User Reviews

This is it. There has never been and never will be another band like the Beatles. The innocence of the generation is showcased in A Hard Day's Night. The perfect musical for any audience, the Beatles capture a time that can never be repeated. Like 4 childhood friends knowing that the Old can never get them down, they represented everything good and right of the world. They reflected the generation that wanted to be heard. Almost 40 years later, they are still as young as ever. Timeless, beautiful, true. A Hard Day's Night is perfection!

What can you say about the film that started it all? Where popular culture as we know it took shape in a "let there be light" Genesis kind of way? Where pop rock became worth listening and not just dancing to? Where John, Paul, George, and Ringo became firmly established as individual personalities as well as the premier entertainment troupe of the 20th century?

Only this: "A Hard Day's Night" is good, yes, and significant, but it's fun, too. Still, and above everything else, it's a lot of fun.

"A Hard Day's Night" is probably more responsible for the Beatles' enduring image in our culture than any single song they made. It came out in 1964, within a few short months of the Fab Four's sensational appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show that truly launched them globally, though they had been making great pop music for more than a year which was all the rage across Europe. "Hard Day's Night" captures the band when they were still relatively provincial and innocent, not yet in the "marijuana for breakfast" phase they were well into the following year when they made the zanier "Help!" LSD, Yoko, and the Maharishi were not even on the radar, nor was the psychedelic era the Beatles would usher in less than three years later. Finally "Hard Day's Night" clicked not only with the kids but the adults, who previously viewed the band as a motley band of overplayed haircuts. It gave all the generations of the time something they could agree on. These guys were good.

The story of "Hard Day's Night" is thin by design. We see the Beatles in slightly fictionalized form, with a manager named Norm and a roadie named Shake, traveling by train across England and ducking into a studio to make a TV appearance. Paul has his grandfather along, a codgy old troublemaker who nevertheless is "very clean." The irony of the movie is that the old guy, played by British TV star Wilfrid Brambell, is the one that continually ruffles the feathers of society while the Boys themselves play things fairly straight and legal.

Grandpa has the best take on the meager storyline: "I thought I was supposed to be getting a change of scenery, and so far I've been in a train and a room and car and a room and a room and a room!" Brambell works very well in the film, a needful focal point in a film that requires some bearings in order to work. Of the Beatles themselves, Ringo makes the strongest single impression by showcasing his vulnerable side while John probably has the best moments with his wacky, caustic humor. George shines, too, in a scene with a trend-happy fashion maven, and married one of the girls on the train in real life, so he did pretty well here, too.

Is it the best Beatles film? I think "Yellow Submarine" is better for what it's worth, but "Hard Day's Night" is the best film actually featuring the Beatles for who they were and what they were about.

Great music, too. The sequence on the train with "I Should Have Known Better" still works as a video, with all the baggage-car bric-a-brac thrown in for ambiance. Then there's "Can't Buy Me Love," which shows the Beatles in full-tilt boogie mode after momentarily escaping their studio confines. "And I Love Her" has some of the film's greatest camera work, very moody and intense in its focus on how well the Beatles worked in a TV studio setting.

As a film, "Hard Day's Night" lacks a bit of heart. Not that it's cold or cruel, just a trifle too detached to get enveloped by, the way one does with great cinema. I don't really miss the fact that "Help!" wasn't a true sequel; "Hard Day's Night" works for its 90-plus minutes but doesn't leave you wanting more. The relationships between the band members, and with Grandpa, Norm, and Shake, are left unexplored, and you don't really miss that as much as you maybe should.

But as a collection of small, witty moments interspersed with great music, "Hard Day's Night" is a pleasure through-and-through. Like the scene where John cuts the tailor's measure ("I now declare this bridge open") or has that absurd corridor chat with Anna Quayle ("She looks more like him than I do.") Or when Ringo tells the crotchety train passenger who complains he "fought the war for your sort" that "I bet you're sorry you won!"

