Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band

Plot synopsis:
The original Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band performed during WWI in France, as the Allies' "most effective weapon." Their melodies cheered troops engaged in battle and
stopped hostilities, leading to their receiving the coveted Golden Eagle Award. Back at
their hometown of Heartland, they continued performing through the Roaring '20's, the Depression, and through another Great War, until the demise of the bandleader in 1958.
He left his magical instruments to the town of Heartland. These items have the power to
make dreams come true, and as long as they remained in the town's possession, humanity would live happily foreverafter. He left his wholesome grandson, Billy Shears, (Peter Frampton) his Golden Eagle and musical legacy. The town's venerable mayor,
Mr. Kite (George Burns) tells the tale of the new Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club band,
consisting of Billy, his best friends, Mark, Dave, and Bob Henderson (The Bee Gees), and managed by his jealous stepbrother, Dougie Shears (Paul Nicholas).The new band debuts in their wholesome small town one sunny summer day, introduced by money-hungry Dougie. Dave, Mark, and Bob start off the performance, joined by Billy after he shares a brief moment with his sweetheart, Strawberry Fields (Sandy Farina). Townsfolk of all ages instantly take to the boys, who receive a
telegram from Big Deal Records requesting a demo tape, with the promise of big success.
Mr. Kite briefly imagines himself as a superstar, performing a number in the town square,
alone except for two little girls who join his jaunty dance.The town's magical weather vane picks up a strange signal, the arrival of Mean Mr. Mustard (Frankie Howerd). His mission: to Take Over Heartland. He is apparently
directed by the FVB, who reminds him: We hate love; We hate joy; We love
money. The band is recording their demo tape at a farm near town as he arrives. Back
in Hollywood, Big Deal's B.D. Hoffler (Donald Pleasence) hears the tape and begins his plan to sign them to his label. The band is summoned to Hollywood immediately, giving Billy and Strawberry scant time for tender goodbyes. They share one night in the farm's hayloft before the band's hasty departure.Arriving in L.A. by Big Deal's private jet, the band is welcomed personally by B.D. and his
sexy assistant, Lucy (Dianne Steinberg). They are transported by stretch El Camino
to B.D.'s mansion, where the naive bandmates are immediately corrupted by liquor, drugs, and
women. Later that evening, the intoxicated boys are duped into signing B.D.'s exploitive contract. The next morning they commence recording sessions, leading to instant superstardom with sold-out concerts, intense media coverage, and enormous record sales. During their rise to success, B.D. requires Lucy and her backup singers, the Diamonds (Stargard) to control the band by exerting their evil and sexual influence.Back in Heartland, Strawberry pines for Billy while Mr. Mustard steals the magical instruments from Mr. Kite's office at City Hall. Mustard begins his mission to deliver the
instruments to various villainous characters. Without the protection of the instruments,
Heartland instantly degenerates into a den of iniquity.Strawberry leaves home in pursuit of her beloved Billy, leaving her parents heartbroken in her absence. Mr. Mustard's robots alert him and his Brute (Carel Struyken) of Strawberry's departure. When she arrives in L.A., she sees a billboard showing Billy and the rest of the band, next to
another featuring Lucy and the Diamonds. Both billboards come to life. The women's seductive performance lures the men into their embrace, horrifying the distraught Strawberry. When she momentarily turns away, the billboards return to their inanimate
states.The next day, Strawberry arrives at the band's recording session, witnessing some flirtatious glances between Billy and Lucy. B.D. and Dougie try to get rid of her, but she is able to get in and explain the treachery that has befallen Heartland. Mr. Mustard
arrives moments later, and the band accosts his van in an effort to recover the stolen
instruments. The van's computer indicates the first instrument went to Dr. Maxwell Hammer (Steve Martin), a cheerfully deranged and money-driven physician. Billy, Mark, Dave, Bob, and Strawberry make haste to Dr. Hammer's office and retrieve Sgt. Pepper's silver cornet after a non-contact fight sequence. They find the drum in the van, then seek
Father Sun (Alice Cooper) for the tuba. In his Orwellian lair, he drums the message, "We Hate Love; We Hate Joy; We Love Money" into the heads of militant young cadets. The band and Strawberry retrieve the tuba, but Billy is injured by an electrical shock. Back safely in the van, Strawberry lovingly tends to the unconscious Billy. He dreams of her, then revives at the sound of her beautiful singing.Mark Henderson, working at the van's computer, causes a malfunction and cannot retrieve the location of the final missing instrument. Heartland continues to deteriorate
into desperate circumstances. B.D. is forced to cancel several tour dates, but Dougie suggests a huge benefit concert to save the town.One day, as the townsfolk drudge through the town, bewildered at its delapidated state,
they are surprised by the arrival of a singing and acrobatic troupe, anchored by Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Heart's Club Band and the lovely Strawberry Fields. Mr. Kite, along with the rest of the town, is cheered at this fortunate turn of events. B.D., Dougie, and
Lucy are pleased at their business cunning in exploiting the situation for financial gain. Dougie and Lucy go into City Hall, where the day's proceeds are stored and load up a wheelbarrow with several bags of money. They transfer the money into the van's refrigerator as Earth, Wind and Fire perform the evening show for the town, Billy and the
Hendersons enjoy front-row seats. Mr. Mustard and the Brute get to town and find the
van. They kidnap Strawberry and drag her into the van, then drive off. Dougie and Lucy manage to hide in the van without being discovered. The band sees the departing van and sets off in hot pursuit via the town's hot air balloon.Mustard was headed for FVB Central with the recovered instruments where the evil genius would suppress the magical instruments and make the world safe for his legions. Unless the band could arrive first and stop them. Mustard, who has admired
Strawberry all along, attempts to woo her via serenade in her bound-and-gagged state.
