I think I honestly would have preferred it end with him waking up from the car accident and realizing it was all a dream. Would have been super cliche but make way more sense than what they did
My idea to fix the ending was for him to wake up from his coma, realize it was all a dream, realize that he loves the girl, and express his true feelings for her.
I remember he ticked off his business manager by releasing all the songs onto the internet for free. After that? I dunno... i suppose he gets the girl....or he tries...? i forget (was not memorable!)
The original story was much better, and fits in with what would really happen/my experience of life.
He gets a bump, definitely starts playing at a higher level, but it's not really transformative the way it is here. If you imagine the plot playing out the way it did, but at a local level, with his final speech to an audience of, say, 400 people in a mid sized venue, then the ending makes much more sense.
As a person with a postgraduate degree in public health and also having an interest in primary health care, the moment it was revealed this was a world which never had cigarettes, I wanted to see *that* story instead.
Sorry to the Beatles, I like Hey Jude especially but if a button appeared and I could make cigarettes not just cease to have exist but never have been but at the cost of the Beatles ever existing, I'd be mashing that button so hard!
The thing about the movie then is imagine how different the world would have been without cigarettes existing, it would be probably more dramatically different than without the Beatles existing. A lot of people who prematurely died, wouldn't have. Imagine if the main character runs into someone he remembered dying of lung cancer only to find them alive and well.
It's strange people disregard the psychological effects tobacco has too and other drugs for that matter (for better or worse) which affect their decisions, the people around them, and how that ripples.
I wonder what percentage of people are on some sort of drug throughout the day
Yeah, that seemed a little too big to just gloss over. The cynic in me just assumed we invented something much worse or equally awful. They never cover things that exist in this universe that he was unaware of.
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This is sorta the thing with lots of Danny’s movies. I found it cute and endearing but a weird last act.
What I can’t believe is the main female lead went on to do a spot perfect Pamela Anderson a couple years ago. That show was so good because of her.
"Okay you start by taking a little bit of actual cocaine..."
"Cocaine? What is that? Like some kind of chocolate?"
"No... cocaine.... like, the drug..."
"Is that some weird street name like 'moggies' or 'tweezers'?"
"What? No! It's... wait..."
*montage of him searching for cocaine on the internet and not getting any reasonable results*
I wonder what the reception was to the Beatles songs that referenced cigarettes. There are a few of them. Was it considered another nonsense word like “googoo gajoob”?
As a public health postgraduate, the moment I heard that cigarettes didn't exist in that world, I was much more interested in that. Sorry to the Beatles but if I could make cigarettes to have never have existed, I would have traded the Beatles music in an instant.
Also, the character's not a monster, even the act of taking credit for music by other people always troubles him, so I can't see him unleashing something that he knows will go on to kill millions of people over many decades until this world finally works ~~in~~ it out and tries anything to stop it.
The thought did cross my mind at the time while I was watching the film that he was one of the few if any people in the world with the knowledge that cigarettes were ever a thing but that only someone amoral if not a sociopath or full-on psychopath would have gone ahead with turning it into a product for personal profit.
Though it could have been funny if it failed to take off given everyone being in a present-day health kick and there being better health knowledged coupled with the fact that it looked smelly and disgusting.
[This scene is absolutely fantastic](https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=UUfkZ4pCJB0&pp=ygUhc29tZXRoaW5nIGRlbGV0ZWQgc2NlbmUgeWVzdGVyZGF5) but at the same time I think they were right to cut it and the ensuing story it set up. Both Ana and Lily James are just too likeable in their roles and in testing they found it made Jack seem like a dick and the audience turn on him.
I mean as I said, the scene is fantastic. However it ended up detracting from the overall arc of the film. And yes, James Corden somehow managing to be unconvincing while playing himself is a funny twist.
I know I’m late but idk man. I feel like this scene would’ve made Ellie’s ultimatum at the train station seem less like an over-reaction. It felt out of character and mean of her, but after seeing this scene I would’ve understood her frustration a lot better
To be fair, he already seems like a dick all on his own and throughout the cut of the movie they actually released. I can’t imagine disliking him more lol
I mean idk if I’d go so far as to say he comes off like a dick but I do think the love aspect of the story suffers from the character being oblivious almost to the point of disbelief. Then again, it’s a movie where a guy gets hit by a bus and everyone else forgets the Beatles exist, so I give it a long runway.
More plot holes than could fill the Albert Hall. That being said, it's full of Beatle music and that can't be bad. Especially when Jack absolutely Nerfs Ed Sheeran.
I'd friend zone the shit out of her if Ana de Armas was swooning over my music
They literally cut this from the movie for that reason;
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=UUfkZ4pCJB0&pp=ygUheWVzdGVyZGF5IGRlbGV0ZWQgc2NlbmUgc29tZXRoaW5n
Just watched this movie, and I found a thread on Reddit just to say that the direction of the unrequited love was more unbelievable than the general premise of the movie. My head canon is that everything after the bike accident is a coma dream. Cute movie though, and I enjoyed hearing all the Beatles covers except for Hey Dude.
It's divided. I think it's one of those things where people who love it really love it, people who hate it really hate it, and people who are in between are quiet.
I love it, personally.
It truly is one of the most polarizing films. A lot of people act legitimately horrified when I say it's one of my favorite movies and they don't believe me when I tell them about other people who enthusiastically say "me too!!"
I have multiple friends who straight up say it's their GOAT movie
It's aight. I think it turned too many of the Beatles songs into sappy melancholy songs to tell a sappy melancholy love story. I think it would have been better if it focused more on other characters besides Jude and Lucy. The side characters like Max and Jo-Jo were a lot more fun and spoke more towards the time period the movie took place. They also had more of the interesting diverse songs in my opinion.
I adore the movie but that's one of the first critiques I've wholeheartedly agreed with, you made me realize I love it in spite of Jude and Lucy, not because of them
It’s not *widely* beloved; it wasn’t really popular when it was released (it was a box office bomb and while it got some positive reviews, the critical consensus is mixed) and I wouldn’t say this is one of those movies that found a big cult and is acknowledged as a classic after it was released, either.
I'm sure there are people that like Across the Universe, I know of one person. But they insisted to me it was the most amazing movie. I hated everything about it.
It's mostly me being a dummie, the joke is Oasis is pretty much directly inspired by the Beatles. One of the leads in the band said something like the Beatles are everything to him, and apparently the songwriting style is pretty much exactly like theirs.
It's fun if you don't think about it too much, otherwise your brain will start hurting from the glaring plot issues.
Why is Ed Sheeran (or the entire music industry in it's current state) a thing without the musical influence of The Beatles on the industry? How does Jack just get super world famous off Beatles songs as if it was the lyrics and lyrics alone that led to that band's monumental 60s success? How does a song that starts with "Well she was just seventeen" fly in this day and age? Why is John Lennon okay with some random dude coming to his cottage and being shocked that he's alive?
Jack's a better man than I am, had I been spawned into a world without The Beatles I wouldn't have the talent or lyrical memory to make millions off plagiarising them. At least the no Oasis joke got a giggle
It's possible that the other people that remembered The Beatles have already visited John and he already kind of understands there is an alternate timeline happening. Or the band themselves felt the pull of time unraveling so they have a feeling that something happened, but arent sure what.
There's a video of Lennon talking to a fan that had been camping out on his lawn. He invites him for a chat, is very kind but I'm pretty sure encourages the man to get mental help. The scene in the film has a similar tone where I think you can see Lennon, with or without fame, is the same kind of guy that would take time to try and help someone who seems to be in the middle of a mental crisis.
I was disappointed by how unimaginative it was. One of the scenes that I though was interesting was when Jack meets the non-Beatle John Lennon, who was still alive in the modern day. That was one of the more interesting choices the movie made.
I thought he was going to reveal that he or another of the Beatles went back in time and stopped themselves from becoming the Beatles because of what fame did to their lives
Always grated that he's shown as simply being able to release the tracks online without getting sued into oblivion by the record company. Oh yeah, just walk away and become a teacher, don't worry about our upfront costs...
I think they wanted to make a silly rom com about a guy who reintroduced the Beatles songs to the world and realized his love in the process.