"The first 60's film to ever waken my musical interest in pop music and electric guitars...not to mention, I wasn't even born then!" The film is full of great music and British humor by the Fab Four. It stars The Beatles themselves - John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr in their first acting debut. The music they perform in this 'black and white' film are 7 'Lennon & McCartney' classics - from the title song, "A Hard Day's Night", to "Can't Buy Me Love" and "She Loves You". In the comedy skits of the film, The Beatles' drummer Ringo Starr, definitely leaves the other lads in a so-call 'run against time'. It's a fun and exciting film...a pop film on what 'Beatlemania' was all about back then in 1964. This classic is a must see for all upcoming Beatle fans from all around the world, as well as people and kids of all ages. "And for those of you who never felt the magic and excitement of The Beatles...like me, I promise that you will by the end of this fab film!"

I was in my mid-thirties when the Beatles came to America, and appeared at Shea Stadium and (famously) on the Ed Sullivan. I saw their success, with the screaming girls, as just another teen-age phenomenon. I must have read in some column that this film was interesting for its direction and photography. That was true. What I did not expect was that I would be caught up by the Beatles themselves, both as personalities and as musicians. Those who comment adversely on their lack of acting ability are way off base, because neither they nor the director were looking for dramatic skill; only for a degree of naturalness, which was achieved. Those who criticize the technical aspects are not well-acquainted with new developments in film technique especially in France; for instance, the jump shot. Those who criticize lack of plot must be interested only in straight narrative. I suggest that all the previously mentioned critics see the documentary materials on the making of the film, particularly those contained in the DVD set. They will see, for better or worse, that the creators and performers achieved what they wanted, allowing room for the unexpected. For forty years now I have been an admirer, own all their recordings, etc.; and taught this movie in my history of film class regularly. Don't believe the nay-sayers; see for yourself.

The Beatles travel down from Liverpool to record a TV show.

If I was to meet Richard Lester I would shake his hand and thank him for recording the Beatles during the middle part of their career when they could entertain but hadn't yet shot off in to outer space. Without this we would have a piece missing from their history - and lets be frank - our history. They changed the world and all they had to change it with were electric guitars and their personalities!

The script is clever in that it showcases the personalities of the group without asking them to do much acting. Wilfred Brambell tags along to give comedy relief and the whole thing fits in plenty of songs that are good - but not as good as what soon followed. They are still tied to the Northern dance halls.

I have always thought that if they had a died in a car crash at this point they would be a mystery to the modern audience - hugely popular at the time - but not particularly stand-out from the other bands around. Like the way we regard Charlie Chaplin or Mary Pickford - both incredibly famous in their prime - but little regarded today.

Whether you like to admit it or not there are three geniuses at work and Ringo Starr. So I guess that it is fitting that Ringo comes across the best of the group: Down-to-earth, chatty, witty and willing to talk to anyone. Even the kids down by the river. John Lennon had a comic wit that could have given him another career had his music not been up to scratch. Talk about being master of the witty comeback.

Anyone watching this film will see London as it really was at the time. Not the swinging sixties that everyone pretends it was. Grubby shops, unpainted windows that look about to fall out of their frames, empty streets bar a few beat up cars.

I guess you could say this is the perfect record of Beatlemania: The driving beat songs (cranked out even quicker on stage), the backstage sieges, the ping-pong put downs that is the hallmark of English humour, the screaming that overpowered the performance. Enjoyable at the time (as light entertainment) it becomes an important historical document now and every generation should see it. Your pop culture education depends on it.

"A Hard Day's Night" doesn't seem dated now, but it does seem familiar. We're used to all its madcap editing and photography now thanks to television and music videos, and we can only sit back and imagine (or try to remember) what it looked like through eyes that had never seen anything like it before. Watching it today, "A Hard Day's Night" still seems fresh and original, because it's still different (we're used to music videos, but not feature-length music videos), but to the 1960's audience it would have seemed entirely different from anything they had previously seen (especially if they were expecting a traditional rock musical, considering that the only good one of those made prior to this which I've seen is "Go Johnny Go").