Soon, the balloon comes into view, and Dougie and Lucy try to escape the van with some of their lot., They are discovered and led into FVB Central along with Strawberry,
then tied up and forced to endure a performance by FVB - Future Villain Band
(Aerosmith). Billy and the Hendersons break into the complex and wrestle FVB into submission, killing the evil genius (Steve Tyler). Unfortunately, Strawberry falls to her
death in the struggle.Back in Heartland, the cleaned-up town mourns the loss of Strawberry Fields, who lies in state in a coffin of clear glass engraved with Heartland's signature hearts. Billy, Dougie, and the Hendersons are all pallbearers. Mr. Kite questions whether it was worth the loss
in order to restore the town. Leaving the church after her service, Billy sadly walks off for
some time alone, remembering the good times he shared with Strawberry. He then attempts suicide by jumping from a rooftop. As he falls, the Heartland Weather Vane (Billy Preston) comes to life and returns him to the rooftop. Billy Shears is not only saved, but apparently cured of his depression by this surprising turn of events.The Magical Weather Vane then changes Mr. Mustard and the Brute into a bishop and a monk; Dougie and Lucy into an altar boy and a nun. Next, he brings a hale and hearty
Strawberry Fields back to life. She runs to Billy and they embrace warmly in a fairy tale ending.The townsfolk are joined by dozens of celebrity guests of 1970's fame for a rollicking and joyful finale, in a tribute to the cover of the original Beatles album that inspired the film.

Tags: brainwashing, cult, psychedelic, flashback

Review:
The SATURDAY NIGHT FEVER backlash was just beginning with PEPPER'S release, and even though Peter Frampton had proven himself still able to chart with such current hits as his cover of "Signed, Sealed and Delivered" and "I'm In You," (please hold your snickers), his album sales had begun to wane, a surefire indicator that his status as a pretty-boy guitar god was fading fast.For the most part, the audience demographic the movie was aimed at was served as well as they could be.
None of the teenybopper females in the theater audience I saw it with, (yes, I DID see it in a theater), gave one whisker on a rat's bee-hind that the album the movie was derived from was a classic, or that George Martin actually produced the soundtrack (well, most of it.) They sighed in rapture on cue when a dreamy closeup of The Brothers Gibb or Frampton came whizzing by, or sobbed uncontrollably at the 'oh-my-GAWD-this-is-so-maudlin' ending.
I guess what makes it so hard for most people to watch, are the scenes that are almost painful indicators of what the movie COULD'VE been, because the energy and drive is so different from the rest of the goings-on.Meaning Aerosmith's ball-busting cover of "Come Together," the finger-snapping, funk-injected "Got To Get You Into My Life" from Earth, Wind and Fire, and Steve Martin's super-manic "Maxwell's Silver Hammer," echoing his even better turn to come in LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS.
ALMOST.I bought this (and I'd be embarassed to tell you how much I spent) for a So-Bad-It's-Good movie party I decided to throw for some friends on New Year's Eve. Just to see if it was as bad as I remembered, (and as bad as people have credited it to be), I gave it a spin just for old time's sake.
This movie is a forgotten landmark of the 70s.The Bee Gees are known for their disco hits like "Stayin Alive" and such, but did you know that in the 60s they were a moderately successful psychedelic rock band quite similar to the Beatles?
