How to make a Beatles biopic 1. Have John hating on Ob La Di Ob La Da 2. Have John and Paul fighting 3. Bad wigs 4. Bad accents 5. George and Ringo as background props
@@thatguythatdrawzz749 Yeah, story goes John went into the studio in a great mood, sat at the piano and wanted to immediately start on Ob La Di Ob La Da and then created the start for the song.
I wish there was a biopic about George Harrison instead of the same story about Paul and John. I think it would be really interesting exploring his spirituality and his point of view being labeled as the “quiet one” when in reality he wasn’t necessarily “quiet”
I would love this as Ringo had an incredibly difficult childhood - nearly Dickensian - as he suffered a series of terrible illnesses and practically lived in the hospital. Also, George is mesmerizing as the Dark Horse, and as the Beatle who wrote the perfect “Here comes the Sun.”
It’s exactly as John said, “everybody loves you when you’re 6 feet in the ground”. The tragic way he died was the reason there are so many documentaries about him, obviously his legacy too, but the other Beatles lives were as interesting as John’s too. Especially Ringo. Why isn’t there a Ringo medical drama yet??
wouldn’t it be cool to see a series of 4 seasons, each season focusing and seen through the eyes of a different beatle. Or just a four episode show of like 1h each
Interesting, kinda like Rashomon. I also believe that only a series could do the Beatles justice and that each season could cover a stage of their career in a similar way to the Anthology
It’s funny that despite Lennon and Macca having so much coverage, there’s still a lack of accurate portrayal imo. There’s no nuance. As said by McCartney, John had a cool, sometimes aloof and goofy exterior but he was a softie, whereas Paul seemed like the put together guy but had some simmering and strong emotions underlying. I wish we got a portrayal where we got both sides of them, plus the extremely complex George and the layers of Ringo we have yet to see. Best of all if we got to see the complex relationships between all four of them, cause really that’s what was fascinating about them. They were some sort of a family. They were four geniuses who somehow had the luck to find each other, but they were also funny, witty, complete idiots, had egos, and were proper weirdos. A tv series would obviously be best to really be able to explore both their individual journeys and their collective experiences and relationships.
@byrdmaniac3949 You read my mind. I'd love to see the BBC or another cable channel do a multi-season cable drama on the lives and careers of the Beatles. If you figure on eight-ten episodes per season, you could have: -a season on their childhoods and young adulthoods, ending with John and Paul meeting at the church fair, -a season on the Cavern/Hamburg years, meeting Brian, and ending with their signing up with EMI and George Martin, -a season on the Beatlemania/touring years, -a season on their transitional years as they begin to grow and experiment as musicians, -a season on the Sgt. Pepper/Maharishi period and the fallout from Brian's death, -a season on their disintegration and breakup, and, -a season on their solo careers in the 70s, ending with John's death. Their story is so rich with interesting incidents (like their dust-up with Imelda Marcos) and characters (like Magic Alex, and boy, was HE a character) that a single biopic, or even a miniseries, couldn't do it justice. (I'd have liked this to be made while Hugh Laurie was still young enough to play George Martin, but that ship seems to have sailed.)
@@jenniferschillig3768 Obviously the Manila incident sticks in your brain more than does the John and Jesus controversy in America, which followed on the heels of Manila (though the Maureen Cleave profile that lit the fuse came several months before the Germany/Japan/Phillpines tour).
Ringo`s life after Beatles (which wasn`t very good time for him actually) has been very interesting, very intriguing, there is fun, sadness, absurd, depression, tragedy, everything. And now he is the MOST VITAL 80 year old ever! This is material for whole series.
It bothers me how Cynthia Lennon always gets the short shrift in these biopics. If she's not entirely sidelined then she's portrayed as a mousey little drip who was an albatross around John's neck. In truth, she was also a creative person, she had a degree of ambivalence about being a stay-at-home mom, and did her own share of partying. She was a more comparatively ordinary person compared to Yoko, but she wasn't the dimwitted bore she's made out to be these depictions, nor was she incidental to John's life.
Cynthia did seem like a nice person, and I do feel sorry for the crap John put her through. But reading her autobiography John, there were times I thought, "Cynthia, you can't be a doormat unless you lay down, you know..."
Sadly, my favorite Lennon bio isn’t out on video. I saw it once on PBS & it was staged like a 4-act play. Four different actors played John Lennon at different ages (child, adolescent, young Beatle, and Lennon just before the assassination). The elder Lennon narrated. It was based on his own writing, so it was quite candid. I think it was called “John Lennon: A Journey Through a Life.”