Lester infuses the film with nonstop quick cutting and energetic pacing, giving the film an almost documentary-like feel (and somehow managing to integrate the biggest pop band in the world into the French 'nouvelle vague' style of film-making). When Orson Welles was interviewed in Playboy magazine in 1967 he said that the film directors that appealed to him the most were 'the old masters- by which I mean John Ford, John Ford, and John Ford. With Ford at his best you feel that the movie had lived and breathed in the real world, even though it may have been written by mother Machree'. When questioned about younger directors he enjoyed the most he named Stanley Kubrick and Richard Lester.

It seems absurd after Kubrick's long and distinguished career and Lester's career which while featuring some famously good films, also includes "Butch and Sundance: The Early Days" (a cheap prequel with none of the original cast), and the notoriously horrible "Superman III" to compare the two directors, but looking at Welles' reasoning behind loving John Ford films, it all makes sense. "A Hard Day's Night" really does feel real, we are basically transported into a day in The Beatles' life and given a VIP pass to accompany them wherever they go. It's a fascinating adventure which the screenplay handles very well.

The Beatles were not actors, but they really come off as themselves because all they have to be is the cocky, wisecracking, and rather charming men they were in real life. The screenwriter is smart enough not to provide them with any real acting, which really helps the film. That's not to say there isn't any good acting in the film, quite to the contrary actually, since Wilfrid Bramble is hilarious as McCartney's grandfather and was presumably cast thanks to his very funny co-starring role on Britcom "Steptoe and Son", which was one of the shows I frequently watched as a kid (and was remade for American audiences as "Sanford and Son").

The film is effortlessly charming, relying on the Beatles' natural charisma to carry the film but also including enough wit to warrant comparisons to later great British comedies and also to the later Beatles films (including Lester's later, slightly funnier and more experimental "Help!"). The Beatles were not yet the musical innovators they would later become, but there's something I personally prefer about their simple, short, and perfect Merseybeat songs, especially those on this soundtrack, which contains some of the most joyous and memorable pop songs ever written.

9/10

Here The Beatles in Their First Full Length, Hilarious Action-Packed Film . This is a very entertaining and funny romp with a sharp and ironic storyline by Owen and nice direction by Richard Lester , shooting without speed limit . A day and a half in the life of the Fab Four (Paul McCartney , Ringo Starr , George Harrison and John Lennon offering a few welcome moments of his acerbic , dry wit) leading up to a studio , in flight from the fanatic fans , managers (Norman Rossington) , and televised concert gig . It starts with the known rock and roll band travelling from their home town of Liverpool to London to perform in a television broadcast . While Paul's Grandpa (Wilfred Brambell) serving as a linking device to connect scenes of the Beatles. Ringo however is arrested and still isn't in the studio half an hour before air time. Soaring in their first, full-length, hilarious, action-packed film! 6 exciting new songs! Their first full length hilarious, action-packed film. The greatest rock & roll comedy adventure .

The Fab Four's first movie is a joyous musical comedy through an ordinary ¨Day in the Life¨ of the Beatles, being their distinguished debut feature with an agreeable line in witty lunacy . Filmed in a pseudo-documentary style with great fair-play and noted as the first movie containing video-clips . Here the Beatles make like Max Sennett with a touch of Marx Brothers , including a paper-thin screenplay about difficulties with their manager and Paul's grandpa on the loose and delivering antics , craziness and mayhem . The boys seem to be constantly on the run and showing a lot of example of wry sense of humor , while escaping from their crazed fans and from their manager, who is constantly trying to rein them in. All 4 flopheads show a deft touch with throwaway joke here and there . The surrealist frames , slastick images and hilarious scenes are legion . The charming best scenes are a chaotic press conference , and a wild as well as wacky fling as the Beatles escape from it all for a few minutes in a field with likeable scenes filmed in relaxed music video style . The popular and wonderful group performs a dozen or so songs. And adding Wilfrid Brambell as Paul's unconventional grandfather who is available for additional comical relief, giving a very sympathetic acting along with Ringo Starr , as the band must rescue them from various misfortunes and misadventures .