Love em or hate em, you gotta admit they took the world by storm for a brief moment in music history.Notable guest musicians Earth Wind & Fire, Peter Frampton, Alice Cooper, Aerosmith, and a hilariously bizarre appearance by fancy-footed soul singer Billy Preston shooting laser beams of love from his fingertips round out this one-of-a-kind experience (Billy played electric piano on the Beatles' original "Get Back" which he sings here).
Starring Billy Shears (Peter Frampton) and the Hendersons (the Bee Gees) "were all there" as well, "Sgt. Pepper" featured Strawberry Fields (Sandy Farina) as Billy's leading lady, and Mr. Mustard (Frank Howerd) was "such a mean old man."  Let's not forget Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds (Dianne Steinberg), the Sun King (Alice Cooper), and Sgt. Pepper played by an old Beatles protege (Billy Preston).
The movie also depicted countless cover versions of Beatles songs, including Earth Wind & Fire's "Got to Get You Into My Life."  As the narrator, Mr. Kite (George Burns) even covered "Fixin' a Hole."  Critics of the movie should be so critical"when they're 64," let alone 82!
I have one final case for "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band."  It had one of my favourite comedians (Steve Martin) singing one of my favourite Beatles songs (Maxwell's Silver Hammer).
I stumbled across an unlicensed videocassette of the film Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, starring Peter Frampton and the Bee Gees.
The basic premise is that they took all these Beatle's songs and strung them together to make a story, so the characters had to come from names or words from Beatle's songs: for instance, Frampton's character (the lead singer for the Lonely Hearts Club Band) is Billy Shears (if you'll recall Billy Shears is introduced by the Beatles at the beginning of Sgt. Pepper as the singer of 'get by with a little help from my friends...
There are about 20 Beatles songs in the movie not sung by the Beatles, and the lead characters never speak - all the narration is done by Mr. Kite ('a benefit for Mr. Kite' and yes there is such a benefit) played by George Burns who even dons a guitar to sing 'fixing a hole'.
I think the Bee Gees destroyed what they've created, because they began the disco movement unintentionally (Main Course 1975) and then again they began the disco backlash (Sgt. Pepper's 1978) they almost said to the world: "Hey, remember the good music, that was rock!".
The Bee Gees beat any sales record in the world, and if they're BIG, I wonder what happened if they had never filmed Sgt. Pepper's.And my vote is 10 because this film is a beautiful and completely entertaining "Sunday-movie" antique.Weird but it's true: If I could have been in 1978 I would hate it.
It hurts all the more if one likes the Beatles' originals of these songs (OK, Aerosmith did a decent version of "Come Together," but that is not enough to mitigate the damage caused by the rest of the performances).There are certain films that seem to be made just to put the tolerance of a badfilm watcher to the test.
A classic!Last night, presented by the American Cinematheque at the Egyptian in Hollywood, we saw Sgt. Pepper on the big screen for the first time in 25 years, and it not only "holds up" (as aging movie geeks like to mutter while their fantasies needlessly crumble), it is as fresh, funny, charming and touching as it was when we saw it in the summer of 1978.
Simply, just try to watch Billy Preston (those boots!), Sandy Farina (!), George Burns, Steve Martin (!?!?!?!), Alice Cooper, Frankie Howerd, Paul Nicholas, Aerosmith, Donald Pleasance, Dianne Steinberg, The Earth, The Wind and The Fire, Stargard (????) and the rest without smiling or getting one of those weird "tingles."Particularly, Peter Frampton and the Bee Gees -- Barry, Robin, Maurice (goodnight, Brother Gibb) -- commit themselves to a unique, today almost unknown sense of silly good humour.
If you love Rocky Horror, Shock Treatment, The Magic Christian, The Robe, Python's musical offerings, Visconti's The Leopard, Phantom of the Paradise, The Star Wars Holiday Special, Intolerance, The Muppet Movie, Xanadu, Summer of Sam, Happy Campers, The Conversation, The Wiz, On the Waterfront, Spice World, Infested, Yojimbo & Sanjuro, X-2, Bugsy Malone, Potemkin, Grease, Repo Man, Richard Lester's oeuvre, Pennies From Heaven, American Graffiti, Badlands, The Tigger Movie, Little Odessa, The Tattoo Connection or, heck, Singin' in the Rain, High Society or Disorderlies, there's plenty to enjoy here, and no reason to be a mindless bully or snob about it.Everybody sings really splendidly, too, and Sandy Farina's presence in her one lead role (to date) is unforgettably lovely.Nice one, Sandy.While we're at it, why not commend Carel Struyken for being a really good "Brute," and Patti Jerome, Max Showalter and those disturbing robots for tugging our heartstings in "She's Leaving Home" (this version still moves me more than Tori Amos' nice take).Who knows what bizarre energies converged behind the scenes to bring this thing together (not to mention landing Etta James, Leif Garrett, Barry Humphries, Tina Turner, Sha-Na-Na, Jose Feliciano and Wolfman Jack on the same risers at the finale), but whatever it was, thank you.
