Queen Budapest, a restored film of the band’s July 27, 1986, concert, opened in cinemas and IMAX around the world on Wednesday, Oct. 7. It runs for a short time only. The film captures the last concert Queen filmed with Freddie Mercury on stage.
Sony Music Vision made the film with Trafalgar Releasing. More than 2,000 cinemas in over 50 territories will show it, according to Brave Words. Fans can buy tickets at QueenBudapest.com.
János Zsombolyai directed it. The release marks 40 years since the show at Budapest’s Népstadion, part of The Magic Tour. Theater audiences will also see a new interview with Brian May and Roger Taylor.
Sir Peter Jackson’s Park Road Post Production studio in New Zealand restored the film in 4K from the original 35mm footage, per a press release. Queen sound engineers Justin Shirley-Smith and Kris Fredriksson rebuilt the audio from the original multitrack recordings, and that includes a Dolby Atmos mix.
This was the first Western stadium rock show behind the Iron Curtain. All 80,000 tickets sold out. About 45,000 more people stood outside and listened. Some fans traveled from as far as Russia and Poland.
The Hungarian government approved the whole plan, a first for a Communist state. Top Hungarian cameramen filmed the night with 17 cameras and 25 miles of 35mm film.
The show came five shows before the band’s final live performance together, at Knebworth Park on Aug. 9, 1986. The set opens with “One Vision” and “Tie Your Mother Down.” Mercury and May also play the Hungarian folk song “Tavaszi Szél Vizet Áraszt.” Mercury reportedly sang the Hungarian words from notes written on his palm. Sounding them out was the trick. The film also shows the band riding down the Danube River on a hydrofoil.
The band shared a live video of “Crazy Little Thing Called Love” from the film. Mercury wrote the song in just 10 minutes. In 1979 it became Queen’s first No. 1 hit on the United States Billboard chart, and it held that spot for a month.
May spoke about the Budapest show in an interview with Classic Rock. “We were so tight by then, we were able to signal to each other subconsciously where we were going to go,” May said. “We were at the absolute peak of functioning as a band.”
Taylor said of Knebworth, “Knebworth was our last show with Freddie, and it was flawless. I remember thinking, ‘God, it’s so easy!’ But nobody thought to record it.”
The film first came out on VHS in 1987. In 2012, it reached DVD and Blu-ray as Hungarian Rhapsody: Queen Live in Budapest.
New physical editions arrive Nov. 6 through Legacy Recordings and Hollywood Records. The sets hold a CD, Blu-ray, DVD, and digital copies. For the first time, a 3LP vinyl set joins them. Pre-orders are open now.