The motion picture was originally directed by Richard Lester providing attractive images in its own right , being filmed in his peculiar style coupled with typical surrealist comic touches , being well accompanied by a brilliant cinematography in black and white by Gilbert Taylor . Richard Lester's gimmicky camera-trickery , fast and slow-motion , jump-cuts and it has dated badly . At the beginning Lester directed various Beatles vehicles as ¨How I won the war¨, ¨Help¨ and subsequently made known comedies : ¨The knack¨ ¨A funny thing happened on the way to the room¨, ¨The Ritz¨, ¨The mouse on the moon¨, a satire : ¨The bed sitting room¨ , Adventures : ¨Royal Flash¨ , ¨Robin and Mariam¨, Western : ¨Butch Cassidy and Sundance Kid : the early days¨, and drama : ¨Petulia¨ , ¨Cuba¨ . He got a big success with ¨The Three Musketeers¨ (1973), which he shot simultaneously with ¨The Four musketeers¨ (1974) for producer Ilya Salkind , resurrected his career . When the Salkinds (Ilya and his father Alexander Salkind) were in the midst of filming ¨Superman¨ (1978) simultaneously with its sequel, Lester was hired as a supervising producer, then took over the filming of the sequel, ¨Superman II¨ (1980), when original director Richard Donner was fired . The sequel was a financial and critical success , and he was hired to direct the far-less successful ¨Superman III¨ (1983). At the end of the 1980s, Lester returned to the storyline that had revitalized his career back in the early 1970s, filming a second sequel to "The Three Musketeers" titled : ¨The return of the musketeers¨ . However, after his close friend, actor Roy Kinnear died during the shooting , Lester seemed to lose heart with the movie-making business , he has not directed another film.

Classic cinema verite has the Fab Four going hither and thither, accompanied by Paul's "very clean" grandfather John (Wilfrid Brambell). Naturally, it wouldn't be a Beatles movie without their music. And the music always fits the scene (unlike so many musicals). My favorite scene was on the train where John, Paul, George and Ringo meet a middle-aged man, and...well, let's just say that it did a really funny job showing the generation gap. In short, you can always count on the Beatles to do something great, as every one of their songs showed. They may have had a "hard" time making this movie, but they would have to agree that it was worth it; people could easily spend "days" and "nights" watching it.

Silly at times, but the music more than makes up for this.

Ostensibly "a day in the life of the Beatles" A Hard Day's Night is fairly entertaining. Snappy one-liners, some of which are legendary, and general hijinks, plus a Beatles concert.

The plot, what there is, is fairly basic and sometimes tries too hard to be witty or cool and just comes across as silly. This said, the silliness fits in well with the general vibe of the movie and is never excessive.

Moreover, the music is great, as you would expect - this is the Beatles, remember!

This film is charming. A black and white production that relies upon the music and personalities of The Beatles. It has a 'loose' plot, The Beatles' lives over a 48-hour period, looking after Paul's grandfather, which serves as an excuse for hi-jinks and bursting into song. Directed by Richard Lester, it manages to convey the social feel of its time, what it is like to be alone, ageing, class divisions, and an England that does not exist any more. It is witty,nostalgic and makes you aware of how fresh The Beatles were before they (and the 60's) got complicated.

Here are some of lines from the film, whether they were scripted or spontaneous I know not, but it doesn't detract from the humour:

Who's that little old man? Ringo: He belongs to Paul.

I shall call the guard. Paul: Ah, but what? They don't take kindly to insults.

Have you seen Paul's grandfather? John: Of course! he's concealed about me person.

They've gone potty out there. The place is surging with girls. John: Please sir, can I have one to surge with sir?

What would you call that hairstyle that you're wearing? George: Arthur.

George (about Ringo): He's very fussy about his drums you know. They loom large in his legend.

Well quite frankly I wasn't expecting a musical arranger to question my ability picture-wise. John: I could listen to him for hours.

If you ever wanted to have lived during the 60's a film like this epitomises why. There's a really lively night club scene where you get to watch, almost like a 'fly on the wall', The Beatles being themselves.

Watch it, buy the Hard Day's Night Album and drift away into a pleasant and sentimental 60's daydream.

I finally sat through this film in a theater last year when Miramax released it. While I'm more of a fan of Beatles music than I am of their films, let me just say that I'm glad I finally saw this film. It's not bad...but the music got to me first so let's leave it @ th@. Abbey Road, Revolver, the White album, Rubber soul and Sgt Pepper...truly great records in deed.