Let's get them!" So we get George Burns, hot from his "Oh God" movies; Steve Martin, who was the hottest thing in comedy at the time and gives a King-Tutty performance; Frampton (no guitar solos?) and the Bee Gees; Alice Cooper, etc.
Take probably THE greatest rock-n'-roll album in recorded history, bring together the combined powers of producer Robert Stigwood, fresh off the awesome force that was the Brothers Gibb and the incredible magic of Saturday Night Fever, and its equally legendary follow-up, Grease --- and Dee Anthony, manager/guru of then-hot rocker Peter Frampton --- and then call critic-journalist Henry Edwards and have him put together a storyline involving Lennon and McCartney's classic legends, Billy Shears and the Henderson Brothers, as they take on a star-studded cast of evildoers out to take over the world.
Ladies and gentlemen: Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band!The film version, long dismissed and celebrated by many students of 'bad' filmmaking all over the world, remains a topic of discussion for many of us who just can't get enough of the Beatles.
In fact, this was the last film to be shot at MGM under the management which controlled that studio at that time.Even now, I still own the Official Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band Scrapbook, wherein Stigwood and Anthony attempt to justify in print their reasons for spending $12 million on bringing the Beatles' magic to the big screen.
But Stigwood has obviously forgotten that he produced the movie version of Jesus Christ Superstar --- and there was an extremely limited amount of spoken dialogue in that one, too!Nonetheless, you still can't help but get a groove going with all those marvelous tunes --- from Aerosmith's ultra-scream rendition of "Come Together" to Earth, Wind and Fire's cool-jazz style take on "Got to Get You Into My Life"; from Steve Martin's hilarious take on "Maxwell's Silver Hammer" to British comic Frankie Howerd (in the only movie he ever made, by the way) practically talk-crooning "Mean Mr. Mustard"; and of course, Sandy Farina's two haunting solos, "Strawberry Fields Forever" and "Here Comes the Sun".
She was the first to put out her passion for this particular film on the world wide web --- and, although her Sgt. Pepper Movie Website no longer exists (at least, to my knowledge, anyway), it stands to reason that, were it not for Denise, those who continue to love and respect their favorite bad movies would not be able to post online their undying affection and admiration for some of cinema's greatest clunkers --- whose number just happens to include a little thing called Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band.And on that note (no pun intended), we're sorry, but it's time to go..
This was considered one of the biggest cinematic disasters of its era---a film that virtually destroyed the careers of the Bee Gees and Peter Frampton, and recording mogul Robert Stigwood (a giant at the time) likewise disappeared from view.
It is fun watching people like Steve Martin, Frankie Howerd, and Donald Pleasence hamming it up, and George Burns is always enjoyable.Once, I said all of this to an acquaintance in person, and his response was: "Why would I want to hear Beatles songs if the Beatles aren't doing them?" Herein lies the film's problem, I think.
They were interested in having fun, in making a fun movie and in providing the artists involved with the opportunity to cover some of their favorite Beatles songs within the framework of a loosely told fairy-tale like story.In terms of what so many viewers seem to be expecting, this film is a dismal failure.
Half-hearted attempt to turn music by the Beatles (including the songs and mod look of their album "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band") into some kind of screen story ranks right up there with the most ill-fated ideas to leak from Hollywood.
Bringing together the Bee Gees with Peter Frampton may have seemed like a good idea when this was in pre-production; truth is, 1978 saw a decline in both acts' popularity, and the movie was pretty much dead on arrival (the soundtrack sold better, but wasn't the blockbuster expected).
Let's take the biggest disco stars (Bee Gees), combine them with the biggest rock stars (Peter Frampton and Aerosmith), toss in the most popular comic star (Steve Martin), and mix in current pop idols (Paul Nicholas) and camp attractions (George Burns).
And there is no better documentary than "The Compleat Beatles", in my opinion.But whatever possessed the celluloid criminals involved with "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Heart's Club Band" to make a movie ABOUT Beatles songs with characters NAMED AFTER Beatles songs is an interesting story they should probably talk about in therapy sometime.Ever wonder why the Bee Gees don't make more movies?
Here's the movie for all you curiosity seekers that like to chase after tornados, train wrecks and other disasters.Of course, some of the music is tolerable ("Come Together" is a great Beatles song made into a better Aerosmith song), George Burns adds a much-needed touch of class, the '70s kitsch factor is off the scale and if you've ever wanted to see Donald Pleasance turned into a nun by Billy Preston, this is your one and only chance.Robert Stigwood would have tanked if the soundtrack hadn't done the platinum business it had.