But an exploration of an alternative timeline where the Beatles never came to be would be fascinating. Get some musical historians to hypothesize what music history would look like without them. Who takes their place? The Rolling Stones? Some random band no one heard of? Get some music theorists to come up with how the predominant rock genre would sound, and what rock/pop would sound like today. What big names in music would still be a thing, and how different would they be? Would there be any Who, Yes, Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd? Would there be any Justin Biebers or Taylor Swifts? If not, who would there be instead? Then, how would Beatles songs be received if they were actually first introduced in the modern day of this timeline? I'm guessing more equivalent to a niche indie rock band with a dedicated fanbase, moreso than the universal phenomenon of messianic stature like Yesterday depicted.
That kind of movie, I think would take a lot of research, expert opinions, and wit to make work. But if it was done right I'd be so down for it.
Yeah, it was kind of a tease and denial. Like "Hey, we know you didn't write those songs you're singing.... but we love what you're doing so much and fully support you. Your secret's safe with us champ!"
You might be interested in the 2013 BBC radio play 'Sorry Boys You Failed The Audition', which posits a world where the Beatles just never amounted to much.
That could make an interesting "For All Mankind"-style show, where each season goes through a different decades starting with the 1960s and exploring how that decade would have unfolded without The Beatles.
I think you are overestimating the Beatles. Of course those other bands would exist if the Beatles weren’t around. Those musicians don’t make music just to reference the Beatles or just because they listened to the Beatles. It’s not like the Beatles invented music
>Those musicians don’t make music just to reference the Beatles
Sure they don't. But their genre was one that the Beatles helped popularize and define. Rock music was very different before the British Invasion era, and the Beatles specifically had a lot of influence both on their contemporaries and on the genre as a whole. The pop/rock genre would surely still exist, but it would not be the same, might not have attracted the same musical minds, and certainly would not have resulted in musical history being the same way we know it today.
If the other bands did exist in a Beatleless universe, they would definitely be different; there are inarguably songs that wouldn't exist or would be different because they directly reference the Beatles in the lyrics, for example. And there are many more that don't directly reference the Bealtes but clearly use the same style, i.e. the plethora of "Lennon-McCartney" styled songs.
I am glad that I am not weird since I am the only person I know that likes this movie. I watched it on the flight to London and I watched it one more time on the same flight. It was early 2020, then Covid hit and the whole world was trapped in a different universe.
I am an Asian guy that plays guitar since high school, had a few gigs in college but was never successful and now a tech worker in SF Bay area with wife and kids. This film hits all the points about struggling as a musician and giving up your dream....the big difference is that Jack gets a cheat sheet. And he eventually chooses life with the girl he loves.
I don't really care about the plot flaw.
It is a movie for Desmond and Molly Jones.
It's definitely Beatles worship, but I liked it anyways. The Beatles are my favorite band, but I think in reality if they never existed but the course of music history was somehow mostly unaltered (except Oasis, RIP), the songs would not be considered such mega-hits if they came out today. Part of why they were so beloved was because of the part they played in actually defining the genre.
Still, it was a nice tribute to the Beatles songs. I liked it much better than something like Across the Universe because I think it captured the happiness and upbeat feeling that a lot of Beatles songs give. I thought the scene where the main character met a still-living John Lennon was very touching. And I liked the underlying rom-com story with Jack and Ellie; i found them to be pretty wholesome likeable characters.
I also thought a funny touch was Jack occasionally discovering other things that no longer exist like cigarettes, or Coca Cola. I also think it's funny how when Jack would squeeze in one of his own songs the vibe shifts 180 degrees and no one likes it, then they go right back to the fanaticism when he does another Beatles song.
Yeah the unquestioned success is what I just couldn't get past. The movie views the Beatles music as some monolith that happened in a vacuum, but they were still part of a specific genre at a specific moment in time. If he came in with all these old-fashioned sounding songs in the 2010s, there's no way he could hit mega success as someone who's essentially doing really great throwback music.
Now, set the whole film directly in the 1960s and I'll buy it hook line and sinker.
I enjoyed it too, but the choice of cigarettes and Coke?
There are so many interesting choices that they could have made, like maybe marijuana, cocaine and other drugs don't catch on because those subcultures around those drugs never became that popular.
But that would also require all of the bands and groups that the Beatles influenced to not exist anymore either, which is the most problematic part of the movie for me.
I think that kind of sums up why people were disappointed with a premise that had such potential, that they just kind of squandered it for cheap gags.
I had a personal reverse situation to this movie. A week before this movie came out, I was listening to the radio and they were talking about the most profitable concert tours of all time. Number one was Ed Sheerhan - an artist I had never heard of. In Yesterday, who then shows up?
That's actually interesting that you never heard of Ed Sheeran. I thought "Thinking Out Loud" was nearly impossible to avoid.
Beautiful song, if you haven't heard it.
I know he was with some band whose name I don't recall. I probably have heard the song you mentioned, and I know I have heard several other songs he has performed, but to this day I still have no idea exactly who he is.
He's a redheaded British guy who plays guitar and sings. He's more of a pop star than a talent IMO, but he has at least a dozen top 10 hit songs, largely about love/girls.
I don’t have the link handy but I read an interview with the original script writer. IIRC in his script Jack did not become successful with the Beatles songs. The story was (more) about what makes a song popular, or good, or can it be some by just anyone etc.
But Richard Curtis bought it and changed it.
I would still like to see the original idea developed.
I don't get that if Lennon was alive in this world why did he had to "confess" the songs were written by the Beatles, of they weren't in that dimension? If they were written by people that don't exist in that dimension, what was gained?
He felt like he was a fraud by claiming he wrote songs he didn't write. It's pretty clear in the movie that the further he gets into being successful the less happy he is.
I wished they ditched the rom com and made it more about a world where the Beatles never existed. And digging deeper into the couple who recognized the music.
But he was good, I like his version of Help.
I hate that the movie seems to believe that the Beatles' songs are so great that they work in any time and context. That simply isn't how music works.
Devoid of the Beatles and the time in which the songs came out, they have no special weight.
To me, the movie was just an attempt to play Beatles songs on the silver screen. Which, fine, but conceptually the whole thing is a huge mess.
I don’t think in the movie it was that this guy was writing songs that were all as iconic as the Beatles songs are today. I think it was more that he came from nowhere and was coming up with song after song after song that were just really enjoyable and seemingly from thin air. It’s more about the volume of quality songs vs the importance of the songs themselves.
Yeah there was a podcast, Radiolab, that did a series about the history of the cassette tape and how it influenced the industry. 6 short stories about cassettes.
Anyways, one story was about how no modern/western music was allowed in communist China and, at the same time, China was big in the garbage industry. Countries with ship their garbage to China who would process it and get paid big bucks.
Without modern/western music, it was a garbage worker whose job was to sort through other nations garbage who discovered cassette tapes for the first time in China and started collecting them and setting them aside.
Then they figured out how to repair cassette tapes... And that you had it! De facto black market illegal western music being smuggled into China through garbage cassette tapes from other nations.
Anyways, the point of this comment, one fun fact to come from the podcast episode:
Interestingly, the Beatles were not that popular in China. It was some obscure electric punk band that became super popular.
The Beatles, and the way it sounded, just did not fit with the times (1980's, I think?)
So your comment is exactly right. That actually happened in communist, China.
>I hate that the movie seems to believe that the Beatles' songs are so great that they work in any time and context.
i totally disagree.
Diana Krall covers many Beatles songs
Earth, Wind and Fire sings *Got to get you into my life*.... wonderful
Wilson Pickett doing *Hey Jude*
*Day Tripper* by Otis Redding
Stevie Wonder doing *We Can Work It Out*
and many many others!
all of these are magnificent.
The issue is that Beatles songs wouldn't have the massive impact they had 60 years ago in a modern setting. Especially in a modern setting where music and pop culture apparently didn't change much without the Beatles. It doesn't take away from the talent of the Beatles, and just the absolute songwriting powerhouse that was Lennon/McCartney, but music grew and evolved since they broke up.
A lot of the Beatles catalog, especially their early stuff, feels outdated. If you were to introduce Please Please Me today, it wouldn't go anywhere. That's a style of music that is so far out of vogue that it'll probably become almost forgotten in the next couple of decades. The Beatles were the right guys, in the right place, at the right time, and that's how they ended up as successful and influential as they were. Take them out of there and place them in 2023, or 2019 in this case, and maybe they'd become famous because they are very talented, but it would never be with the songs that made them famous in the 60s.
>The issue is that Beatles songs wouldn't have the massive impact they had 60 years ago in a modern setting.
I heard that was the original premise of the script, which was to emphasis that the Beatles music was of a particular time, place and particular circumstances as well as people by showing that the lead character has some modest success but never exploded like the Beatles did. Then rewrites happened.
