Wonderful

Rating: 10/10 (10 April 2001)

The fab four at their (early) peak. At the time the media doted on them as "the 4 moptops", and they could do no wrong, in England at least. The film, in black and white, is marvelous in its simplicity and the way in which the music is so artfully wended into the plot, which of course is silly and superficial, almost non-existent. Who cares, this is Beatles music at its freshest and rawest, with the Beatles themselves behaving rather than acting. Its almost as if they can't believe they are in a film, and maybe they can't, but it doesn't matter because the music is so strong and powerful that you forget to criticize. The pacing is excellent, and it does not let up for a moment, but you never sense it's frantic or frustrated - the film never wants to do more than it does. There is one really touching moment, Ringo's adventure ... and I defy anyone to watch this without some reflection on what fame and success is all about. Watching Ringo with some yobo kid throwing stones into the River Mersey is an image I will always remember. Its a lovely little film and will transport you, for a while, into the inane, slightly ridiculous charm of the early sixties in Great Britain