Most people associate John, Paul, George, and Ringo with their number one hits. However, like their idol Elvis Presley, they starred in critically acclaimed movies as well such as "A Hard Day's Night". In 1964, the Beatles hired screenwriter Alun Owen to write the script and Richard Lester to direct it. Owen wrote it from the viewpoint that the group had essentially become prisoners of their fame which was happening in real life for this movie was filmed during the height of Beatlemania;
the movie in its entirety was a typical 36-hours in the lives of the "Fab Four". Later, Richard Lester would direct another Beatle movie, "Help!" and also "The Three Muskateers". Throughout the entire movie, each member of the band makes comments regarding their fame. Although the film was produced with a low budget of $500,000 dollars, it was critically and financially successful. It was shot by United Artists in black and white over a period of 16 weeks ( filming was finished in six! ). And the movie was in theaters a mere three months after shooting commenced. Unlike most movies of the time, "A Hard Day's Night" was filmed in sequential order.
The movie was originally released in the UK and when it was about to be released in the United States, the movie started some controversy. A United States executive asked Lester and the Beatles if he could dub over the Liverpool accents to make them sound Mid-Atlantic. McCartney, of the Beatles, replied out of anger if residents of England could understand Southern accents then they "could understand [them] talking Liverpool". "A Hard Day's Night" premiered at a theatre in London on drummer Ringo Starr's 24th birthday, July 6th 1964. Critics all over the world fell in love with the movie and many praised it.
Time Magazine stated that it was one of the "smoothest, freshest, funniest, films ever made. And in 2005, Time also awarded the soundtrack number four on the best soundtracks of all time. It was not only successful by critics but by the Academy as well. It was nominated for two Academy Awards for Best Screenplay and Best Score. Not only did the Beatles win over millions of teenage girls, they won over the hearts of film critics everywhere too, yo. Sources: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Hard_Day's_Night_(film)
http://movies.amctv.com/movie/21522/Hard-Days-Night/details
Pictures:http://blogs.forbes.com/johndragoon/2010/12/02/apple-and-the-beatles-work-it-out/
http://1linereview.blogspot.com/2010/09/hard-days-night-1964.html
http://www.filmsquish.com/guts/?q=node/4398
Great job, Tess! I had no idea that there was a Beatles movie. I guess it goes to show that the Beatles could do anything and have people fall in love with them. It is so interesting that they were actually nominated for two Academy Awards. Good job!
ReplyDeleteGood job Tess! I never knew like Olivia that the Beatles made a movie. This is a tradition still preformed today by young pop stars. As movies tend to earn more money than albums, record labels see it as an easy way to exploit their young pop starts. I think the Beatles, being as bright and talented as they were, were smart with their movie and did it more as a gift to their fans rather than another way to increase profits.
ReplyDeleteTess, I loved your blog post! You did an excellent job of documenting information about a film that is rarely seen today on television. I learned a lot from your blog post including that the film "A Hard Day's Night" was a "critical" and "commercial" sucesss - something I wasn't aware of - and I also found many of the more detailed specifics to be fascinating. For example, I never knew the film was nominated for Academy Awards or that Paul McCartney became so angry in the production regarding the perception of their accents. Great job, Tess!
ReplyDeleteTess, great job getting more information on a topic we touched on in class. I had no idea The Beatles strayed onto the big screen. I would have assumed that their movie debut would have been a huge hit, much like how Elvis' movies gained fame easily. The controversy over their accents was a very interesting piece of information. Overall, great job on finding a creative aspect of the music we discussed.
ReplyDeleteWell done as always, Tess (except the word is "Musketeers" not "Muskateers"). This was very informative and well done. As mentioned in class today, when the American group the Byrds saw "A Hard Day's Night", they decided to try to combine Beatles style harmonies and instrumentation (the electric 12 string guitar) to folk music, and became huge stars overnight. It was a very influential movie. Also, George Harrison met his first wife on the set of the film. So it worked out for him, too.
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