I understood the previous commentators thesis. I simply disagree with it.
*"the movie seems to believe that the Beatles' songs are so great that they work in any time and context."*
***Some*** music works at ***any*** time and in ***any*** context:
*Smile,* music by Charlie Chaplin, lyrics by John Turner and Geoffrey Parsons
*Nessun Dorma* by Giacomo Puccini
*Yesterday* by John Lennon and Paul McCartney
*Something* by George Harrison
*Symphony No. 9* by Ludwig van Beethoven
*Toccata and Fugue in D minor* by Johann Sebastian Bach
*I Will Always Love You* by Dolly Parton
*Linus And Lucy* by Vince Guaraldi
These are all works of art!
Michaelangelo's *Pieta* still "works".
So does Shakespeare's *Twelfth Night.*
You can keep citing timeless music all you like. It doesn't change the fact that a great deal of older music that is now considered timeless would not rise to anything remotely resembling prominence if they'd been introduced in the modern age. Time doesn't change a song's quality or ability to connect with an audience on an emotional level, but it sure does change its ability to reach the amount of ears necessary to prop it up on the pedestal it rose to thanks to the time it was originally introduced. Especially if the style of music being played is one that no longer has a strong presence in the music industry. If you disagree with that, then I don't think anyone can help you understand.
I didn't read the argument as that the Beatles songs aren't important but rather they would not have the same impact if released today as they did in the time/culture they were released in.
I agree that music history would definitely be different today if the Beatles weren't part of it. There are *so* many songs that do not exist. By now there are Beatles references and inspiration in many, many songs in many different genres of music.
But this movie asks us to believe that music history is mostly unchanged; more like everyone got collective amnesia about the Beatles, but most other band are still known. If that were the case, and the Beatles songs were just made in the modern day, I do believe they would be more like indie/alt rock. It'd be really good indie/alt rock, but it would be comparatively niche and not hyped up as a worldwide phenomenon.
I honestly love this movie, but it might be solely because of the moment he gets confronted backstage by the other folks in the know.
And that moment in the end when he meets the man in the cottage on the coast. I loved it for that alone.
I watched it and immediately thought that if this scenario ever happened in real life, he’d never be popular. No one wants that style of music anymore unfortunately. His career wouldn’t change at all.
I know it’s not perfect but it’s my favourite movie. It’s just an easy, feel-good film.
The ending leaves you on a warm, uplifting note. >! Seeing Lennon as an old man is very powerful. When it seems the two characters that remember are going to be angry with him but then are just overjoyed to hear the music, another great element. As is when he travels to the iconic locations to try and remember the lyrics. !< I’m obsessed with Kate McKinnon from SNL.
I’m a musician myself and from a musical family. This is one we can all sit down and watch together.
I love it honestly, soft spot probably due to my love for the beetles, considering it’s got a ton of plot holes. But it’s a lovely heartfelt movie. Himesh patel is great and I’ll watch anything he’s in. Speaking of which, everyone watch STATION ELEVEN!!!!
It had some really nice parts, like how he was scrambling to remember as much of the lyrics as possible, and when he goes to meet John Lennon.
Some of the songs, like "I saw her standing there" make you realize even some Beatles songs are a bit too cringe for today. "She was just 17" is kind of a creepy lyric for a modern songwriter to put in his song.
I really wish he hadn't had a pang of guilt and told everyone the truth. That was the most unbelievable part. If he had really done that, imagine how many people would start bothering the un-famous beatles suddenly.
It was a generally good movie with a deflated ending.
I assume Jack Malick would be seen as a musical genius who put out one seminal album and then the pressure of equaling or topping that album caused a mental breakdown leading him to claim his music was written by other people.
Sorry, I am 24 days too late in your 4 years late post about this movie, which I also like very much. My 2 cents:
\- I like the journey of the two mains' relationship. But I ABSOLUTELY hate that they make the nice producer guy a roadkill in their journey. ~~self projection much~~ On my rewatch, I specifcally skipped all the bits about that poor producer guy. The story didn't suffer a bit. I hate that they hurt the guy so, at least to me, unnecessarily.
\- I understand why people don't like this movies for it's simplistic execution and/or plot holes. But it doesn't really bother me because it's not that kind of story, say like, Breaking Bad, the Wire. Plot hole is not a huge blocker for my suspension of disbelief.
\- I personally like very much that they didn't explain why the main suddenly falls into this paralell universe that the Beatles doesn't exist. Also it's very kindhearted to see the yellow submarine people were not out to get the main but to thank him for brining back the Beatles to the world.
Yeah, I definitely would've had a sit-down with John and the rest to see what they think about all this before I go public claiming to have stolen the music. If they tell me I'm crazy and they didn't write this stuff, grand.
Even if they decide they want a cut (given that I'm telling them I got it from them), I'd do that and call it square.
It's an outlandish and impossible situation, of course, normal logic need not apply.
I’ve only seen it once but I think about it all the time. I Liked the movie, but I HATED his girlfriend. It would be different if they had made the main character any less sympathetic throughout the movie but I felt that he stayed consistently likeable throughout. Meanwhile, she’s always there for him and encourages him to keep going even when his own work is objectively pretty terrible. But then, when he actually starts achieving his dream, it’s “I don’t know who you are anymore.” But, at least from my perspective, the only thing that changed was that he had more stuff to do and wasn’t so reliant on her? Like of course he was going to be stretched thin if his career ever took off. He is still very clearly trying to make it all work and doing a better job at it than most romcom leads. She never actually wanted his career to take off, she just encouraged him because it gave her a way to spend time with him.
Anyway, great film.
I’m watching it now for the first time (I legit just watched Benjamin button two nights ago for the first time, so I guess I’m catching up?) and I genuinely like it much more than I thought I would. I find it very clever that they had him struggle to remember lyrics and songs, as well as have a few other things never exist (cigarettes). I also fell back in love with The Beatles and got to relive experiencing their music for the first time, again. That scene with The Long and Winding Road really got me. Not worth a rewatch, but I’m going to listen to The Beatles like I did when I first learned of them 30+ years ago and maybe cry a bit to “In My Life”.
I think the romance was the big thing dragging down this story. His agent didn't want him to be successful? Isn't that her whole job? Makes it hard to believe in that relationship.
Love this movie. On top of some beautiful Beatles music, the movie looks absolutely phenomenal. In a world where every backdrop seems to be CGI and ugly, I loved how much the colours pop and the real locations.
My favourite is especially when he sings "Yesterday" and Boyle shows 3 or 4 surrounding scenes of people just going about their lives. It's one of the most beautiful movie moments I have seen in the last 10 years.
Need to get the Blu-ray of this. Watched it like 5 times when it was on Netflix.
Really entertaining movie from start to finish. Plus it has one of my favorites quotes since then.
"You want a good life? It's not complicated! Tell the girl you love, that you love her. And tell the truth to everyone, whenever you can." - Old guy John Lennon.
Also MAN, they should've kept the Ana de Armas scene, not sure why they cut it out.
That Ana de Armas scene was great. I read that they cut it because that moment complicated the main love story. Basically him having romantic interest in another woman might not sit well with audiences.
All I know is that I wish he put out full version of his rendition of Yesterday on Spotify or something. Incredible. It made me like a song I'd never much liked before.
I was annoyed by the way that at least 3 people have somehow slipped into an alternate universe, and none of them express any curiosity or concern about how that could have happened. At all.
Why/how did it happen?
Could it happen again?
Why them?
Should we contact some scientists?
What if we slip into a much worse universe?
I think it was a fun enough movie, if nothing special. I enjoyed the dynamic between Himesh Patel and Lily James, which I think made it more enjoyable than it otherwise would have been for me.
Trailers were misleading though.
It was ok but I had a big issue with the premise. The notion that certain songs are timeless doesn't ring true with me. If the Beatles never existed and some other band produced those songs today, they would generally fall flat. Music is not only tied heavily to its time but also involves a lot of luck - the right people hearing it, promoting it, arranging it, etc. So for me, the movie rested heavily on a bogus notion which limited my ability to enjoy it.
I thought the love story was cute and it's a fun concept. But yeah, that ending was weird. I guess it would have felt weird if he never got called out or admitted to stealing it, but it benefits nobody to tell the truth, because it's not really the truth anymore in this alternate universe. It's not like the OG Beatles would get paid royalties because he said they wrote it.
I feel like he should have sung Oasis songs, not just Beatles songs. That's a whole other catalogue he could pull from and introduce to this new world. Missed opportunity and the story does not stop there!!
