Elton John performed for the last time in the US at Dodger Stadium in LA, in November 2022. This Pelasky event marked the final performance of Goodbye Yellow Brick Road singer’’s final tour. It brought back memories of the Los Angeles band’s earlier performance in the same venue in 1975 where he wore a satin Dodger uniform.
A unique bathrobe designed in the style of Dodger bathrobe covered with sequence as worn by John will be witnessed as he hopes to bow out after having been in the top music charts for decades. The peak of his career came in 1973, with the release of his double album Goodbye Yellow Brick Road. At the time, the singer enjoyed immense success but battled addiction and the pain of violence.
This concert, which celebrates Elton John’s 75th birthday, can be watched on Disney Plus. The Elton Effect, an introductory biographical film about an artist, will be added to it all as a poorly executed bonus.
There is so much footage and interviews and archival photos packed into this film that it will be almost impossible to notice the utterly strange costumes adorned with polka dots and jewels. But of course one would expect that level of access from a film called Never Too Late, which is executive produced by John’s husband and manager David Furnish, and co-directed by RJ Cutler. Too precious, and therefore, possibly, too guarded is how it seems, but maybe that’s part of the reason.
Moments of sensitivity and humor, as when John plays with an Elizabeth II doll and pretends to show it how to wave to people or when he scolds his sons over a video call from the studio for clashing, can be counted on fingers. The rest of the film is a cold reconstruction of events decades before and only the audiotapes of John speaking provide a narration a recording made for his autobiography. Never Too Late demonstrates a balance that I find dull, and briefly describes the rest of rock-n-roll in confrontation Rocketman has style and sparks, and this follows it. Sometimes, however, it is the dry monotony of John’s voice that is telling the past as John is out of tears to remember the events that makes the film so strong.
John still feels the excitement in his life now and his past was difficult but had its own hope. As a child, John was inspired by Renowned musicians like winifred Atwell as he endured his parents’ violent fights. He reminisces about the beginning of his collaborations with his longtime potential writer Bernie Taupin, feeling young and in the closet with all his sexual confusion. He is well aware of how much he was tormented off-stage when his manager and tormented lover, John Reid, coupled with rampant use of cocaine which ruined his life.
This story takes a different twist for John. He’s thinking about his music as well as his performance at Dodger stadium which took place almost 50 years ago. Also, it does help that he is happily married and has two children who make him want to retire so he can be the parent he never had. In contrast, that space is rarely occupied in the film, particularly because its creators, who have commendably reserved their family life, reveal so little of it. As a result, its emotional arc remains more implied than lived out.
The mood lifts in Never Too Late when the singer talks about his experiences with John Lennon. It is a pretty funny and touching moment where they show the very ‘animated’ version of the two hiding from Andy Warhol after getting high. This is a more interesting story since this is the type of story that one could get use to hearing over and over again.
The two performers’ bond would culminate in their joint performance during Thanksgiving in Madison Square in 1974. Little did anybody know, it would be the last time they saw Lennon. Wait for it, the shot from the concert is so poorly lit and so full of grain that it is nearly worthless. Still, hysteriographers who felt the influence of Marker’s La Jetée throughout the creation of Never Too Late depict the action using multiple still images accompanied by the sound of the concert as if to capture the “moving” feelings of the event.
That’s a pretty good idea as well. The idea is a very good one and this is a good example of how constraints can be used positively. It is in fact an example of what should otherwise be seen as a failure in a film which suffers too much on the grounds of its availability.
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