out one of their famous songs, showing their accomplishments year by year, ranging from their meeting, to the birth of a hit song, to the Live Aid concert, one of their best performances. It is a combination of Bohemian, which means "wanderer, free-lance artist", and Rhapsody, which is a fantastical song without any particular format. It is consistent with what Freddie Mercury said, “We are maladjusted singing for the wrong people". The song itself includes 'murder' in the lyrics to express extreme maladjustment and social stigma, 'Mama, just killed a man… Life had just begun, but now I’ve gone and thrown it all away'. The song changes from a ballad to opera, and back to rock.

Those who started as outsiders are rising to the stars. At the beginning of the movie, Queen performs “We Will Rock You” while the audience cheers. Confident that "we will rock you" and without musical instruments, Queen makes the audience stamp their feet and applaud at the same time. The film vividly depicts the destruction of pride, arrogance, and Mercury’s self-destruction. Through Freddie Mercury's confusion with his sexual identity and betrayal of fans, he is unable to withstand the isolation. In the moment that he thinks he has lost everything, he meets his muse and band members, and realizes that his family is right there beside him. During the 20-minute Live Aid concert, the band and audience transforms from believing that "Freddie is a legend" to "We are a legend.

"We Are The Champions" is a song that leaves the audience unable to shut their gaping mouths. Another reason why this song is so great is the lyrics of the song. 'I've paid my dues… But committed no crime And bad mistakes… I’ve had my share of sand kicked in my face, But I’ve come through’. These lyrics send a simple message that we are winners and we must fight to the end. The ultimate message of Queen, and the movie that captured Freddie Mercury's life was included in this song: their dreams, the purpose of the band success, the unexpected conflicts of standing up to 100,000 spectators. We feel more intense realism than any other musical scene.

English Language and Literature student, Sim Ye Won said:

"I did not know it was Queen's song before I went to the movies. The movie flows smoothly without a big reversal. It was a vivid movie and it felt as if I was at a Queen concert. In the last concert in the movie, Queen reunited and sang “Bohemian Rhapsody”, but within a few minutes there was a lot of emotion. Freddie Mercury expresses his own sexual identity and inner conflicts that come out during this song. It was long, lasting six minutes, but it did not feel as long and boring as the many popular songs. The combination of a cappella, ballad, opera and hard rock in one song was fantastic. "

Department of environment technology student, Eo dae Seon said:

"When I watch a movie, I usually focus on the story of the characters and their emotions. The most appealing scene in this movie, is the scene where they compose "We Will Rock You". Freddie Mercury, who is an icon, lacks consideration for others, and is late to the recording studio. The song is composed by the remaining three members of Queen. The members realize Queen is not only about Freddie Mercury. Although I'm not an expert on rock, I cannot get this feeling of being at Wembley Stadium where Queen performed out of my head.”

▲ "We Will Rock You"

▲ In Liveaid concert

By Lee Yeon-ju, reporter  rosielee@kakao.com

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