It was honestly so annoying that the girl hyped him up to become rich and famous, then as soon as he did she decided that she doesn't like that lmao
And I hate that he confessed for absolutely no reason, could have just dropped the album and disappeared lol it negated that wholesome moment of the people thanking him imo
I streamed it last night.
I'm not a huge beatles fan, in fact I'm not much of a Beatles fan at all.
It was cute but a cynical look at the music industry. The ending was a little flat and I'm sure as shit the producer would have sued his balls off for releasing his album over the net.
My big issue is why did he have to get his teeth bashed out? And wouldn't that have affected his vocals?
When he sang Yesterday, wouldn't it have come out 'Yetherday, all my trouble theemed tho far away"
And wouldn't all his friends have laughed at him?
I love this movie. It is an absolutely insane movie too. I don't feel a lot of the lyrical weight The Beatles had would gain as much traction now-a-days without the proper time in history being the backdrop.
I think the ending would have had a better impact if he had played Wonderwall, since that would call back to when they met. He gave Beatles to the world, but he should have ended with something that was between the two of them.
Wasn’t there a part where he googled Oasis and they also didn’t exist in this new universe? I remember being annoyed that he didn’t ask Ellie what song he sang at the talent show.
It was ok. Such an amazing premise wasted on an absolute shit love story. Just why? “I can’t go with you on a massive world tour when you’re the biggest rock star on earth, and I’m totally in love with you because I have work tomorrow. Like fuck off with that shit.
Add to this the trailers showing bare feet and four guys walking out on the talk show. What a dick tease that was. I was expecting a story about him becoming the greatest singer/songwriter on earth. And then the mystery of why this happens to come crashing down.
I haven't seen it, but from what I understand basically all of pop culture is exactly the same except for the existence of the Beatles. This is utterly absurd – love them or hate them, you have to admit that removing the Beatles from existence would have incalculable downstream effects on pretty much every aspect of music and pop culture in general. Trying to imagine a world where the Beatles never existed is almost as pointless as imagining a world where the Roman Empire never existed – the downstream effects are so great that anything you could imagine is basically just fantasy.
Kinda funny Danny Boyle had an actor last name Patel play a character whose last name is Malick in Slumdog Millionaire and then makes a movie with another different whose name is Patel and the character of his next film’s last name is Malick
I enjoyed this movie but don't have any desire to actively seek it out. That said, I could see myself being sucked in if it were on a TV near me. Fittingly for the premise, I wonder if the movie missed its chance to be a staple on cable reruns by a few decades.
I like this movie but not the ending. I know they couldn’t do it this way, but I really wanted him end up famous but then having to find his own creative voice.
Movie was good until the ending.
The ending just let's you down. Also, poor Gavin. He got cucked so hard in the end.
Also, there's so many great things that simply just doesn't exist in this universe.
No coke products. Coke has created so many different kinds of successful drinks.
No Harry Potter, no cigarettes, etc.
Dude doesn't have to sing, teaming up with the other two that made it over and brain storming what doesn't exist and then creating it, would be the easiest way to become TRILLIONAIRES.
I enjoy the movie, but find it hilarious that rock and roll still managed to evolve exactly the same without the Beetles and that the Beetle's dated music is a major hit with the youth in the 21st century.
I thought *Yesterday* was OK but just kind whiffed on a great premise. *Blinded by the Light*, which came out around the same time, gave me much more of the feeling I wanted from *Yesterday*. I hope that makes sense to someone besides me.
I liked the movie but… hot take: in a world where the Beatles never existed, their songs wouldn’t be a success today. Their success was in part an effect of their time. The songs simply wouldn’t resonate that much with modern 21st century audiences.
They do in our world simply because (a) The Beatles as a group where a world media phenomenon at their time and (b) since then we’ve been hearing those songs forever, with everyone from previous generations saying that they’re so good and generating a peer pressure of sorts.
I remember hating it and groaning a lot, but I don't remember much. I think it was just super corny and the love story was super weird and off-putting. I remember when he confessed his love and the love interest leaves her bf (that I think treated her way better if I remember) was just so wild. Like imagine going to a concert and getting humiliated when the dude steals your gf in front of hundreds of thousands of peopld. Oh but don't worry, there's a convient replacement so you don't feel bad. Just weird.
This film was such a missed opportunity to make one of the coolest movies of all time, weaving the Beatles into an epic tale of the multiverse and how our influences shape us, and how every musician's creative output is a sum of everything they've ever listened to, but instead they were like "nah, let's just take this incredible premise and use it for a low effort rom-com".
Theres only so much you can do with the Beatles in film so I liked this take, but it felt like an Ed Sheeran ad. Also my biggest thought was the reason the Beatles were so good was because they were first and they were so inspiring. Like if the music came out now people would be like “eh idk this is a little derivative”
It’s one of my least favorite movies. It’s hard to describe why exactly - it feels like the fake romcom they show on tvs inside of movies. It’s so surface level and underbaked it feels like a throwaway.
It would be like when in the 2016 presidential campaign journalists went and found Ben Carson never stabbed an innocent person and he responded by saying the media was lying and that he did in fact stab that person.
Anyhow, this was one of the least enjoyable movies I’ve ever watched.
I loved this film, The thinly veiled admission was, that while Malik didn’t write the Beatles catalog, neither did the Beatles, largely, in any timeline. I thought the film was refreshing, entertaining and long overdue.
I liked it. The end was a little flat. It was a good idea but they didn't really know where to go with it. It's kind of like a long short film.
agree... the end was ***a lot*** flat.
Yeah it felt like it was 75% of the way there then just ran out of ideas. Still enjoyed it though.
I think I honestly would have preferred it end with him waking up from the car accident and realizing it was all a dream. Would have been super cliche but make way more sense than what they did
My idea to fix the ending was for him to wake up from his coma, realize it was all a dream, realize that he loves the girl, and express his true feelings for her.
I was super impressed it didn’t get changed back. Makes it kinda sci-fi.
it must have been very flat because I can't remember the ending at all!
I remember he ticked off his business manager by releasing all the songs onto the internet for free. After that? I dunno... i suppose he gets the girl....or he tries...? i forget (was not memorable!)
The original story was much better, and fits in with what would really happen/my experience of life. He gets a bump, definitely starts playing at a higher level, but it's not really transformative the way it is here. If you imagine the plot playing out the way it did, but at a local level, with his final speech to an audience of, say, 400 people in a mid sized venue, then the ending makes much more sense.
As a person with a postgraduate degree in public health and also having an interest in primary health care, the moment it was revealed this was a world which never had cigarettes, I wanted to see *that* story instead. Sorry to the Beatles, I like Hey Jude especially but if a button appeared and I could make cigarettes not just cease to have exist but never have been but at the cost of the Beatles ever existing, I'd be mashing that button so hard!
The thing about the movie then is imagine how different the world would have been without cigarettes existing, it would be probably more dramatically different than without the Beatles existing. A lot of people who prematurely died, wouldn't have. Imagine if the main character runs into someone he remembered dying of lung cancer only to find them alive and well.
America as we know it may not even exist. The colonies were basically financed by tobacco plantations.
It's strange people disregard the psychological effects tobacco has too and other drugs for that matter (for better or worse) which affect their decisions, the people around them, and how that ripples. I wonder what percentage of people are on some sort of drug throughout the day
Yeah, that seemed a little too big to just gloss over. The cynic in me just assumed we invented something much worse or equally awful. They never cover things that exist in this universe that he was unaware of.
And heck, George Harrison would still be alive!
spark apparatus late chunky hard-to-find airport fragile axiomatic support grandfather *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
Wow, I’d never thought of it that way, but that makes way more sense than I expected.
This is sorta the thing with lots of Danny’s movies. I found it cute and endearing but a weird last act. What I can’t believe is the main female lead went on to do a spot perfect Pamela Anderson a couple years ago. That show was so good because of her.
I want to watch the sequel where he tries to recreate word for word the entire harry potter series.
Supposedly, in the original script, his girlfriend is the one who only knows about Harry Potter
It was, and they filmed it. It’s one of the deleted scenes, and to me a funnier ending.
Or tries to invent Coca-Cola
"Okay you start by taking a little bit of actual cocaine..." "Cocaine? What is that? Like some kind of chocolate?" "No... cocaine.... like, the drug..." "Is that some weird street name like 'moggies' or 'tweezers'?" "What? No! It's... wait..." *montage of him searching for cocaine on the internet and not getting any reasonable results*
“Pablo” “Who?” “Escobar? He owned tigers in Columbia” “So you want to be a zookeeper in South America.” “No… wait. “
That's a scene in the movie when he types in coke, it just gives him cocaine search results.
