A Day in the Life of The Beatles

Rating: Null/10 (1 November 2000)

I've seen this movie, if you can believe, at least 30 times. Yes, you can call me a fan. However, not everything they touched turned to gold. (eg. Magical Mystery Tour) No matter, at the time it was released, this film was just expected to make a nice revenue for it's distributor (United Artists). They felt that The Beatles were just a "flash in the pan" and wouldn't last longer than a couple of years. They obviously were wrong. The film turned out to be a blockbuster and the reviews were quite positive (quite unique and rare)for a rock & roll movie). I recall seeing this movie at the theatre when it was first released. I could not hear anything. The screaming lasted from the beginning to the end. I've never, before or since, had an experience like that at a movie theatre. The movie is full of excitement and humour (British humour was still quite new to us). As actors The Beatles hold their own. The music is what drives this movie. Some of their best songs are featured here (A Hard Day's Night, She Loves You, All My Loving, and the list goes on). This film grows on you over the years. It is still fresh no matter how many times you see it. A few years ago there was a rumor that the producer (the late Walter Shenson) was going to turn this black & white film into color. I was shocked to hear this. Part of the greatness of this movie is the black & white filming. It gives it a "documentary feeling" throughout the movie. The rumor turned out to be false (thank goodness). I was 9 years old when I saw this film and just recently my 9 year old nephew saw the film with me. He loved the music and generally liked the movie. He now knows who The Beatles are. In the past year or so he just listened to their music. It just shows you how The Beatles' popularity keeps growing to each generation. Their music and/or popularity will never do away. This film is going to be re-released to the theatres sometime later this year (to a select few, I'm told). If it opens in a theatre in this city, I will certainly be there once again. Perhaps I can "relive" my youth for just one more time. Rick S.