If anyone wants to witness the phenomenon that was "Beatlemania" in the 1960s, all they have to do is view "A Hard Day's Night". Although it's a fictional account of two days in the life of the rock group on tour, it captures the essence of what their life on the road was actually like. It also served to enhance their "personalities" as individuals, as well as show their spirit of fun-loving lads as a group. And as a bonus... the music throughout is superb! Sprinkled with Beatles' hits, Richard Lester's film almost serves as a blueprint for the music video form that took over the airwaves in the 1980s. Filmed with humor, great tunes and fast-paced editing, "A Hard Day's Night" usually never fails in delivering smiles and pleasure. If you're a music fan, and a rock and roll buff, the film is a must!

I've never really been a fan of the Beatles. This is not to say that I don't enjoy their music, but I'd simply never been exposed to much of it. However, in the past year, I'd started to listen to many of their songs, and I instantly understood why they were so popular. Back in 1964, the band's growing popularity had spawned numerous best-selling albums, and the next step was a natural one - a Beatles movie. And so 'A Hard Day's Night' was born.

This modest-budgeted 1964 black-and-white film allegedly documents a "typical" day in the life of the Beatles. Whilst I'm aware that much of it was greatly exaggerated and dramatised for its portrayal on screen, I'm fairly certain that one thing has remained fairly accurate - the vast hoards of incessantly screaming teenage female fans who flock around the four performers, either during performances or in public. At the height of Beatlemania, I wouldn't be surprised if such scenes actually occurred on a regular basis.

The four young actors of the band, who I, quite obviously, don't need to name, are not the most talented of actors, but they perform adequately. The screenplay simply calls for them to act as themselves, and this they do quite well. Norman Rossington is good as Norm - the Beatles' manager - and Wilfrid Brambell is hilarious as Paul McCartney's "other grandfather," who has joined the band's travels for a "change of scenery." 'A Hard Day's Life' is an interesting little film, full of moments of joy and laughter and drama - and let us not forget the excellent soundtrack of (you guessed it) Beatles songs! It is not, in any real way, a groundbreaking film, though I've heard that the performance scenes greatly influenced how music videos were filmed at the time.

However, if, like me, you were unfortunate enough to have missed out on the 1960s, and you've been wondering why the Beatles were as big as they were, this is your definitive answer!

There is something pretty interesting about this, you get a real glimpse of the personalities of these legends. You see their laid back attitude, and feel the humour that they lived by.

That is the best thing you could get from this. It isnt a particularly well written or directed film. It is a mess. It is scatter brained, holds no real semblence of any substance. It is a shell of personality. That is all.

Youll chuckle and smile, but other then that i feel like you may just be bored. I was bored. So. Sorry.

I love the beatles though.

58 characters left. Man IMDB why you do this too us? It hurts.

...but they were great entertainers, and this film is great entertainment. This is the best of all of the rock and roll films that feature the actual performers. This picture demonstrates The Beatles at the peak of their popularity in the Summer of 1964- wandering about London- with the ultimate soundtrack in the background. A fascinating homage to Beatlemania when viewed now- over half a century later. The inventive boys from Liverpool are displayed at their sarcastic and witty best in this natural setting. A Hard Day's Night is a great example of the early Beatles musical ability, and work product, being that the title tune was written in about 20min between finishing an American tour, a European tour, a plethora of television specials, recording an LP in Paris in German for the Deutschland market, writing and recording the Hard Day's Night LP as well as making this film all within the same year, and before May of that year. After which, they all went on a month long vacation, recorded another album and began work on the next film. These guys were driven workaholics at this time, and their collective creative synergy has never been seen again.

There wasn't anywhere The Beatles could go without being mobbed, thus they spent years boxed up in hotel rooms together to the point where they knew each other so well they often finished each others sentences during interviews. As a group of young men going through that type of stress day in and day out, they had to develop coping skills in order to keep it together, it seems they chose humor as their main tool. This movie shows us a little bit of that.