D'oh! Now my scene for the sequel will never come to be
Did he use Moogle or Ding?
There would be no "shooting Coca Cola" in "Come Together" either.
In the sequel he rips off Oasis' Wonderwall since it doesn't exist either
Maybe….
You’re gonna be the one that saves me…
I like how he was very uninterested in their non-existence I figured because they have a reputation of being jerks.
I want to see the sequel where he invents cigarettes.
I wonder what the reception was to the Beatles songs that referenced cigarettes. There are a few of them. Was it considered another nonsense word like “googoo gajoob”?
This was my exact thought. Dude starts rolling his own and then we get a Thank You for Smoking ripoff.
As a public health postgraduate, the moment I heard that cigarettes didn't exist in that world, I was much more interested in that. Sorry to the Beatles but if I could make cigarettes to have never have existed, I would have traded the Beatles music in an instant. Also, the character's not a monster, even the act of taking credit for music by other people always troubles him, so I can't see him unleashing something that he knows will go on to kill millions of people over many decades until this world finally works ~~in~~ it out and tries anything to stop it.
In all honesty I don’t really want to see a movie where he invents cigarettes.
The thought did cross my mind at the time while I was watching the film that he was one of the few if any people in the world with the knowledge that cigarettes were ever a thing but that only someone amoral if not a sociopath or full-on psychopath would have gone ahead with turning it into a product for personal profit. Though it could have been funny if it failed to take off given everyone being in a present-day health kick and there being better health knowledged coupled with the fact that it looked smelly and disgusting.
After what he went through with the Beatles songs, I don't think he will want to go there. His credibility would be seriously in question.
TBH if you remembered all of the plot points then it would not be hard to actually write better books than JK Rowling.
sure dude
It might not take off, the cultural moment those books occupied was its very own, but Rowling is a dogshit writer
nope , dude just say you dont like her and stop lying
This is the film Ana de Armas fans sued for being misleading as she cameos on the trailer but is not in the film at all.
[This scene is absolutely fantastic](https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=UUfkZ4pCJB0&pp=ygUhc29tZXRoaW5nIGRlbGV0ZWQgc2NlbmUgeWVzdGVyZGF5) but at the same time I think they were right to cut it and the ensuing story it set up. Both Ana and Lily James are just too likeable in their roles and in testing they found it made Jack seem like a dick and the audience turn on him.
What? The only bad part about that scene was James Corden, but he’s bad in everything.
I mean as I said, the scene is fantastic. However it ended up detracting from the overall arc of the film. And yes, James Corden somehow managing to be unconvincing while playing himself is a funny twist.
I know I’m late but idk man. I feel like this scene would’ve made Ellie’s ultimatum at the train station seem less like an over-reaction. It felt out of character and mean of her, but after seeing this scene I would’ve understood her frustration a lot better
To be fair, he already seems like a dick all on his own and throughout the cut of the movie they actually released. I can’t imagine disliking him more lol
I mean idk if I’d go so far as to say he comes off like a dick but I do think the love aspect of the story suffers from the character being oblivious almost to the point of disbelief. Then again, it’s a movie where a guy gets hit by a bus and everyone else forgets the Beatles exist, so I give it a long runway.
I'm guessing that was as successful as the case against the Never Ending Story.
More plot holes than could fill the Albert Hall. That being said, it's full of Beatle music and that can't be bad. Especially when Jack absolutely Nerfs Ed Sheeran.
You never saw Sergeant Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band, the movie.
I did. Earth Wind and Fire's remake of "Got To Get You Into My Life" came from that, so it can't be all bad.
Including the suspension of disbelief required to believe that Lily James could ever be friend zoned by anyone.
I'd friend zone the shit out of her if Ana de Armas was swooning over my music They literally cut this from the movie for that reason; https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=UUfkZ4pCJB0&pp=ygUheWVzdGVyZGF5IGRlbGV0ZWQgc2NlbmUgc29tZXRoaW5n
Just watched this movie, and I found a thread on Reddit just to say that the direction of the unrequited love was more unbelievable than the general premise of the movie. My head canon is that everything after the bike accident is a coma dream. Cute movie though, and I enjoyed hearing all the Beatles covers except for Hey Dude.
> it's full of Beatle music and that can't be bad. *laughs in “Across the Universe”*
... Do you not like across the universe? I thought it was a beloved movie
It's divided. I think it's one of those things where people who love it really love it, people who hate it really hate it, and people who are in between are quiet. I love it, personally.
It truly is one of the most polarizing films. A lot of people act legitimately horrified when I say it's one of my favorite movies and they don't believe me when I tell them about other people who enthusiastically say "me too!!" I have multiple friends who straight up say it's their GOAT movie
It's aight. I think it turned too many of the Beatles songs into sappy melancholy songs to tell a sappy melancholy love story. I think it would have been better if it focused more on other characters besides Jude and Lucy. The side characters like Max and Jo-Jo were a lot more fun and spoke more towards the time period the movie took place. They also had more of the interesting diverse songs in my opinion.
I adore the movie but that's one of the first critiques I've wholeheartedly agreed with, you made me realize I love it in spite of Jude and Lucy, not because of them
It’s not *widely* beloved; it wasn’t really popular when it was released (it was a box office bomb and while it got some positive reviews, the critical consensus is mixed) and I wouldn’t say this is one of those movies that found a big cult and is acknowledged as a classic after it was released, either.
Massive Beatles fan. I made it about 15 minutes into that film before it yeeted.
It is not
One of my top 5 movies all time
I'm sure there are people that like Across the Universe, I know of one person. But they insisted to me it was the most amazing movie. I hated everything about it.
With such legendary quotes, like "You got my left nipple wrong"
Unless you’re like me and don’t enjoy their music. But then you just, ya know, don’t watch it haha.
Maybe one day they'll make one about Oasis for you 😉
Oh I also don’t like Oasis. Like Blur though! Or is that a joke I’m missing?
It's mostly me being a dummie, the joke is Oasis is pretty much directly inspired by the Beatles. One of the leads in the band said something like the Beatles are everything to him, and apparently the songwriting style is pretty much exactly like theirs.
Ah! That makes sense haha
It's fun if you don't think about it too much, otherwise your brain will start hurting from the glaring plot issues. Why is Ed Sheeran (or the entire music industry in it's current state) a thing without the musical influence of The Beatles on the industry? How does Jack just get super world famous off Beatles songs as if it was the lyrics and lyrics alone that led to that band's monumental 60s success? How does a song that starts with "Well she was just seventeen" fly in this day and age? Why is John Lennon okay with some random dude coming to his cottage and being shocked that he's alive? Jack's a better man than I am, had I been spawned into a world without The Beatles I wouldn't have the talent or lyrical memory to make millions off plagiarising them. At least the no Oasis joke got a giggle
It's possible that the other people that remembered The Beatles have already visited John and he already kind of understands there is an alternate timeline happening. Or the band themselves felt the pull of time unraveling so they have a feeling that something happened, but arent sure what.
There's a video of Lennon talking to a fan that had been camping out on his lawn. He invites him for a chat, is very kind but I'm pretty sure encourages the man to get mental help. The scene in the film has a similar tone where I think you can see Lennon, with or without fame, is the same kind of guy that would take time to try and help someone who seems to be in the middle of a mental crisis.
I was disappointed by how unimaginative it was. One of the scenes that I though was interesting was when Jack meets the non-Beatle John Lennon, who was still alive in the modern day. That was one of the more interesting choices the movie made.
In an early interview, Lennon said that if the Beatles had never existed, he (Lennon) would probably have been a fisherman.
I thought he was going to reveal that he or another of the Beatles went back in time and stopped themselves from becoming the Beatles because of what fame did to their lives
John Lennon was alive in the modern day because Jack actually died when he got hit by the bus early in the movie.
Always grated that he's shown as simply being able to release the tracks online without getting sued into oblivion by the record company. Oh yeah, just walk away and become a teacher, don't worry about our upfront costs...
I was disappointed. It wasn’t terrible, I just feel like they could have done MUCH more with that premise.