I googled it; It’s actually John Lennon: A Journey In The Life (1985). I haven’t seen it myself, but sounds interesting! The only biopic I haven’t seen
The reason why Lennon Naked has so many Beatles songs in it is because it's a BBC production who have a big audio library that can be used on most of their productions. So it would seem expensive, though for the BBC, it wouldn't be.
It's not having the material physically to use which is the problem - anyone can buy a CD - it's the cost of the rights to use the music in a film which can be enormously expensive and/or permission can be refused. The BBC have an arrangement with the rights-holders as they play a huge amount of Beatles material across their channels, radio and TV. Proportionately it is much cheaper for them to use Beatles material in a TV film. It's also the case that the BBC routinely use Beatles music in documentaries about the band whereas most other companies productions don't, with often awkward results.
In the special features on Backbeat, Cynthia Lennon said that felt that Ian Hart had done such a brilliant job portraying John, that she told Julian to see the movie and meet his father. If that isn't a seal of approval, I don't know what is.
George Martin was actually incredibly supportive of the Beatles' experimental work, so it's weird that the John & Yoko movie had him being so critical of it in that one scene
What an interesting idea... Begin in Nowehere Boy/In His Life, and then Back Beat / Birth of the beatles, A Hard days night, Help, Magical Mystery Tour, Let it be, John and Yoko a Love Story/Linda Mccartney, Two of us... something like that? jej we`ll be awaiting for that, Cheers.
“Nowhere Boy” made Aaron Taylor Johnson a star and I’m very, very happy about that. And I’m sure his mother is very happy she cast him too...OOPS! his wife I mean his wife
you've put into words so accurately why Nowhere Boy was in no way a perfect movie, but it hits so hard because it does the subtle, emotional, human bits so well. damn, now I want to watch it again
Most of the films completely ignore John's relationship with his first wife, wonderful Cynthia Lennon, which must have been a major influence on his life.
@@savarin0 "because then they would have to fully admit that john was a...not good person" Or as I would say, John did some pretty fucked up stuff. Which might make a pretty interesting movie. :-)
@@thesuncollective1475 He was very sad and angry until about his 30s. Most of the people he cared about died, like Uncle George, his mother, Stuart Sutcliffe, Brian Epstein, etc.
Nowhere Boy is not a movie that's based on a true story and contains a few innocent hollywood additions, it's a hollywood-tailored movie with sprinkles of truth in it.
Tbh, sometimes I don't know if I want another biopic of them, because I feel like nobody's ever gonna do them justice. But if someone chooses to do that, then maybe a mini series would be a wiser choice.
Read Mark Lewisohn’s All These Years. There is currently only one of three volumes out, and it covers only up until the end of 1962, but it is the best, most thorough, most brilliantly written account of who the Beatles were and why they meant so much.
@@FMOLETTE no, it’s a mockumentary about the Beatles, it’s on RU-vid, very funny, they make fun of the way documentary’s are made and it’s also kind of a parody on the Beatles. The songs that were written for the movie are also pretty funny. So like I said, it’s free on RU-vid, so check it out.
@@jonnestreefkerk4833 I've seen it. I'm 100% sure those were the real beatles. Absolutely no parody or fabrication. In conclusion, you're wrong. And it's sad.
@@FMOLETTE What? You haven't seen anything, because you don't know what you're talking about. EVERYBODY knows The Rutles is a parody of The Beatles made by Eric Idle of Monty Python and the late great Neil Innes. How can you possibly say those are the real Beatles? Noticed how the skin of the guy interpreting George, or better said Stig, is dark? Or that Barry/Ringo is quite fat? Or that those songs in the movie aren't OBVIOUSLY The Beatles' songs but humorous pastiches? The only thing sad is that you're condemning another person stating the truth, when you pretty obviously don't know nothing about what's been talked about
I really need a proper Ringo Starr biopic. We've had so many of Lennon that I could dream his life, McCartney already gets all the attention and Harrison at least had the great Martin Scorsese documentary. When is it Ringo's time?
It's as if filmmakers have bought into the narrative that Ringo was "adequate." Anyone who thinks that is clueless. The first one who realizes your vision will make a fortune.
@@alrivers2297 Right? When your next to stars that bright you're just not gonna "look" as bright. Even if you're very bright they will be brighter. It's tough. Glad he's well.
