‘Elton John: Never Too Late’ review: entertaining, enlightening and very Elton

If you’d like to spend an hour or so in the company of Elton John, listening to juicy anecdotes about his past and revelling in his wonderful songs, this is the documentary for you. It’s a pacy and moving film, powered by Elton’s music and audio recordings of his conversations with journalist Alexis Petridis, the ghostwriter of John’s autobiography, Me. The two have an easy intimacy that helps draw you in – at times, it feels as if the man born as Reg Dwight is confiding in you personally. With archive clips, animation and recent footage of Elton preparing for his final concert, it’s a biography brought beautifully to life on the big screen.

While it’s co-directed by John’s husband, David Furnish, along with RJ Cutler, the film doesn’t shy away from some darker areas. The artist speaks candidly about the abuse he suffered as a child, when he was fearful of his parents. He talks about drug addiction, attempted suicide and early struggles to understand his sexuality in a time of relative repression. So it’s particularly emotional to see him take to the stage at Dodger Stadium with his husband and two children, with thousands of people clapping and cheering, as we hear the touching notes of ‘Your Song’. John’s story doesn’t just make you think about how far he’s come, but about how far gay rights have come (in some territories, at least). It also gives a glimpse into the weird life of the famous: when Elton talks to young musicians on his podcast, they’re all visibly overwhelmed by the fact that they’re speaking to him, something you realise must happen to him many times each day, wherever he goes.

A natural companion to the biopic Rocketman starring Taron Egerton, Never Too Late touches on a few subjects that didn’t make it into that film. One is Elton’s friendship with John Lennon, with whom he shared “mountains” of cocaine and got too paranoid to answer the hotel room door to Andy Warhol. The story then moves into the poignant guest appearance from Lennon in 1974 – a performance that would turn out to be Lennon’s last.

An affectionate, candid portrait of the artist over many decades, Never Too Late may not go to every corner of the Rocketman’s world. But every direction it takes is entertaining, enlightening and very Elton.

‘Elton John: Never Too Late’ is streaming on Disney+ now.