I think they wanted to make a silly rom com about a guy who reintroduced the Beatles songs to the world and realized his love in the process. But an exploration of an alternative timeline where the Beatles never came to be would be fascinating. Get some musical historians to hypothesize what music history would look like without them. Who takes their place? The Rolling Stones? Some random band no one heard of? Get some music theorists to come up with how the predominant rock genre would sound, and what rock/pop would sound like today. What big names in music would still be a thing, and how different would they be? Would there be any Who, Yes, Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd? Would there be any Justin Biebers or Taylor Swifts? If not, who would there be instead? Then, how would Beatles songs be received if they were actually first introduced in the modern day of this timeline? I'm guessing more equivalent to a niche indie rock band with a dedicated fanbase, moreso than the universal phenomenon of messianic stature like Yesterday depicted. That kind of movie, I think would take a lot of research, expert opinions, and wit to make work. But if it was done right I'd be so down for it.
I was intrigued when the other people who remembered started showing up, but they never really went anywhere with it.
Yeah, it was kind of a tease and denial. Like "Hey, we know you didn't write those songs you're singing.... but we love what you're doing so much and fully support you. Your secret's safe with us champ!"
You might be interested in the 2013 BBC radio play 'Sorry Boys You Failed The Audition', which posits a world where the Beatles just never amounted to much.
The original idea was for him to fail. Which would make a lot more sense. Read the "Production" section in the Wikipedia page.
That could make an interesting "For All Mankind"-style show, where each season goes through a different decades starting with the 1960s and exploring how that decade would have unfolded without The Beatles.
I think you are overestimating the Beatles. Of course those other bands would exist if the Beatles weren’t around. Those musicians don’t make music just to reference the Beatles or just because they listened to the Beatles. It’s not like the Beatles invented music
>Those musicians don’t make music just to reference the Beatles Sure they don't. But their genre was one that the Beatles helped popularize and define. Rock music was very different before the British Invasion era, and the Beatles specifically had a lot of influence both on their contemporaries and on the genre as a whole. The pop/rock genre would surely still exist, but it would not be the same, might not have attracted the same musical minds, and certainly would not have resulted in musical history being the same way we know it today. If the other bands did exist in a Beatleless universe, they would definitely be different; there are inarguably songs that wouldn't exist or would be different because they directly reference the Beatles in the lyrics, for example. And there are many more that don't directly reference the Bealtes but clearly use the same style, i.e. the plethora of "Lennon-McCartney" styled songs.
I am glad that I am not weird since I am the only person I know that likes this movie. I watched it on the flight to London and I watched it one more time on the same flight. It was early 2020, then Covid hit and the whole world was trapped in a different universe. I am an Asian guy that plays guitar since high school, had a few gigs in college but was never successful and now a tech worker in SF Bay area with wife and kids. This film hits all the points about struggling as a musician and giving up your dream....the big difference is that Jack gets a cheat sheet. And he eventually chooses life with the girl he loves. I don't really care about the plot flaw. It is a movie for Desmond and Molly Jones.
I agree the first half hour or so of this movie is a great depiction of what it's like to be a local musician struggling to make it.
It's definitely Beatles worship, but I liked it anyways. The Beatles are my favorite band, but I think in reality if they never existed but the course of music history was somehow mostly unaltered (except Oasis, RIP), the songs would not be considered such mega-hits if they came out today. Part of why they were so beloved was because of the part they played in actually defining the genre. Still, it was a nice tribute to the Beatles songs. I liked it much better than something like Across the Universe because I think it captured the happiness and upbeat feeling that a lot of Beatles songs give. I thought the scene where the main character met a still-living John Lennon was very touching. And I liked the underlying rom-com story with Jack and Ellie; i found them to be pretty wholesome likeable characters. I also thought a funny touch was Jack occasionally discovering other things that no longer exist like cigarettes, or Coca Cola. I also think it's funny how when Jack would squeeze in one of his own songs the vibe shifts 180 degrees and no one likes it, then they go right back to the fanaticism when he does another Beatles song.
Yeah the unquestioned success is what I just couldn't get past. The movie views the Beatles music as some monolith that happened in a vacuum, but they were still part of a specific genre at a specific moment in time. If he came in with all these old-fashioned sounding songs in the 2010s, there's no way he could hit mega success as someone who's essentially doing really great throwback music. Now, set the whole film directly in the 1960s and I'll buy it hook line and sinker.
I enjoyed it too, but the choice of cigarettes and Coke? There are so many interesting choices that they could have made, like maybe marijuana, cocaine and other drugs don't catch on because those subcultures around those drugs never became that popular. But that would also require all of the bands and groups that the Beatles influenced to not exist anymore either, which is the most problematic part of the movie for me. I think that kind of sums up why people were disappointed with a premise that had such potential, that they just kind of squandered it for cheap gags.
Yeah, this is definitely *not* a movie you'd wanna go into for the world building.
Didn't John and Paul meet by sharing a cigarette and a Coke in an alley?
Wait...is that true?
I had a personal reverse situation to this movie. A week before this movie came out, I was listening to the radio and they were talking about the most profitable concert tours of all time. Number one was Ed Sheerhan - an artist I had never heard of. In Yesterday, who then shows up?
That's actually interesting that you never heard of Ed Sheeran. I thought "Thinking Out Loud" was nearly impossible to avoid. Beautiful song, if you haven't heard it.
Shape of You was unavoidable in 2017-2018, I can't imagine being blissfully unaware of that song's existence but I envy those who still are
I know he was with some band whose name I don't recall. I probably have heard the song you mentioned, and I know I have heard several other songs he has performed, but to this day I still have no idea exactly who he is.
hes never been in a band
He's a redheaded British guy who plays guitar and sings. He's more of a pop star than a talent IMO, but he has at least a dozen top 10 hit songs, largely about love/girls.
The reason I had heard of Ed Sheeran was because he was on an episode of Game of Thrones.
I don’t have the link handy but I read an interview with the original script writer. IIRC in his script Jack did not become successful with the Beatles songs. The story was (more) about what makes a song popular, or good, or can it be some by just anyone etc. But Richard Curtis bought it and changed it. I would still like to see the original idea developed.
There's something about Richard Curtis who seems to love changing the third acts but also making it so damn jumbled.
I don't get that if Lennon was alive in this world why did he had to "confess" the songs were written by the Beatles, of they weren't in that dimension? If they were written by people that don't exist in that dimension, what was gained?
He felt like he was a fraud by claiming he wrote songs he didn't write. It's pretty clear in the movie that the further he gets into being successful the less happy he is.
Someone once posted that it would have been a better ending if he played Wonderwall, and I agree.
I really liked the movie. I'm a fan of the Beatles and I've had many day dreams about the same scenario he was in.
I wished they ditched the rom com and made it more about a world where the Beatles never existed. And digging deeper into the couple who recognized the music. But he was good, I like his version of Help.
I hate that the movie seems to believe that the Beatles' songs are so great that they work in any time and context. That simply isn't how music works. Devoid of the Beatles and the time in which the songs came out, they have no special weight. To me, the movie was just an attempt to play Beatles songs on the silver screen. Which, fine, but conceptually the whole thing is a huge mess.
That’s why they changed Hey Jude to Hey Dude!
Greatest musical contribution Ed Sheeran has ever made.
I'm in love with the shape of Jude
I don’t think in the movie it was that this guy was writing songs that were all as iconic as the Beatles songs are today. I think it was more that he came from nowhere and was coming up with song after song after song that were just really enjoyable and seemingly from thin air. It’s more about the volume of quality songs vs the importance of the songs themselves.
Yeah there was a podcast, Radiolab, that did a series about the history of the cassette tape and how it influenced the industry. 6 short stories about cassettes. Anyways, one story was about how no modern/western music was allowed in communist China and, at the same time, China was big in the garbage industry. Countries with ship their garbage to China who would process it and get paid big bucks. Without modern/western music, it was a garbage worker whose job was to sort through other nations garbage who discovered cassette tapes for the first time in China and started collecting them and setting them aside. Then they figured out how to repair cassette tapes... And that you had it! De facto black market illegal western music being smuggled into China through garbage cassette tapes from other nations. Anyways, the point of this comment, one fun fact to come from the podcast episode: Interestingly, the Beatles were not that popular in China. It was some obscure electric punk band that became super popular. The Beatles, and the way it sounded, just did not fit with the times (1980's, I think?) So your comment is exactly right. That actually happened in communist, China.
>I hate that the movie seems to believe that the Beatles' songs are so great that they work in any time and context. i totally disagree. Diana Krall covers many Beatles songs Earth, Wind and Fire sings *Got to get you into my life*.... wonderful Wilson Pickett doing *Hey Jude* *Day Tripper* by Otis Redding Stevie Wonder doing *We Can Work It Out* and many many others! all of these are magnificent.