Going back to this now after having watched Get Back is like suddenly having the lights turned on for a Beatles fan. That series really changed so much about how I view the band and just makes everything make a bit more sense, even when it comes to things like these biopics. It is seriously a must-watch series.
@@katymagnets Rush was an awesome three piece rock band with an incredibly full sound. Geddy Lee was the bass player and lead singer who would also play a keyboard thing on the floor with his feet at the same time. He is super intelligent. (Still alive) The band had to quit because their drummer Neil Peart recently passed away. He was considered one of the best drummers of all time. There's a Rush documentary I believe on Netflix. But give Geddy Lee a quick Google just to see the resemblance to these "John" guys.
John talked openly about his attraction to his Mother. The film wasn’t taking “artistic license,” they were basing it off of instances he discussed in his diaries.
I think that if I would made a Beatles biopic, I would go for Ringo's POV. It seems like an obvious dessidion: 1) Ringo would be the best norator, cause he's more neutral than Paul and John, and more extravertic than George. 2) We will be sure, that we're not making another movei set in 1957-1962 (Like half of these). 3) Ringo seemse less egocentric than John (It's not John critisism), so by making a movie from his point of view we are making sure to get pretty much eaquel screen time for all 4 Beatles. 4) Ringo was, kind of, main character in 4 Beatles movies, so I think he will do:) Ps: This is probably terribly illiterate
I think a movie with him as the voice or his perspective could be quite good - whether its an actor or the actual Ringo narrating. Either his perspective on the Beatlemania years or on the stopped-touring, experimental music, white album era where the other's egos blew up.
So you noticed that too...that in pretty much all the movies the Beatles made or were responsible for--A Hard Day's Night, Help, Magical Mystery Tour, Yellow Submarine--the focus is on Ringo. In A Hard Day's Night he's the one with the most detailed storyline, in Help he's the one who gets the sacrificial ring that kicks off the plot, in Magical Mystery Tour he's the one we follow onto the bus with his (fictional) aunt, and in Yellow Submarine he's the first one we see and the one there's the most emphasis on. My guess is it's because Ringo's the everyman of the group--more relatable as an audience surrogate than the musical geniuses that John, Paul, and George were. Even he said once, "What's a scruff like me doing with all this lot?"
Yeahh.. I can see that... I think Ringo is the “motherly” figure in the group.. While the rest are like brothers having some conflicts, Ringo mostly just being there for them and making sure they are one harmonious family... He just enjoys playing drums with his friends.. I heard somewhere that after the Beatles broke up, Ringo is the one who made the effort to stay in touch with the others
@@jenniferschillig3768 Ringo was also the best actor out of the Beatles. He actually gave respectable performances in the films he did outside of the Beatles. Paul for all his musical talent was a pretty poor actor.
You know something i've noticed between in his life: The John Lennon story and Nowhere boy?is that when they show the quarrymen perform and Paul Mccartney watching them for the first time they always get the song that Paul heard John sing wrong. In Nowhere boy he sings Maggie may and in the John Lennon story he sings Be-bop-alula when in real life it was come go with me by The Del-vikings. I find that pretty weird since both these manage to show the exact songs paul and George played him when they met. hmm
especially since Paul always mentions that part of what caught his attention was John making up his own words to the song because he didn't know them! and that's such a character conveying detail
I think an 6 episode HBO miniseries of the Fab Four would be great. Enough time to flesh out the stories and give all four time to shine. They could have both the good and bad of their relationships and musical collaborations.
I'd watch 7 seasons, easily. There's enough detailed documentation, really great moments (ones that haven't been put in other biopics) and interesting peripheral characters--it could be a really interesting ensemble piece. We never get enough time with Brian Epstein, whose life was soooo interesting in itself, or how hard he worked to make their career happen--or the crazy series of weird lucky breaks and coincidences that led them to George Martin, who was (in the words of one biographer), probably the only producer who could "handle the Beatles without breaking them" (or vice versa). Nowhere Boy felt so fresh and so rich because it dug deeper into the people around them and really tried to make Liverpool come alive. That's what I'd like to see in anything that tackles them biographically--I want to see the world they lived in, not just watch things happen that I already know about (I know not everyone who potentially watches such a thing would be familiar with the events, but they're so much more meaningful and impactful with context).
Now I have to Google him.😭 Edit: okay. Done. I'm so out of touch I don't care anymore about the Beatles, just like after the age of 15, I couldn't care if my parents never got back together. I had my own life. It's like shatner's snl skit when he asks Dana carvey if he's ever kissed a girl after carvey asked him something about a particular scene.