Genius casting is evident in Hard Days Night with the inclusion of Irishman Wilfred Brambell as Paul McCartney's incorrigible Grandfather. Brambell was only 52 at the time but looked 82. At the time Brambell was very well known to British audiences due to the popularity of his television character named Albert Steptoe in a show called Steptoe and Son. Brambell's 1960s character Steptoe was the basis for the Fred Sanford character played by Redd Foxx on the 1970s American TV show "Sanford and Son". Look fast for a 13 year old Phil Collins in the audience as a screaming fan and look even faster for 20 year old Pattie Boyd as a schoolgirl on the train ride.

"A Hard Days Night" has got to be one of the funniest movies of all time, firmly holding its place with such classics as "Annie Hall" and "Duck Soup". It is also one of my top five favorite films of all time. The film proved that the Beatles could not only write and perform incredible songs, but that they could act as well. They are assisted in no small part by the extraordinary screenplay by Alun Owen. His dialogue is so unreasonable witty that even Groucho Marx himself would be impressed.

In "A Hard Days Night", we not only see the Beatles as great characters, but we also get some other outstanding characters, such as Paul's mischevious grandfather (Wilfred Brambell) and the dim-witted Norm and Shake (Norman Rossington and John Junkin).

This is a great film with great music and a great screenplay. I recommend this not only to avid Beatles fans, but to movie fans in general.

A "typical" day in the life of the Beatles. They have to deal with Paul's grandfather (Wilfrid Brambell), a neurotic TV director (Victor Spinetti), their long-suffering managers and tons of screaming fans.

No real plot, just a lot of very lively sequences overflowing with one-liners and non sequiturs. The tone of the scenes go all over the place--one is full of verbal puns, the next visual gags, then absurdity reigns, THEN surrealism! It's a credit to director Richard Lester that he manages to keep all these various shifts in tone flowing smoothly. It's great to see that the Beatles are obviously enjoying themselves every minute. Some of the jokes are obscure (the "clean" jokes were based on remarks made about the Beatles back in 1962) and the accents are sometimes difficult. But it's great to see the Beatles so young and full of life and when they sing the film becomes magical. Also they have a good cast backing them up--Brambell and Spinetti are just great (and very funny). If you don't like the Beatles or their music, you might want to skip this film. But if you do, it's a must-see.

This is a silly and stupid at many times but still almost something that could by now be a collector's item just to have so many of the early Beatles songs on one film. They permeate this movie and sound great in digital stereo, as opposed to how they first sounded on records when they were released decades ago. I say that just off hearing the VHS. I imagine the DVD with 5.1 surround sound makes this even that much better!

The story is really nothing but showing the Beatles traveling to do a concert and quirky behind-the-scenes goings-on. This is a good period piece because of the dress, songs and British expressions of the day (i.e. "Grotty," meaning "grotesque.")

This movie almost has the look of an early music video.

I first saw this film way back in the day. Saw it, didn't hear or understand much of it, what with all those pubescent young females screaming their lungs out in the audience. When the young females were resting I had to contend with the Fab Four's Liverpudlian speech patterns which were as yet unfamiliar to me. Still very few soundtracks produced as many hits as did A Hard Day's Night.

As much as The Beatles themselves revolutionized popular music, A Hard Day's Night also was a revolutionary film of its own. What you're seeing here is nothing less than the first music video, albeit a rather lengthy 90+ minute one.

Director Richard Lester wisely eschewed the idea of a plot and basically did a docucomedy with songs about 12 hours in the life of John, Paul, George, and Ringo. They gave Paul a grandfather, played by Wilfred Brambell who when he wasn't getting into mischief on his own was influencing Ringo to spread his wings so to speak.

Will Ringo get back to the studio in time for the big Broacast? Actually 32 years before that in Paramount's The Big Broadcast the same was asked of straying Bing Crosby. Of course you know the answer.

A Hard Day's Night is must viewing for anyone who's trying to learn about the sixties. Or somebody who just likes the music of Paul McCartney and the lyrics of John Lennon.