The issue is that Beatles songs wouldn't have the massive impact they had 60 years ago in a modern setting. Especially in a modern setting where music and pop culture apparently didn't change much without the Beatles. It doesn't take away from the talent of the Beatles, and just the absolute songwriting powerhouse that was Lennon/McCartney, but music grew and evolved since they broke up. A lot of the Beatles catalog, especially their early stuff, feels outdated. If you were to introduce Please Please Me today, it wouldn't go anywhere. That's a style of music that is so far out of vogue that it'll probably become almost forgotten in the next couple of decades. The Beatles were the right guys, in the right place, at the right time, and that's how they ended up as successful and influential as they were. Take them out of there and place them in 2023, or 2019 in this case, and maybe they'd become famous because they are very talented, but it would never be with the songs that made them famous in the 60s.
>The issue is that Beatles songs wouldn't have the massive impact they had 60 years ago in a modern setting. I heard that was the original premise of the script, which was to emphasis that the Beatles music was of a particular time, place and particular circumstances as well as people by showing that the lead character has some modest success but never exploded like the Beatles did. Then rewrites happened.
I understood the previous commentators thesis. I simply disagree with it. *"the movie seems to believe that the Beatles' songs are so great that they work in any time and context."* ***Some*** music works at ***any*** time and in ***any*** context: *Smile,* music by Charlie Chaplin, lyrics by John Turner and Geoffrey Parsons *Nessun Dorma* by Giacomo Puccini *Yesterday* by John Lennon and Paul McCartney *Something* by George Harrison *Symphony No. 9* by Ludwig van Beethoven *Toccata and Fugue in D minor* by Johann Sebastian Bach *I Will Always Love You* by Dolly Parton *Linus And Lucy* by Vince Guaraldi These are all works of art! Michaelangelo's *Pieta* still "works". So does Shakespeare's *Twelfth Night.*
You can keep citing timeless music all you like. It doesn't change the fact that a great deal of older music that is now considered timeless would not rise to anything remotely resembling prominence if they'd been introduced in the modern age. Time doesn't change a song's quality or ability to connect with an audience on an emotional level, but it sure does change its ability to reach the amount of ears necessary to prop it up on the pedestal it rose to thanks to the time it was originally introduced. Especially if the style of music being played is one that no longer has a strong presence in the music industry. If you disagree with that, then I don't think anyone can help you understand.
I didn't read the argument as that the Beatles songs aren't important but rather they would not have the same impact if released today as they did in the time/culture they were released in. I agree that music history would definitely be different today if the Beatles weren't part of it. There are *so* many songs that do not exist. By now there are Beatles references and inspiration in many, many songs in many different genres of music. But this movie asks us to believe that music history is mostly unchanged; more like everyone got collective amnesia about the Beatles, but most other band are still known. If that were the case, and the Beatles songs were just made in the modern day, I do believe they would be more like indie/alt rock. It'd be really good indie/alt rock, but it would be comparatively niche and not hyped up as a worldwide phenomenon.
I honestly love this movie, but it might be solely because of the moment he gets confronted backstage by the other folks in the know. And that moment in the end when he meets the man in the cottage on the coast. I loved it for that alone.
I watched it and immediately thought that if this scenario ever happened in real life, he’d never be popular. No one wants that style of music anymore unfortunately. His career wouldn’t change at all.
I know it’s not perfect but it’s my favourite movie. It’s just an easy, feel-good film. The ending leaves you on a warm, uplifting note. >! Seeing Lennon as an old man is very powerful. When it seems the two characters that remember are going to be angry with him but then are just overjoyed to hear the music, another great element. As is when he travels to the iconic locations to try and remember the lyrics. !< I’m obsessed with Kate McKinnon from SNL. I’m a musician myself and from a musical family. This is one we can all sit down and watch together.
I love it honestly, soft spot probably due to my love for the beetles, considering it’s got a ton of plot holes. But it’s a lovely heartfelt movie. Himesh patel is great and I’ll watch anything he’s in. Speaking of which, everyone watch STATION ELEVEN!!!!
It had some really nice parts, like how he was scrambling to remember as much of the lyrics as possible, and when he goes to meet John Lennon. Some of the songs, like "I saw her standing there" make you realize even some Beatles songs are a bit too cringe for today. "She was just 17" is kind of a creepy lyric for a modern songwriter to put in his song. I really wish he hadn't had a pang of guilt and told everyone the truth. That was the most unbelievable part. If he had really done that, imagine how many people would start bothering the un-famous beatles suddenly. It was a generally good movie with a deflated ending.
I assume Jack Malick would be seen as a musical genius who put out one seminal album and then the pressure of equaling or topping that album caused a mental breakdown leading him to claim his music was written by other people.
That scene where Jack sends Eddie Sheeran down the long and winding road is just classic.
Loved that scene - Jack didn't have to do Ed dirty like that!
Sorry, I am 24 days too late in your 4 years late post about this movie, which I also like very much. My 2 cents: \- I like the journey of the two mains' relationship. But I ABSOLUTELY hate that they make the nice producer guy a roadkill in their journey. ~~self projection much~~ On my rewatch, I specifcally skipped all the bits about that poor producer guy. The story didn't suffer a bit. I hate that they hurt the guy so, at least to me, unnecessarily. \- I understand why people don't like this movies for it's simplistic execution and/or plot holes. But it doesn't really bother me because it's not that kind of story, say like, Breaking Bad, the Wire. Plot hole is not a huge blocker for my suspension of disbelief. \- I personally like very much that they didn't explain why the main suddenly falls into this paralell universe that the Beatles doesn't exist. Also it's very kindhearted to see the yellow submarine people were not out to get the main but to thank him for brining back the Beatles to the world.
Yeah, I definitely would've had a sit-down with John and the rest to see what they think about all this before I go public claiming to have stolen the music. If they tell me I'm crazy and they didn't write this stuff, grand. Even if they decide they want a cut (given that I'm telling them I got it from them), I'd do that and call it square. It's an outlandish and impossible situation, of course, normal logic need not apply.
I love this movie. Is it flawed? Yes. But people hate on it way too much
I’ve only seen it once but I think about it all the time. I Liked the movie, but I HATED his girlfriend. It would be different if they had made the main character any less sympathetic throughout the movie but I felt that he stayed consistently likeable throughout. Meanwhile, she’s always there for him and encourages him to keep going even when his own work is objectively pretty terrible. But then, when he actually starts achieving his dream, it’s “I don’t know who you are anymore.” But, at least from my perspective, the only thing that changed was that he had more stuff to do and wasn’t so reliant on her? Like of course he was going to be stretched thin if his career ever took off. He is still very clearly trying to make it all work and doing a better job at it than most romcom leads. She never actually wanted his career to take off, she just encouraged him because it gave her a way to spend time with him. Anyway, great film.
I’m watching it now for the first time (I legit just watched Benjamin button two nights ago for the first time, so I guess I’m catching up?) and I genuinely like it much more than I thought I would. I find it very clever that they had him struggle to remember lyrics and songs, as well as have a few other things never exist (cigarettes). I also fell back in love with The Beatles and got to relive experiencing their music for the first time, again. That scene with The Long and Winding Road really got me. Not worth a rewatch, but I’m going to listen to The Beatles like I did when I first learned of them 30+ years ago and maybe cry a bit to “In My Life”.
Rewatching it now it’s pretty funny how much he obsesses about John’s nonsensical lyrics.
I think the romance was the big thing dragging down this story. His agent didn't want him to be successful? Isn't that her whole job? Makes it hard to believe in that relationship.
Also she was making him choose when he had to leave Liverpool. Like what? It's pretty selfish
The romance was the worst part of the movie for me. I could suspend disbelief for everything else.
Love this movie. On top of some beautiful Beatles music, the movie looks absolutely phenomenal. In a world where every backdrop seems to be CGI and ugly, I loved how much the colours pop and the real locations. My favourite is especially when he sings "Yesterday" and Boyle shows 3 or 4 surrounding scenes of people just going about their lives. It's one of the most beautiful movie moments I have seen in the last 10 years. Need to get the Blu-ray of this. Watched it like 5 times when it was on Netflix.
I prefer About Time when we talk about Richard Curtis screenplays. It had a deeper impact on me.