5:00 fun fact, my mom actually met some of the guys in Rain. After their gigs in the city we live in (Reno) they would head for a night on the casinos and my mom was a cocktail waitress at one of them. So she got to serve them whenever they showed up. Eventually they for some reason didn’t have time for that anymore, but whenever they come here me and mom still go see them.
It'd be interesting to go back and see these older Beatles biopics after the release of the new four Beatles biopic movies in 2027, just to see how these hold up
this video was like tailor-made for me. i've seen so many of these movies and have never seen anyone do commentary for them so i'm just absolutely loving this 💚 💖
popcorntalknetwork.com/love-mercy-finding-the-root-of-our-identity/ I wrote on it for the company I used to intern at. I love the movie and The Beach Boys :)
My favorite was The Linda McCartney Story. I cried my eyes out at her death scene! I remember I was a senior in high school when I heard that Linda died from breast cancer. I had worried that Paul would lose his will to live because he lost the love of his life. Thankfully he did find love again.
yeah... kinda. Heather Mills lmao. but I guess people do make poor decisions in such times. thankfully he found love yet again, and this time seems to be everlasting.
Despite the occasional strident timbre of the voice, I think Ian Hart does the best at capturing young (and angry) John Lennon. Hart is able to capture John’s deep insecurities, desperate need for acceptance, even to touch upon his love of Stuart that has some homoerotic tinges to it. Also, Hart looks pretty uncannily like a young John Lennon (although with brown eye contacts, since Ian has blue eyes). Ian’s Liverpudlian, so that helps not making his accent sound like a Scouse robot! P. S. - The Oedipal interpretation of John Lennon’s relationship with his mother Julia is not unique to “Nowhere Boy”. Lennon did admit his “regret” of not having sex with Julia and admitted to multiple people (Maureen Cleeve, Arthur Janov, Yoko Ono) how he wished that happened. Also, Julia was know to be an incessant flirt with men, and could have been that way with John as not a mum, but a besotted friend. Considering Lennon’s loss of so many crucial people in his life prematurely (his father’s absence, his mother’s abandonment as a toddler, the death of his Uncle George, the tragic death of his mother at a time where he was re-establishing a bond) certainly leaves so much dramatic potential for movies. It’s probably the reason why so many films focus on him, notwithstanding Lennon as a cultural phenomenon along with the Beatles.
To quote John Lennon and Paul McCartney from the Revolver press conference; Asking about artists who cover their songs Reporter: Who plays your music best? John: “Us.” Reporter about their image. Paul: “We’re nothing like our image.” I love Nowhere Boy so much I watched it at least 30 times when it was on Netflix and at least twice a week when I found it on You Tube. For a successful biopic we would need a supernatural collaboration of writers and directors along with almost impossible casting to recreate profoundly interesting and poignant lives of each of these four men and their inner circle. There may have to be a time to tell stories we don’t know about them. Are we ready?
There's been a lot of (well deserved) films that focus on themes built around John Lennon's mental health, but not enough of themes built around the friendship between John and Paul. A biopic centered around that friendship would also be a good vehicle to show their creative process.
I agree, justice for George and Ringo, as they're a tie as my favourite Beatle. Having said that, George always liked to keep his cards close to his chest, though he led a very interesting life indeed - we have him to thank for Monty Python's Life of Brian coming to fruition. And Ringo has always preferred to keep his public persona as Ringo Starr separate from his private life as Richie Starkey, plus he's always been typically happy-go-lucky and enjoying his blessings way too much to ask for more, so I think he would still die happy if he never saw a biopic where he features prominently.
Just because John officially made the decision to leave, it doesn't mean that the tension between the band and Yoko didn't motivate his decision. I'm not blaming her I just know that new relationships can be hard on even mundane friendships. I can't imagine how hard it must be when your in an iconic band.
Let's not forget that Mike Myers has a small part in 'John & Yoko: A Love Story' , he plays a kid in Lennon glasses delivering a telegram to John, i think it was his first adult acting gig.
Wow this is absolutely fantastic. You really go through these movies so brilliantly- and I absolutely agree that it often feels like these actors are playing caricatures rather than real people. I think that the Beatles' image has been so heavily condensed and boiled down into character stereotypes that anytime they break the mold it is particularly noteworthy. Seriously awesome video!