Vehicle for the rock-and-roll sensations from Liverpool has John, Paul, George and Ringo arriving in London, attending a party, rehearsing for a television show, meeting fans. Not much in the way of "action", but the plot is easily dismissible, anyway. It's the cheeky impudence of the Fab Four's personalities and their music which makes this a happy event. Gilbert Taylor's stunning black-and-white cinematography still impresses today. Two Oscar nominations: for George Martin's music scoring and Alun Owen's original screenplay. *** from ****

In the 1980s, Paul McCartney made a film that was obviously inspired by "A Hard Day's Night". However similar in structure, "Give My Regards to Broad Street" was clearly NOT the same quality movie. So, if you saw this much later film and assumed "A Hard Day's Night" is also a boring, bloated and enormously long-winded music video, think twice! Despite having practically no plot and TONS of Beatles songs strung together instead of a story, there is something likable about "A Hard Day's Night" and it gives you the next best thing to a backstage pass to meet them--albeit heavily scripted and plasticized.

The plot, for what it is, is a visit to the hectic life of the Beatles--making it not much of a stretch for the boys. And they essentially play the public roles each played--Paul was the sweet and nice one, John the clever smart-aleck, George the quiet one and Ringo the goofy one. Whether this is exactly as they really were is pretty doubtful, but they did play the parts the public expected and loved. The film includes them being chased by fans (A LOT), riding trains, making eyes at girls, cracking jokes and singing. Along for the ride is the somewhat irrelevant 'grandfather' of Paul--who was actually actor Wilfrid Brambell from "Steptoe and Son" (a precursor to "Sanford and Son" in America). He mostly just sits there and looks serious or chases young women. In the MANY times when the film breaks into seemingly spontaneous music videos, he mostly sits there and looks bewildered. I am sure back in 1964, anyone in the theater older than, say, 35, looked pretty much the same way!! As I said, the plot is VERY thin and mostly it's just a chance to pretend to see the Beatles as they are in real life (sure) and hear a lot of their songs...LOTS. In fact, it seems like the songs often take the place of plot. Now this would suck if it was, say, the Bay City Rollers,The Ohio Express or The Starland Vocal Band. But, considering almost every song is among the group's best, it's hard to hate the lack of plot--unless you are a crazy young whippersnapper who hates the Fab Four! As for me, I found the film very forgettable but fun...with nice tunes. I did NOT see it as brilliant cinema and cannot understand all the votes of 10--which, to me, seem more like votes on how much they like the Beatles instead of the overall merits of a film. That's because it just didn't seem like a movie--more like an extended advertisement for the group in order to satisfy their insanely devoted fans and convert others to the cult! And, in that sense, it is a successful film---but oddness in style and the group not taking themselves too seriously don't, to me, make it a great film. Many of their jokes fall flat, the songs seem about as spontaneous as a moon landing and the lack of structure make it a niche film. A must-see? Well, if you love the Beatles, yes. Otherwise, just a strange and occasionally humorous 'anti-film' that tries hard NOT to be a movie.

By the way, not matter how kooky the Beatles may or may not have been, who wears a hat and underwear in the bathtub, shaves a mirror or draws on TV monitors?! Also, watch Ringo when he plays the drums. Often his motions aren't even close to him really playing the drums and the sticks often don't come close to touching the drums!

This is one of the best musicals of all time. The Beatles are charming and funny, the music is great. It baffles me that it is not rated more highly in the database, it's a great movie that all but the most die-hard Beatles haters would enjoy.

I can not say to much about the movie, 'coz there is no story... but just the photography is excellent, every single angle is perfect, and well the music. For me it's a kind of long video...

Before I get flamed, let me say I love the Beatles' music and am a huge fan of British humor (I 'get' it and understand the accents). That being said this movie didn't do much for me. Yes, it's cool to see the young Beatles and get a glimpse of their personalities - however manufactured for the film they may be. It's neat to see '60's London, the fashions and dance styles of the time. The music is impeccable.

The rest of it is just kind of blah. The jokes aren't particularly funny, the grandfather bit is lame, the constant running/playing/mugging to the music gets old, as do the screaming, fainting 12 year old fans. It's okay as a time capsule but certainly no masterpiece. Apologies to everyone for whom it's an essential piece of their youth - guess I just missed it by a decade or so!