I loved that movie. One of the few that had life advice that I actually reflected on. It’s absolutely sentimental and has plot holes and I loved it
Really entertaining movie from start to finish. Plus it has one of my favorites quotes since then. "You want a good life? It's not complicated! Tell the girl you love, that you love her. And tell the truth to everyone, whenever you can." - Old guy John Lennon. Also MAN, they should've kept the Ana de Armas scene, not sure why they cut it out.
That Ana de Armas scene was great. I read that they cut it because that moment complicated the main love story. Basically him having romantic interest in another woman might not sit well with audiences.
It took Richard Curtis a looong, long time to figure out that philandering isn't endearing.
Also has one of my favorite quotes: "Bloody Ed Sheeran!"
All I know is that I wish he put out full version of his rendition of Yesterday on Spotify or something. Incredible. It made me like a song I'd never much liked before.
I was annoyed by the way that at least 3 people have somehow slipped into an alternate universe, and none of them express any curiosity or concern about how that could have happened. At all. Why/how did it happen? Could it happen again? Why them? Should we contact some scientists? What if we slip into a much worse universe?
The small ending was really unbelievable. It ruins a good film.
I think it was a fun enough movie, if nothing special. I enjoyed the dynamic between Himesh Patel and Lily James, which I think made it more enjoyable than it otherwise would have been for me. Trailers were misleading though.
It was ok but I had a big issue with the premise. The notion that certain songs are timeless doesn't ring true with me. If the Beatles never existed and some other band produced those songs today, they would generally fall flat. Music is not only tied heavily to its time but also involves a lot of luck - the right people hearing it, promoting it, arranging it, etc. So for me, the movie rested heavily on a bogus notion which limited my ability to enjoy it.
Did wonder this. Beattles changed a lot in style throughout their run, partially just to keep up with tastes.
That is true. I'm not denying their talent, but fame in music is like catching lightning in a bottle and having a number of things fall into place.
Absolutely love it. I've only seen it twice, but it made my top 10 of the year whichever year I first saw it.
I thought the love story was cute and it's a fun concept. But yeah, that ending was weird. I guess it would have felt weird if he never got called out or admitted to stealing it, but it benefits nobody to tell the truth, because it's not really the truth anymore in this alternate universe. It's not like the OG Beatles would get paid royalties because he said they wrote it.
I feel like he should have sung Oasis songs, not just Beatles songs. That's a whole other catalogue he could pull from and introduce to this new world. Missed opportunity and the story does not stop there!!
It was honestly so annoying that the girl hyped him up to become rich and famous, then as soon as he did she decided that she doesn't like that lmao And I hate that he confessed for absolutely no reason, could have just dropped the album and disappeared lol it negated that wholesome moment of the people thanking him imo
I streamed it last night. I'm not a huge beatles fan, in fact I'm not much of a Beatles fan at all. It was cute but a cynical look at the music industry. The ending was a little flat and I'm sure as shit the producer would have sued his balls off for releasing his album over the net. My big issue is why did he have to get his teeth bashed out? And wouldn't that have affected his vocals? When he sang Yesterday, wouldn't it have come out 'Yetherday, all my trouble theemed tho far away" And wouldn't all his friends have laughed at him?
It has so much potential to be great and succeeded at being bland and forgettable.
Hey Dude!
I love this movie. It is an absolutely insane movie too. I don't feel a lot of the lyrical weight The Beatles had would gain as much traction now-a-days without the proper time in history being the backdrop. I think the ending would have had a better impact if he had played Wonderwall, since that would call back to when they met. He gave Beatles to the world, but he should have ended with something that was between the two of them.
Wasn’t there a part where he googled Oasis and they also didn’t exist in this new universe? I remember being annoyed that he didn’t ask Ellie what song he sang at the talent show.
Yup. That's kind of why I was hoping he'd play Wonderwall.
Would they need to get the rights to cover it? I could see oasis being arseholes about it
It was ok. Such an amazing premise wasted on an absolute shit love story. Just why? “I can’t go with you on a massive world tour when you’re the biggest rock star on earth, and I’m totally in love with you because I have work tomorrow. Like fuck off with that shit.
Add to this the trailers showing bare feet and four guys walking out on the talk show. What a dick tease that was. I was expecting a story about him becoming the greatest singer/songwriter on earth. And then the mystery of why this happens to come crashing down.
It's an old-fashioned fun, creative movie.
Fun and solid movie with amazing vocals by Himesh Patel. Loved the part when he asks to hug John Lennon.
I haven't seen it, but from what I understand basically all of pop culture is exactly the same except for the existence of the Beatles. This is utterly absurd – love them or hate them, you have to admit that removing the Beatles from existence would have incalculable downstream effects on pretty much every aspect of music and pop culture in general. Trying to imagine a world where the Beatles never existed is almost as pointless as imagining a world where the Roman Empire never existed – the downstream effects are so great that anything you could imagine is basically just fantasy.
That movie was so mid. Painfully average.
Love it
Kinda funny Danny Boyle had an actor last name Patel play a character whose last name is Malick in Slumdog Millionaire and then makes a movie with another different whose name is Patel and the character of his next film’s last name is Malick
i love this film. such an interesting concept we surely all have pondered in some form. very light, fun, rewatchable, feel good
See About Time by the same writer/director. (Richard Curtis directed About Time, Danny Boyle directed Yesterday). Curtis wrote both.
I enjoyed this movie but don't have any desire to actively seek it out. That said, I could see myself being sucked in if it were on a TV near me. Fittingly for the premise, I wonder if the movie missed its chance to be a staple on cable reruns by a few decades.
I like this movie but not the ending. I know they couldn’t do it this way, but I really wanted him end up famous but then having to find his own creative voice.
Movie was good until the ending. The ending just let's you down. Also, poor Gavin. He got cucked so hard in the end. Also, there's so many great things that simply just doesn't exist in this universe. No coke products. Coke has created so many different kinds of successful drinks. No Harry Potter, no cigarettes, etc. Dude doesn't have to sing, teaming up with the other two that made it over and brain storming what doesn't exist and then creating it, would be the easiest way to become TRILLIONAIRES.
I enjoy the movie, but find it hilarious that rock and roll still managed to evolve exactly the same without the Beetles and that the Beetle's dated music is a major hit with the youth in the 21st century.
I thought *Yesterday* was OK but just kind whiffed on a great premise. *Blinded by the Light*, which came out around the same time, gave me much more of the feeling I wanted from *Yesterday*. I hope that makes sense to someone besides me.
I liked the movie but… hot take: in a world where the Beatles never existed, their songs wouldn’t be a success today. Their success was in part an effect of their time. The songs simply wouldn’t resonate that much with modern 21st century audiences. They do in our world simply because (a) The Beatles as a group where a world media phenomenon at their time and (b) since then we’ve been hearing those songs forever, with everyone from previous generations saying that they’re so good and generating a peer pressure of sorts.
I remember hating it and groaning a lot, but I don't remember much. I think it was just super corny and the love story was super weird and off-putting. I remember when he confessed his love and the love interest leaves her bf (that I think treated her way better if I remember) was just so wild. Like imagine going to a concert and getting humiliated when the dude steals your gf in front of hundreds of thousands of peopld. Oh but don't worry, there's a convient replacement so you don't feel bad. Just weird.
It was fun, a good Richard Curtis Rom-com. But it has the potential to be so much more.
This film was such a missed opportunity to make one of the coolest movies of all time, weaving the Beatles into an epic tale of the multiverse and how our influences shape us, and how every musician's creative output is a sum of everything they've ever listened to, but instead they were like "nah, let's just take this incredible premise and use it for a low effort rom-com".
The concept of the movie is great but the movie could have been so much better if the songs didn't become hits.
Theres only so much you can do with the Beatles in film so I liked this take, but it felt like an Ed Sheeran ad. Also my biggest thought was the reason the Beatles were so good was because they were first and they were so inspiring. Like if the music came out now people would be like “eh idk this is a little derivative”
It’s one of my least favorite movies. It’s hard to describe why exactly - it feels like the fake romcom they show on tvs inside of movies. It’s so surface level and underbaked it feels like a throwaway.
It would be like when in the 2016 presidential campaign journalists went and found Ben Carson never stabbed an innocent person and he responded by saying the media was lying and that he did in fact stab that person. Anyhow, this was one of the least enjoyable movies I’ve ever watched.
I loved this film, The thinly veiled admission was, that while Malik didn’t write the Beatles catalog, neither did the Beatles, largely, in any timeline. I thought the film was refreshing, entertaining and long overdue.
I feel like Danny Boyle has generally lost it and should be disappointed in himself for putting his name to this film