A movie about George Harrison and Eric Clapton and the woman they both loved And how that led to the writing of “Layla” And a movie about Ringo’s post Beatles career and the writing of “it don’t come easy”
@Flipping Ell there's more than enough drama and conflict there to make it into a movie, have it start with Patty meeting Ringo and have it end with Eric and Patty breaking up/OR meeting each other and reconciling at George's funeral
This is one of the best first videos on RU-vid, they're usually very low quality as if it was recorded on a camera used in the 19th century, but this one has good quality footage and editing, props bro
Anybody here after the news? I'm honestly intrigued by the idea of 4 films, but hopefully they don't shine away from some of the stuff that really developed these men.
The best thing I've seen exploring The Beatles is Martin Scorcese's Living In The Material Wolrd. 3 hours and a half of pure joy about my favorite Beatle, George Harrison.
Awesome video! Well made and good commentary 🙂 About 'Nowhere Boy': there has actually been some reports/interview bits etc. that suggests that John might had had some strange feelings about his biological mom. I'm not sure theese sources were ever confirmed, but the movies take on this wasn't just taken out of the blue
I completely agree with you on Nowhere Boy. Yes, it helps to be a disciple of the Beatles to appreciate it, but in spite of the events which may or may not have ever taken place, the vulnerability that's explored in John and his relationship to Paul is very moving. Also, there was so much (supposed) antipathy between them after the Beatles broke up, it's really refreshing to see a film that reminds us that these two men really loved each other and grew up together. It brought me back to being the fan I was as a kid.
I know the Rutles film doesn’t count but it’s definitely the best parody of them. Paul didn’t like it but it does feature George as well as Mick Jagger, Bill Murray, Dan Akroyd, Monty Python troupe, etc.
As to John and Yoko: A Love Story, Mark Lindsay Chapman was initially cast as John Lennon but lost the part because his name was similar to that of Lennon's assassin Mark David Chapman. Chapman later played Lennon in Chapter 27 (2007).
I feel like we need a Beatles full length series, there’s so much to be depicted and even info we don’t know about and we need good depictions of all four Beatles
So what I've learned from this is that Christopher Eccleston and Peter Capaldi are the only two actors to have played both The Doctor and members of The Beatles. Also, count me as another one who wants a Ringo movie.
@@wrmty56413 Val Kilmer did a decent job portraying him and it was cool that he actually sang the songs but the characterization of Jim is all wrong in that movie according to the people who knew him.
re: the supposed Oedipal aspect of John and Julias relationship. John is quoted as saying he regretted he hadn't slept with her, and that he thought she would have consented. (From the Phillip Norman biog) This is not to say it's accurate, but it at least provides context
The Birth of the Beatles is the best one for me since Pete Best helped develop it, who had the best insight to their early days, plus it feels the most authentic given that it was made in the decade that followed their success.
re: all the Beatles songs on Lennon Naked. The BBC have a blanket agreement with the major record companies, where they can use most major recordings for little to nothing.
Great job! Birth ofthe Beatles hit when i was about 13 and i. The new throws of fandom. Still holds a soft spot. Had just read the Hunter Davies book and it was a kick watching it come to life.
In "Nowhere Boy" the filmmakers really showcased the Lennon actor's crystal blue eyes, which threw me off, as obviously John had brown eyes. Just pop some Brown contacts in there or fix it in post for fuck's sake. Also THANK YOU lad for talking about the fucking weird incestuous allusions made between John and his mum. Was that in the book or just rubbish to sell the film ?
@@breakfastline not sexually or romantically. He was a boy who had a complex relationship with his mother at that crucial age of his life where he needed her but he cant even live with her in a house properly. All of these Lennon narratives are getting quite fucked up especially it’s not accurate.
My favorite is probably Backbeat. Despite how they may not act or look exactly like The Beatles, I think it's just such a charming and great film. Plus, possibly my favorite Beatles period was the Hamburg days before their immense fame and I think it's a great way of documenting it, even if a bit of it isn't very accurate. Also, it has a killer soundtrack and I LOVE the punk rock take on the classic '50s hits. My favorite is either that or Nowhere Boy
On the final point, why does Lennon Naked have so many real Beatles songs - The BBC has a blanket agreement with the music industry, so they can use pretty much any song they want for their productions without incurring massive costs.
Love your take on these films, Elliot. I was offered the "Paul" roll by Dick Clark but after a lot of logistical maneuvering, I just couldn't get out of my commitment to a Beatlemania tour of Japan at the time.
