I am a huge Beatles fan. I've been looking forward to seeing the movie "Yesterday" for a long time. I saw it at the historic Colonial Theater in Phoenixville with about ten other people on a Monday afternoon in summer.
"Yesterday" is a good film but not great. I went because of The Beatles and their music. And there is lots of Beatles' music in the film. I actually looked forwarded and welcomed the refreshing songs when the bad love story angle got too annoying.
The end proves to be too sappy for my taste, almost like a Hallmark movie.Less love story more fantasy sci-fi angle would've made the film so much better.
The movie takes a few chances, especially allowing us to meet a 78-year-old John Lennon near the end, but it doesn't go all out in the "what-if" world. Still, it's a fun summer movie, not to be picked apart by loyal Beatle fans.
The lead actor ( Hamesh Patel) does an ok job. I never watched the BBC show EastEnders from which he became famous, so I didn't recognize him. He doesn't have much charm and one wonders what the beautiful manager played by Lily James sees in the always-sulking guy. He is way out of her league and a loser. Ultimately even a bigger loser since he ripped off The Beatles' music.
I was shocked at the Lennon scene. I can understand where some Lennon devotees will be pissed at the idea of bringing john back. But I suppose the scene could've been worse, done with less respect for John. We are left wondering if Yoko is still his wife. I doubt it, as this John Lennon was never famous. He is an artist in the film, a nice touch as john was in Art School before The Beatles exploded.
I liked the idea of other things disappearing from our world, such as Coke and Harry Potter and cigarettes, not just The Beatles, which would've been too easy. And what was it that caused the 12 second blackout worldwide/ A solar flare? That is never really explained and that is ok for debate.
Why do only three people in the entire world remember The Beatles/ Where did they get the toy Yellow Submarine from? How did the two other Beatle survivors find each other? How did they locate John's address?
By now you must know the premise of the film- a struggling singer/songwriter is one of few people who remembers the Beatles after the lights go out and he is hit by a bus and awakes in a hospital. Was it really all from a concussion or a bad dream?
He decides to use The Beatles' music as his own and soars to fame. He is guilt-ridden later and admits his dishonesty at the end. Instead of being arrested or hated for his offensive, people love him anyway because he anointed the entire world with beatles' music. He sends his recordings out for free via the Internet and screws his record company and new manager ( an unrealistic turn by SNL's own Kate McKinnon).
He wins back the girl at the end, they have kids and live happily ever after. The rest of the world continues without The Beatles or ever knowing the Fab Four. What a sad world it is!
An interesting point is that even The Beatles' brilliant songs didn't go over well at first, because they didn't have the right audience. Plus the world missed the charm of the Fab Four themselves. And that is what ultimately left me cold about 'Yesterday"- the music is the best but I still missed the Liverpool moptops delivering the songs in their youthful, energetic style, not some hack who looks distraught most of the time and hardly smiles or has fun.
The Beatles were Fun. Because they were having fun, we had fun with their records and seeing them on TV. Their fun spread to us. The movie "Yesterday" does not.
** Out of four stars.
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