The plot is insipid, the covers of The Beatles songs are insultingly bad, and the whole thing stinks from beginning to end.OK, I liked Earth Wind and Fire and this is Steve Martin's first movie, and a lot of the people in the background are famous.
At least some of the actors purposely went "over the top" with their perfromances - Steve Martin in the Maxwell's Silver Hammer number comes to mind.I still highly recommend this movie as a cult classic "so bad it is good" kind of experience.
It is even more of an accomplishment when you take a look at the cast list: Billy Preston, Alice Cooper, Aerosmith, Steve Martin, George Burns and then, get ready for this, The Bee Gees and Peter Frampton.
"When I'm Sixty-four," I think I'll still get a kick out of this movie "Because" it's a simple, innocent excuse to have fun...with music, no less."Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" is the last of the Beatles' films (unless you count "The Rutles"), yet ironically, they do not appear in it.
The only time you hear others is when they're singing."I Want You" to understand that I'm not the biggest fan of the Beatles (themselves) or their films, but their music keeps "Getting Better" everytime I listen to it, even in this movie when they're not the ones performing it.
The Brothers Gibb actually sound okay when they sing, as long as it's something other than disco nice harmonies.You might as well add George Burns to the things I don't like, as long as we're at it, and seeing as he's here.During my most recent viewing, it finally occurred to me that perhaps Beatles fans actually see this kind of thing in their minds when they listen to the original music perhaps they understand the odd lyrics and find meaning in them independently.
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (1978) 1/2 (out of 4)Thankfully the entire "let's turn a great album into a horrid movie" genre didn't make it past this abomination, which is just one bad idea after another.
Everyone else, more or less, was making crap--either pretentious slice-of-life snobbery aimed at the critics that bored audiences to death, or cheesy, adolescent schlock that made audiences giggle in inappropriate moments.This movie, like "Xanadu", and "Rocky Horror Picture Show", was a silly 1970s schlock musical that had a little charm amongst the cheesiness, largely due to the raw material involved in the project.'Sgt. Pepper' had George Burns---who, arguably, played no logical role in a film based on Beatles music--but who was still George Burns, which is to say a likable character who is consistently fun to watch.The musical performances by the BeeGees and Billy Preston were pretty good.
I'm a BIG Beatles fan, and a fan of Earth, Wind and Fire, the Bee Gees, AeroSmith, Billy Preston and Peter Frampton.
For jaw-in-your-lap appalling, this movie is right down there with the Eighties classic "The Apple," but the fact that Sgt. Pepper had resources -- money, well-known performers (I can't bring myself to say "stars"), and licensed access to the greatest catalog of popular songs ever -- makes the depths of its failings all that more profound.First I'll tell what I saw, then I'll tell you what I thought.I saw:  The Bee Gees and Peter Frampton being directed in a style that (I think) was intended to emulate the body language of silent film comedy.
In the film's defense, (what little there is) I will say that some of the music is quite good, and it's interesting to hear the Bee Gees and Frampton re-record classic Beatles tunes their way, even if it doesn't always work.
As a result we can all celebrate some of the classic "bad" movies of all time, which of course brings us to "Sgt Pepper"I was in the perfect target demographic for this film when it was released, which is to say, a teenager too young to have ever appreciated the impact of the original Beatles album.
I sat there freezing to death as the heating wasnt working in this particular cinema ..but i can honestly say 22 years later ..I remember in full that i thouroughly enjoyed this film .Bizzarre seeing the Bee Gees singing Beatles songs at the time ..for an 8 year year brought up by hippy parents ..this appeared to be so strange ...but I have for as long as i can remeber been trying to obtain this movie on VHS (not availiable in UK)..Hurrah I have just ordered a copy from the states (Amazon.com) and i shall be watching it the moment it thuds through the door...Wayyhheeyyyy More then anything I want to see if the mind of a 30 year old me agrees with a 8 year old me ..in the fact that at 8 ..I thought this film was superbly enjoyable ..watch this space for an update :):):):).
This is a movie featuring the Bee Gees singing Beatles songs.
I guess it's easy to put down a film that uses the music of the Beatles as sung by the Bee Gees, Peter Frampton, and even Steve Martin (!!!).
This movie featured all Beatles music and Aerosmith had an awesome song in it!
"Let's do old Beatles songs in a movie with Peter Frampton and The Bee Gees and celebrities from Alice Cooper to George Burns."  The shucking-and-jiving of Billy Preston at the end will blow your mind ...